We all complain about inflation and all the rising prices, but you don’t hear about the real victims. The very richest on this planet, the top of the 1 percent club. In addition to filling their thirsty Rolls-Royces with expensive gasoline, they have been paying millions more for their car collections in recent years. Millions! And you whine about your 100 euros extra per month for gas and electricity. Also think about someone else. In fact, the record for the most expensive car has now been broken. No, even crushed.
It would be one of the two Mercedes 300 SLR ‘Uhlenhaut Coupés’ from the collection of the brand itself, reports Hagerty† For the 1956 racing season, Mercedes built two closed versions of the 300 SLR race car, but in the end it was never used on the track. Instead, the head of the testing department, Rudolf Uhlenhaut, was allowed to use them as a company car. The eight-cylinder produced 302 hp, which at the time was already good for a top speed of 290 km/h.
How much was the most expensive car in the world?
Resources to Hagerty talk about a purchase amount of 135 million euros† That’s double the previous record for the most expensive car ever. In 2018, a Ferrari 250 GTO was sold for 66 million euros. By the way, it would be the Uhlenhaut Coupé with chassis number 0008/55, recognizable by a red interior. In the photos you see the other car with a blue interior, which can probably still be spotted in the museum.
Not everyone was allowed to buy the Mercedes 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé
A Mercedes agent is said to have invited about ten collectors who not only had enough money to buy the 300 SLR, but also met the brand’s requirements. They wanted to make sure that the car would receive the same attention and care as it would have given to them. The fact that the Mercedes museum in Stuttgart will be closed from May 6 to 14 for an undisclosed ‘event’ would, according to Hagerty confirm that collectors are snooping around.
Why the most expensive car in the world was not raced
Mercedes dominated motorsport in the 1950s. For example, Stirling Moss won the Mille Miglia with the 300 SLR (W196S). Later that year, disaster would strike during the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Mercedes driver Pierre Levegh and 82 spectators were killed in an accident between two 300 SLRs and an Austin-Healey. Mercedes then withdrew from racing altogether and so this Mercedes 300 SLR ‘Uhlenhaut Coupé’ was never used on the track.
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