January’s gaggle of Scottsdale collector car auctions was highlighted by two-dozen cars that sold for more than $1 million. Heading the list was a 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540 K Special Roadster (featured), sold by RM Sotheby’s for $9,900,000, which made it the most valuable car ever sold during Arizona Auction Week. Second best was Gooding & Co.’s sale of a 1950 Ferrari 166 MM/195 S Berlinetta Le Mans that brought in $6,490,000 to establish a new world record for the model. Gooding also had the third-best seller, a 1967 Ferrari 330 GTC Speciale that hammered for $3,410,000. Also notable were Bonhams’ sale of the last 2015 McLaren P1 made for the U.S. market, which went for $2,090,000, and a 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder Weisach that Barrett-Jackson sold for $1,595,000.
Barrett-Jackson sold a special package of three “Serial One Corvettes,” all convertibles, all VIN 001, from 1955, ’56 and ’57, for $1,815,000, and renewed its auction for charity, with 11 vehicles selling for a total of $3,406,000. The charity field was led by the 2017 Acura NSX VIN 001, donated by Acura, which was bought by NASCAR team owner Rick Hendrick for $1.2 million.
Despite many record individual sales, most auction company’s saw a decrease in sales compared to 2015, though Russo and Steele was the only auction house to buck that trend and post an 11% increase over 2015. Leading the way at Russo was a 2003 Saleen S7 Coupe that hammered for $387,750, the American supercar topping a number of Ferraris, Lamborghinis and Fords also up for bid.
