Auctions

The Aston Martin DB6 doesn’t get the love it deserves. In some ways, that’s because it succeeded the Aston Martin DB5, considered as the most iconic Aston Martin model ever made. When you’re a model that’s following a model as legendary as the DB5, expectations can be unreasonably high.

The DB6 was a great Aston Martin; it just wasn’t the DB5. Still, the DB6’s collectible status has increased over the years, in part because of how rare they are. Only 1,788 units were built over a five-year stretch, and of those 1,788 units, one unit is now available through British classic car restorer Bell Sport & Classic.

This particular model is a DB6 Volante, the drop-top version of the standard DB6. It’s more than 12 times rarer — only 140 units were ever made — than the standard coupe DB6, and while it has undergone several restorations in its lifetime, it remains in top-quality condition. Bell Sport & Classic didn’t reveal a price tag for this DB6 Volante, but prepare to spend six figures for a chance to bring home one of the rarest Aston Martin models in history.

Pedigree is what sells a racing car and this Ferrari 550 GT1 from the noughties is bathing in pedigree as the last V-12-engined Ferrari to win a high-profile 24-hour race and one of only 12 of its kind to be built by Prodrive in the UK.

No wonder, then, that this car became the most expensive car ever to be sold at an online-only auction after going for just under $4.3 million during the Shift/Monterey RM/Sotheby’s auction that replaced the auction house’s now traditional Monterey Car Week auction.

One of the rarest sports cars in history is up for auction at Bonhams: the 1969 M-505 Adams Brothers Probe 16. Only three models were ever made, and all three units are still around, though the location of one unit (chassis number: AB/2) is unknown.

Meanwhile, one of the three units can be yours, provided, of course, that you have deep pockets to pay for it. Bonhams estimates that this example of the M-505 Adams Brothers Probe 16 (chassis number: AB/3) will fetch anywhere from $150,000 to $250,000.

The Mustang Shelby GT saga started in 1965 with the GT350, a sportier, lightweight version of the ’Stang. But Ford and Carroll Shelby took things up a notch in 1967, when he introduced the GT500, a not-so-light but significantly more powerful version of the Mustang. The GT500 remained in production as the range-topping Mustang until 1969, but unsold 1969 models were given 1970 identification numbers. With just 380 units rebadged for 1970, this fastback is hard to find, and low-mileage, well-maintained examples are extremely rare. If you’re looking for one, the folks over at Mecum Auctions are offering an example with just 57,000 miles on the odometer at the Kissimmee Summer Special in late August.

One way to make sure that a car is rare is to check if it was built simply as a way for an automaker to race that certain model on the tracks or the rally stages. This applies to BMW’s E9 CSL, the winged warrior that dominated the European touring car racing scene for the better part of a decade taking wins against the likes of Ford, Mercedes-Benz, and Jaguar in the process. The road-going version is just as flamboyant and, as this latest BaT auction proves, incredibly desirable.

Nostalgia is a strong tool in marketing and when you’re Mercedes-Benz you’ve got a huge bank of memories to fall back on, a seemingly endless catalog of legendary models and memorable milestones and otherwise remarkable achievements, some of the more incredible having been achieved in the world of racing.

Among Mercedes’ finest days in the sun on the circuits of the world is the day when a journalist accompanied a then-up-and-coming driver to win a road race in Italy. The men were Denis Jenkinson and Stirling Moss and the car was the 300 SLR. 45 years after that victory for the ages in the Mille Miglia, Mercedes-Benz paid tribute to Moss, to Jenks, and to the SLR by building this, the SLR McLaren Stirling Moss.

Cars have been divided into affordable and expensive ever since the early days of the automobile. As Ford began to streamline production for the Model T, which made it affordable to the average Joe, automakers like Rolls-Royce were producing luxurious and expensive cars.

Companies like Bugatti, Duesenberg, and Cadillac soon joined this endeavor to produce the best car in the world, which would also be the most expensive car in the world. As years went by, many of them also became very valuable. Rare cars become collectibles, and collectible status comes with a high price tag. Which are the rarest and most expensive cars on the market right now? Find out in the article below.

