1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Coupé SOLD for £115 Million

A 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Coupé, one of just two in existence and owned by Mercedes from new, is sold for a world record £115 million.

Everyone knows that the most valuable car in the world is the Ferrari 250 GTO, with chassis #3413 selling in 2018 for almost £40 million, and rumours of a private sale soon after for more than £60 million. But not anymore.

This week, at the Mercedes Museum, one of just two 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Coupés ever built, and owned by Mercedes from new, was sold for a whopping £115 million to a private collector represented by dealer Simon Kidston.

Kidston had been lobbying Mercedes for eighteen months to sell the 300 SLR, and Mercedes finally agreed to sell the ‘Red’ car (because of its red interior) which had been stored for much of its life, with proceeds benefitting a charitable fund for young people set up by Mercedes.

Sister car to the 300 SLR Stirling Moss took to the most impressive Mille Miglia drive ever in 1955, it was commissioned by Mercedes motorsport boss Rudi Uhlenhaut and, although with more than a passing nod to the 300 SL Gullwing it was pure competition car under the skin.

Never intended for road use, the 300 SLR Coupe was actually used by Uhlenhaut as a ‘Company Car’ for a while.

Simon Kidston commented:

If you had asked classic car experts and top collectors over the past half a century to name the most desirable car in the world, there’s a good chance that they would have come up with the same model: the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR.

After 18 months of patient lobbying, we didn’t know if or how they would consider letting the 300 SLR out of captivity until just before it happened. For everyone involved, and especially the new owner whom we represented, this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to buy the Mona Lisa of cars.

Now, about the other 300 SLR Coupé…