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.

1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut - $144.8 Million

At the time of writing, we’ve got a new entrant in this list and it has leapfrogged every car in history to claim the apex position. It’s a 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut that recently went under the hammer for €135 million! That’s $144.8 million at current exchange rates.

The 300 SLR Uhlenhaut is just one of two prototypes that were built at that time and is considered one of the finest examples of automotive engineering. The other example is with the company and will continue to be displayed at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart. The 300 SLR Uhlenhaut is named after Rudolf Uhlentaut, its creator and chief engineer.

The Uhlentaut is the street-legal version of the 300 SLR which was introduced for the 1954 Grand Prix season. The car is powered by a straight-eight engine that churned out approximately 298 horses at 7,400 rpm and 233 pound-feet of torque at 5,950 rpm. With a top speed of 180 mph, it was the fastest road-going car at that time. The engine was mated to a five-speed manual gearbox. Another interesting fact is that it weighed just 2,200 pounds (998 kilos).

It is also said that Rudolf Uhlentaut was once running late for a meeting and completed a 220 km (137 miles) commute between Stuttgart and Munich in about an hour! Radar speed checks were introduced in 1959, so no cop problems there. All said and done, this is quite a rare car and is one of the finest models to have graced our planet. The Ulhentaut’s successor, the 300 SL Gullwing road car, had a production run of 3,258 examples and it still commands a price of well over a million bucks. So, a car this rare and this perfect was bound to fetch a huge amount. Could any car ever top this?

1956 Mercedes 300 SLR Uhlenhaut coupe specifications

1962 Ferrari 250 GTO - $70 million

Fitted with a powerful V-12 engine and a stylish, aerodynamic body, the 250 GTO was built in only 33 units. Original pricing was set at $18,000 back in 1962 and each customer had to be personally approved by Enzo Ferrari. A few decades later and these cars started showing up at public auctions, selling for millions of dollars.

In more recent years, a couple of 250 GTOs changed hands privately for incredible sums.

Another example sold for $52 million in 2013, while chassis no. 3413GT sold for $48 million in 2018 holds the record for the most expensive car sold at a public auction.

The 250 GTO might not be the rarest car in the world, but it's definitely the most expensive with five units sold for more than $40 million as of March 2020.

1962 FERRARI 250 GTO specifications

Read our full review on the 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO

1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa - $39.8 million

The Testa Rossa saw the light of day in 1957 and it was Ferrari's answer to FIA's new regulations for sports cars. The 250 TR turned out to be one of the company's most successful race cars. It went on to win 10 World Sportscar Championship races, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 12 Hours of Sebring, and the Targa Florio. The Testa Rossa remained competitive until the early 1960s.

Once retired, the cars weren't considered valuable and many of them spent many years forgotten in garages, but the 250 TR started to gain value in recent decades to the point where it became one of the most valuable vintage Ferraris. In 2014, chassis 0704 changed owners for a reported $39.8 million.

Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa specifications

Read our full review on the 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa

1962 Ferrari 250 GTO - $38.1 Million

Another entry on this list, and it’s another Ferrari. This time, it’s a 1962 250 GTO that fetched $38 million at Bonhams' Quail Lodge Auction back in 2014. It comes as no surprise because the Ferrari 250 GTO is one of the most valuable cars in the world. There was nothing particularly special about it, and since we have already mentioned all about the GTO in the $70 million entry, we’ll keep this short. But, on a side note, that’s two 1962 Ferrari 250 GTOs fetching almost $110 million combined. Wow!

1962 FERRARI 250 GTO specifications

1957 Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti - $35.7 million

The third most expensive car on our list is also a Ferrari. It's also a race car, but slightly different than the 250 Testa Rossa.

Essentially an evolution of the 315 S, the 335 S was built in just four units. Needless to say, the Sport Scaglietti model is unique and more importantly, it remained with the same owner for more than 40 years. Auctioned off in 2016, it traded for a whopping $35.7 million. This specific model won the 1958 Cuba Grand Prix and scored a second-place finish at the 1957 Mille Miglia.

