Worlds Most Expensive McLaren Sold For R300-Million – McLaren F1 LM
The annual Monterey Car Week auction at Pebble Beach recently disclosed one of the big-ticket items that would be going under the mallet – an ultra-exclusive McLaren F1 LM. Now, McLaren F1’s are known to fetch millions and millions of Rands at auctions, but this specific McLaren takes its place at the top of the list after being sold for a mega R300-million. To put that into perspective, you could buy the most expensive new Bugatti ever made and still have change.
The Bugatti La Voiture Noire was sold for around R263-million, a cool R37-million less than the McLaren. In fact, you could have bought around 55 McLaren 720S’s for the price of the F1 LM, or alternatively, you could have bought 7 Bugatti Chiron’s.
This McLaren F1 started its life as a regular F1 in 1994, finished in Midnight Blue Pearl with a black interior. Then, in the year 2000, the car was shipped back to the McLaren factory in the UK for an exclusive modification. The result was the McLaren F1 LM – a Platinum Silver Metallic reincarnation of the V12 supercar. For the last quarter of a decade, this specific F1 has regularly been shipped off the McLaren HQ for all of its scheduled servicing and maintenance.
McLaren boosted the engine output from the 6.1-litre naturally aspirated BMW V12 by 40kW, bringing maximum power up to 507kW. But R300-million doesn’t just pay for more power. It also buys aerodynamics and improved handling in the form of a large rear wing, unique side vents and a remodelled front end. To top it all off, McLaren fitted an upgraded exhaust system, two extra radiators and race-spec springs and dampers, as well as a set of 18-inch wheels borrowed from the McLaren F1 GTR.
Details of the mysterious new owner have not been revealed, however many high net-worth individuals have commented that the owner resides in the United States.
