Before analysing the Top 10 most expensive cars ever sold at auction, let's take a look at OPENLANE's own archive, which has built up its own ranking…

The Top 3 of OPENLANE

3. The charm of this Italian beauty doesn't fade with time. Originally from Holland, this musical Maserati Grand Cabrio in exquisite blue seduced a German buyer. Made in 2014, with just under 21.000 km on the clock, it was sold at €100,300.

2. A Brit this time. OPENLANE enabled a Dutch driver to be seduced by this Aston Martin Vanquish, originally from Belgium. A prestigious English number from 2015 with just 4,095 km on the clock, justifying its €173,500 price tag…

1. Across all the categories, its a Porsche 911 GT3 RS, the most radical of all the modern 911's, that takes the number one spot. With just 820 kilometres on the clock, originally from Germany, this car found a new owner in Poland last May, for the princely sum of €202,500!

                                       
3.Maserati Grand Cabrio                                              2. Aston Martin Vanquish                                               1. Porsche 911 GT3 RS

The top 10 most expensive cars ever sold at auction

Here are the ones being snapped up between the petrol kings, web moguls, finance geniuses and industry leaders:  

10. Ferrari 375-Plus Spider Competizione, 1954 

Built by the Ferrari racing division, this car is powered by a 4.9-litre V12 engine. The Italian driver, Umberto Maglioli, managed to take second place with it during the famous Mille Miglia race in 1954.
Price achieved at auction: €16,437,799.61


9. Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider, 1961

The story behind this car makes it truly unique. A real barn discovery! This car was unearthed last year by Artcurial, after having spent decades in a garage as part of the entrepreneur Robert Baillon's abandoned collection.
Price achieved at auction: €16,526,976.49


8. Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Lungo Spider by Touring, 1939 

Only twelve of this Lungo Spider, designed by Touring, were ever made. It represents the great Italian touring of the interwar period, a time during which Alfa Romeo was renowned for the prestige and sportsmanship of its creations.
Price achieved at auction: €17,688,331.60


7. Jaguar D-Type, 1955 

It's pretty simple to sum up this exceptional car: it is the first Type D ever produced and it also won the 1956 24 Hours of Le Mans! QED
Price achieved at auction: €19,457,164.76


6. Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale by Scaglietti, 1964

This car was created especially by the Ferrari racing division to contend with the Ford GT40 and Shelby Cobra. A result of the 250 Series, it features aluminium bodywork, independent rear wheels and a more powerful V12, which is installed lower down in the engine compartment. One of the only three examples of this car finished third in the general class of 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Price achieved at auction: €23,584,442.13

5. Ferrari 275 GTB/4*S NART Spider, 1967 

10 examples of this model were built at the request of Luigi Chinetti, an importer of Ferraris to the United States. NART stands for the North American Racing Team.
Price achieved at auction: €24,567,127.22


4. Ferrari 290 MM, 1956 

This old factory Ferrari was created for Juan Manuel Fangio, enabling him to shine at the Mille Miglia race of 1956. The most expensive car sold at auction in 2015, it boasts an impressive track record.
Price achieved at auction: €25,058,469.76


3. Mercedes-Benz W196, 1954

It also bears the mark of Juan Manuel Fangio, the four-time F1 World Champion. The price achieved by this car is largely down to its originality. In its original state, it still bears the traces of its racing career, with wear caused by the driver's hands and feet.
Price achieved at auction: €26,443,162.39


2. Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti, 1957 

Besides the fact that this is one of Ferrari's most spectacular racing cars, and one of the best performers of the 1950s, this Ferrari stands out because of its history, which is as long as a month of Sundays! This car took the lead on all of the era's most iconic racecourses!
Price achieved at auction: €31,892,597.88


1. Ferrari 250 GTO, 1962

The grail! Considered my many to be the most beautiful car of all times. A myth! A racing machine and an example of the design and excellence of the Italian sports car industry... and there are only 39 of them!
Price achieved at auction: €34,050,038.32

A bargain

In the world of used cars, the extremes often rub shoulders and, sometimes, to a pretty spectacular extent. That's why next to our Top 3, OPENLANE also has a couple of other surprises to reveal…

OPENLANE is also the perfect place for doing good business, just take this Ford Courier, a 1.3 litre utility vehicle. Registered in 2000, it was sold in 2014 with 88,000 km on the clock for the whopping sum of... 1 Euro! However, there was definitely a bit of work to do on it…