LONDON: A 1955 Mercedes-Benz, one of only two such versions in existence, was auctioned off earlier this month for a whopping 135 million euros ($143 million), making it the world’s most expensive car ever sold, RM Sotheby’s announced Thursday.
“A 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe from 1955 has been sold at auction for a record price of EUR135,000,000 to a private collector,” the classic car auction company said in a statement.
The vehicle sold for almost triple the previous record, which was set in 2018 by a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO that fetched over 48 million dollars.
The invitation-only auction took place on May 5 at the MercedesBenz Museum in Stuttgart, Germany, the auction house said.
The car is one of just two prototypes built by the Mercedes-Benz racing department and is named after its creator and chief engineer, Rudolf Uhlenhaut, according to RM Sotheby’s.