1957 Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti specifications

Read our full review on the 1957 Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti

1954 Mercedes-Benz W196 - $29.6 million

The only Mercedes-Benz on our list is also the only Formula One single seater ranked among the most expensive cars in the world. Produced by the German company for the 1954 and 1955 seasons, the W196 was a revolutionary vehicle back in the day and won the majority of races it was entered in.

It won both seasons of the Formula One championship against competition from Maserati, Ferrari, Cooper, and Lancia. The car sold for $29.6 million in 2013 is the only surviving W196 in private hands, as well as the most successful version of the car.

1954 Mercedes-Benz W196 specifications

Check out more details on the 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196

1956 Ferrari 290 MM - $28 million

The list continues with yet another Ferrari, the 290 MM. Also designed for the World Sportscar Championship, the 290 MM features a spyder layout and a V-12 engine under the hood. Alongside the 335 S, the 290 MM helped Ferrari win the championship in 1956. The following year a 290 MM won the 1000-km Buenos Aires race. This specific model was driven by the legendary Juan Manuel Fangio at the Mille Miglia and was sold for $28 million in 2015. At the time, it was the third costliest car in the world.

1956 Ferrari 290 MM specifications

Read our full review on the 1956 Ferrari 290 MM

1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 NART Spider - $27.5 million

The Ferrari 275 was introduced as a replacement to the 250 and some versions of this model became almost as iconic and expensive as the 250. One such variant is the GTB/4 NART Spider, a limited-edition series of only 10 examples commissioned by Ferrari North America dealer Luigi Chinetti. Envisioned as a successor to the 250 California Spider, it was a convertible version of the 275 GTB/4, itself an improved version of the standard 275.

It's one of the rarest 275 series built and a well-maintained unit was auctioned off for $27.5 million in 2013. The drop-top features a 3.3-liter V-12 engine with four overhead camshafts.

1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 NART Spider specifications

Read our full review on the 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 NART Spider

1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale by Scaglietti - $26.4 Million

50 years after this 1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale came out of the womb, the car went under the hammer at RM Sotheby’s auctions and fetched $26.4 million. Maranello produced 453 examples of the 275 GTB, but only three of them were the GTB/C Speciale models. The three models were built to go up against the Ford GT40 and Shelby Cobra Daytona at Le Mans in 1965, but this particular model, the first car built of the three with the chassis number 06701 never competed. There was a dispute between Ferrari and FIA over homologation, and that was the reason only one of these examples, the chassis 06885 entered the race. But, despite that – or rather, because of its pristine condition – it managed to score a price of $26.4 million, thus finding a spot in this list of the most expensive cars in the world.

All three 1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciales were based on a lightweight tube-frame chassis wrapped in aluminum body panels. They were powered by a 3.3-liter V-12 engine and featured six Weber 38 DCN carburetors and oversized valves in modified cylinder heads. The power output from this mill was 320 horses. This chassis 06701 example first exchanged hands back in May 1965. It went around a lot and saw many owners in its lifetime, with the 2014 sale fetching it the biggest bucks - $26.4 million.

1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale by Scaglietti specifications

Read our full review on the 1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale by Scaglietti

1956 Aston Martin DBR1 - $22.5 million

Arguably the most iconic race car from Aston Martin, the DBR1 is also one of the rarest vehicle fitted with the British company's badge.

It also won races at Spa, Nurburgring, and Goodwood. The DBR1 also scored Aston Martin's only overall win at Le Mans. The car sold for $22.5 million in 2017, a record for British automobiles, was completed in 1956 as the first DBR1.

However, its first and only win came in 1959 at the Nurburgring. Although it's not the most successful DBR1, it's only one of the three that actually hit the race track in official events.

