‘When you realise your classic car is worth more than a Premier League football club.’
A historic sale! The 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196 R Stromlinienwagen has become the second most expensive car ever sold at auction, fetching €51.155 million ($53.9 million) at RM Sotheby’s Stuttgart.
Once driven by Juan Manuel Fangio and Sir Stirling Moss, this ultra-rare Silver Arrow attracted fierce bidding before the hammer finally dropped. A collector’s dream—read on for complete auction details!
A Historic Sale at RM Sotheby’s Stuttgart
- Date: February 1, 2025
- Final Price: €51.155 million
- Significance: Now the second most expensive auctioned car, behind only the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé (€135 million, 2022).
The Car: A Motorsport Icon
- It is one of only four Streamliners ever built—the only one ever auctioned.
- Driven by Fangio & Moss, it played a key role in Mercedes’ dominant F1 return in 1954–1955.
- Race pedigree: 14 races, 11 wins, including Fangio’s 1955 Buenos Aires GP victory.
The Auction Battle
- Bidding started at €30 million and quickly escalated.
- Three determined collectors drove the Price past €50 million.
- Winning bid: €51.155 million, setting a new benchmark.
Why It’s Priceless
- Unmatched rarity—most W196 R models remain in museums.
- Historic provenance—kept for 59 years in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum.
- A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the world’s most serious collectors.
With this record-breaking sale, the W196 R Stromlinienwagen will be among motorsport’s most treasured artefacts—a truly priceless piece of Formula 1 history.
‘A bidding war between billionaires is like watching two people fight over the last biscuit—except the biscuit costs more than a private island.’
