Schumacher Ferrari breaks modern F1 auction record

Michael Schumacher Ferrari F2003-GA

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £12.8m

Possibly the most significant automotive auction of 2022 didn’t happen at a regular car sale, but as part of Sotheby’s Geneva-based Luxury Week which mainly encompasses jewellery, watches, handbags and wine. The ex-Michael Schumacher F1 car with which the German ace scored victories in Spain, Austria, Canada, Italy and the US on the way to the 2003 driver’s championship obliterated its £8m high estimate to become the most expensive modern F1 car ever sold at auction. The F2003 was sold in on-the-button condition following a comprehensive overhaul by Ferrari’s Corse Clienti.

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1980 Vauxhall Chevette HS-X

Sold by Silverstone Auctions, £29,250 

A special version of the already special 2.3-litre Chevette HS homologation model, this HS-X was one of just 10 created by Middlesex Vauxhall dealer Mamos. Only three examples have survived.

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2016 Abarth 124 Spider rally

Sold by Bonhams, £79,000

This ex-works machine was powered by the same 1.8-litre turbocharged engine found in Alfa Romeo’s 4C. A former development car with three podium finishes under its belt, it was sold in ‘gravel’ spec.

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1990 Norton F1

Sold by Bonhams, £45,400 

Just 519 miles had been clocked by this JPS-liveried F1 road bike. It featured a de-tuned version of the 150hp motors used in the factory racers ridden by Steve Spray and Trevor Nation.

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1913 renault DQ

Sold by Historics, £130,800 

Straight from the days when men were men and pedestrians were rightly scared, this mighty Renault can hit 60mph thanks to its 8.5-litre engine. It featured recently built boat-tail bodywork.

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1993 RUF Porsche 911 3.8 BTR

Sold by Collecting Cars, £205,888 

A reported 110 bids were placed for this RUF-tuned 911 which packed a 530bhp engine bored-out to 3.8 litres and driving through a RUF six-speed gearbox. The car had covered less than 50,000 miles.

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1982 Triumph TR7 V8

Sold by H&H, £15,188 

The TR7 doesn’t usually attract much love, but this race-prepared example had the added appeal of a TVR V8 that endowed it with 350bhp. It was once owned by hillclimb champion Rhys Howells.

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1985 Audi Sport Quattro s1 e2

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £1.8m 

The eye-watering price achieved for this S1 E2 Sport Quattro is accounted for by the fact that it was one of just four in private hands to have competed in the World Rally Championship. This one led the 1985 Lombard RAC Rally in the hands of Hannu Mikkola – but an engine failure meant victory went to Lancia.

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Forthcoming sale highlights

• Mecum, Kissimmee, Florida, January 4-15
  A glance at the dates of Mecum’s season-opener indicates that this is going to be big – and it is. More than 4000 vehicles will cross the block during the 12-day extravaganza, among which will be an ultra-rare Porsche 718 RSK ‘centre seat’ spider from 1959, an Eagle Offenhauser Indy racer campaigned by Dan Gurney, and the usual host of American muscle cars, off-roaders, vintage machines and oddities.
• RM Sotheby’s, Scottsdale, Arizona, January 26
  One of the first major car auctions of 2023, this RM Sotheby’s sale at the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Arizona Biltmore Resort and Spa promises to set the market tone for what could be a tricky year. Among a host of enticing ‘moderns’ will be a barely touched 2012 Aston Martin V12 Vantage Zagato, a 2017 Ford GT with 380 miles on the clock and one of just four yellow 2008 Spyker C8 Spyders.
• Bonhams, Scottsdale, Arizona, January 26
  Among the stars of Bonhams inaugural 2023 auction will be cars from the collection of  John White, whose obsession with cars began as a child when his father was a Dodge dealer  in New York. Offerings from White’s California-based Ramshead Collection include  a 1957 Chrysler Ghia Super  Dart 400 concept, while a 1958 Siata 208S Spider that won its class at Pebble Beach 2022 is also up for grabs.
• RM Sotheby’s, Paris, February 1
  Although Artcurial is the official auction house of the giant Rétromobile classic car show, both RM Sotheby’s and Bonhams take advantage of the captive audience descending on the event from around the world to stage their own sales. There could be no better place to offer the dust-covered Hispano-Suiza K6 from 1934 that will be among the offerings crossing the  RM Sotheby’s block. It’s what Rétromobile is all about.