1956 Aston Martin DBR1 specifications

Read our full review on the 1956 Aston Martin DBR1

1956 Ferrari 290 MM by Scaglietti - $22.005 Million

Well, another Ferrari 290 MM makes the list, this one being sold for $22,005,000 at the 2018 RM Sotheby’s auctions. This is the chassis number 0628 and has an enviable history of racing in three continents. It started its life in 1956 with a four-pot Monza 860 heart and Tipo 520 architecture, which was new at that time. The 0628 290 MM made its motorsport debut at the prestigious Mille Miglia with Peter Collins piloting the Prancing Horse. The 290 MM with the chassis number 0626 that is present on this list was also part of this racing event along with another 290 MM bearing chassis number 0616 and an 860 Monza.

The car went on to have podium finishes at the Mille Miglia and 1000 KM of Buenos Aires as a Scuderia Ferrari team car. It even scored an overall victory at the Nassau Trophy and Memorial race with Stirling Moss. The 0628 is one of the final of four examples built and among only three surviving examples. The car was retained by the Chinetti family for nearly three decades before going over to a noted Ferrari collector, Jon Shirley, in 1998. It changes hands in 2008, 2011, and finally went under the hammer in 2018 at the Petersen Automotive Museum fetching $22,005,000.

1956 Ferrari 290 MM specifications

1935 Duesenberg SSJ - $22 million

The only American car from our list, the SSJ was built by Duesenberg, a company that existed for only 24 years, from 1913 to 1937. But despite its short existence, Duesenberg left a big mark on the auto industry thanks to its successful race cars and high-end luxury automobiles.

The SSJ is its most iconic model. Part of the Model J series, the SSJ featured a shorted wheelbase and a more powerful, supercharged engine. The massive, 6.9-liter straight-engine generated a whopping 400 horsepower, the most of any Model J. Only two cars were built and sold to Hollywood actors Gary Cooper and Clark Gable in 1935 and 1936, respectively.

Rumors have it that Cooper and Gable used to race each other in the Hollywood hills in their SSJs. The car that sold for $22 million in 2018 belonged to Cooper and remained in unrestored condition for several decades. It's by far the rarest and most significant car built in the United States. Not only the most expensive American car, this SSJ is also the most valuable pre-WW2 car ever sold.

1935 Duesenberg SSJ specifications

Check out more details on the 1935 Duesenberg SSJ

1955 Jaguar D-Type - $21.8 million

Just like the DBR1 for Aston Martin, the D-Type was a quintessential model for Jaguar. Introduced in 1954, they hit the track almost immediately and remained competitive until 1959.

Although it failed to finish during its maiden presence at Le Mans in 1954, the D-Type went on to win the iconic race three years in a row from 1955 to 1957. The D-Type scored Jaguar's last victory at Le Mans until 1988. It's also one of the very few cars that scored three wins in the iconic endurance race. In 2016, the D-Type that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1956 was auctioned off for $21.78 million.

1955 Jaguar D-Type Specifications

Read our full review on the 1955 Jaguar D-Type

1963 Aston Martin DP215 - $21.45 million

A prototype sports car similar to the Ferrari 250 GTO in design, the DP215 was introduced in 1963 alongside the DP214. Designed to replace the DP212, the DP215 was built on the chassis of the DB4GT. Built in just one example, the DP215 was race at 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1963, but failed to finish due to transmission issues. The prototype raced a couple more events and suffered two crashes, one of which resulted in a rebuilt. The DP215 was restored completely in the 1980s, being finished in 1991 after 11 years of work. The car was driven at various classic car and racing events until it was auctioned off for $21.45 million in 2018.

1963 Aston Martin DP215 specifications

Read our full review on the 1963 Aston Martin DP215

FAQ

Q: What is the most expensive car in the world?

The most expensive car in the world is the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut. It was recently bought by a private collector for €135 million, which is approximately $144.8 million as per the exchange rates at the time of penning this.

Q: Who owns the most expensive car in the world?

The most expensive car in the world, the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut, is owned by a private collector. It is one of the two prototypes that exist today, with the other one being with Mercedes on display at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart.

Q: How much was the most expensive Mercedes ever sold?

The most expensive Mercedes is the 300 SLR Uhlenhaut and it was sold for €135 million at an auction in 2022. That’s around $144.8 million as per the exchange rates at the time of writing this.