A 1965 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R has become the most expensive Mustang ever sold at an auction setting. The record-breaking Shelby GT350R sold for a whopping $3.85 million, eclipsing the previous record-holder, the 1968 Mustang GT hero car that was driven by Steve McQueen in the movie Bullitt. No less than Ken Miles, the British racer who was prominently featured as one of the main characters in the movie, Ford v. Ferrari, drove the specific Shelby GT350R, nicknamed the “Flying Mustang.” The $3.85 million sale price now ascends to the top of the ladder as the single most expensive Mustang to ever sell at auction. It’s going to take a special Mustang to unseat the new record-holder.

A few days ago we reported about a pristine 1988 BMW M3 being auctioned off by Bring a Trailer. With just 8,000 miles on the odometer, the almost new M3 had a $120,000 bid and seemed to be on its way to setting a new record for the E30-generation model. Five days later, the classic sports coupe found anew owner for a whopping $250,000.

The first-generation Ford Mustang is one of the most iconic cars ever built, and for a 60-year-old classic it isn’t very expensive. You can buy several models for less than $100,000 and the rare versions aren’t as expensive as the Ferraris from the era, which are known to cost from as low as $5 million to as much as $50 million.

But some Mustangs can cost millions of dollars. Up until now, Steve McQueen’s Mustang from the Bullitt movie was the most expensive, having been auctioned off for $3.74 million in January 2020. Come July and that record has been surpassed by another Mustang from the era. The prototype version of the 1965 Shelby GT350R just crossed the block for $3.85 million, $14K more than McQueen’s green ’Stang.

Lamborghini is known for making some of the world’s most outlandish cars. The Aventador is arguably the last of the old-school greats, a big, heavy supercar with a naturally aspirated V-12 engine positioned behind the seats and its tiny brother, the Huracan, has been a steady seller for years.

But Lamborghini wasn’t always hell-bent on making supercars with its first cars being laid-back grand tourers. It all changed, however, when the Miura arrived. And then, while everyone was still wiping off their drool, Lamborghini struck again with this, the Miura SV.

The Auburn Automobile Company was founded in 1900 and went bankrupt only 37 years later. But during its short life Auburn managed to develop and build some cars that are now considered valuable classics. The short-lived Speedster, introduced during Auburn’s last years on the market, is one of them and you can buy one during RM Auction’s Auburn Fall sale between September 3 and 6, 2020.

The Toyota Tundra is known for its rock-solid reliability. It’s also strong, well-built, a competent hauler, and tough enough to be taken off the roads as well. But, it looks like this owner was not happy with the Bruce Banner version of his Tundra and decided to transform it into Hulk.

The model in question is a 2013 CrewMax equipped with the TRD Off-road package. This Tundra is a completely different monster inside-out and might be your best bet if we face an apocalypse.

Covered in Red Bull Racing’s colors and sporting a sizeable wing in the back, it’s hard to fathom that this, the 1998 Ultima Spyder, is Ultima’s maiden effort at making a "car designed with pure road use in mind."

The second-generation Pontiac Firebird was built from 1970 until 1981, and the cars produced in the first couple of years are by far the most popular. That’s because they’re from the golden muscle car era and fitted with the high power engines that went extinct when the oil crisis hit in 1973. However, the Firebird enjoyed new popularity toward the end of the 1970s thanks to a Trans Am model being used in the Smokey and the Bandit movie. If you’re looking for something unique from the era, here’s a nice restomod version of a 1974 Firebird.

The Porsche 911 Speedster returned for the 2020 model year after a nine-year absence. It’s the final iteration of the previous 991.2-generation 911, it’s incredibly expensive, and limited to 1,948 units. If you missed out on the Speedster when Porsche introduced it in 2019, you can buy the final example at an RM Sotheby’s auction for coronavirus relief.