Monterey Car Week is currently in full swing and the roads of Central California are buzzing with some of the rarest cars on earth, but all eyes were fixed on the RM Sotheby’s booth this weekend. That’s because a McLaren F1 LM-Specification, arguably the star of Pebble Beach this year, sold for more than $19 million at auction after fees.
RM Sotheby’s confirmed that the ultra-rare hypercar sold for $19,805,000 when all was said and done on Friday at the auction company’s Monterey sale. This is actually less than the dizzying $21 million-$23 million price RM estimated the car would go for, but it’s still the most expensive F1 ever sold at auction, and for good reason.
This car is one of just two McLaren F1s to receive the LM-Specification upgrade, which puts it on the same level as the track-only F1 LMs, themselves an homage to the Le Mans-winning F1 GTR race car. The two road-going F1s to receive the upgrade were sent back to the factory where McLaren installed a high-downforce kit, adding front fender vents, more aerodynamic side skirts, and a large rear wing. The BMW 6.1-liter V12 power plant was also freed of its restraints, boosting power to 680 horses and bringing the redline up to 8,500 RPM. Thanks to RM Sotheby’s, we can now hear what it sounds like at full shout.
This example, chassis 018, started life as a “regular” Midnight Blue Pearl F1 with a black interior. The car’s second owner commissioned its racecar transformation in 1999, also opting to repaint it Platinum Silver Metallic with a cream leather interior. Its last owner was New Zealand collector Andrew Bagnall, who enjoyed the car for 12 years. With 13,352 miles on the odometer, a garage queen it is not.
According to Top Gear it’s going to an American collector, so if you missed it Car Week there’s a chance to see it at the next hypercar show.
