A 1937 Mercedes Benz 540 K Cabriolet A is the lead car for the RM Sotheby’s Essen 2019 classic car auction in Germany.
The most-expensive car on offer at the Essen 2019 sale, RM Sotheby’s first classic car auction in Germany, is appropriately an imposing yet elegant 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540 K Cabriolet A by Sindelfingen (estimate $2,260,000 to $2,700,000). Other top cars include a 2013 Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse, a 2018 Italdesign Zerouno, and a 1959 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster. The auction consists of more than 200 lots including a large number of youngtimers – a category that performed very well at recent sales.
See also: Top Results at the RM Sotheby’s Essen 2019 Sale.
RM Sotheby’s Essen Car Auction 2019
RM Sotheby’s first-ever Essen, Germany sale, is scheduled for 11 – 12 April 2019 during the Techno-Classica Essen Show. Plans are for Essen to join Paris, Monaco, Villa Erba, and London as regular RM Sotheby’s classic car auction venues in Europe.
Around 200 cars and a select number of automobilia will be on offer with the pre-sale estimates for cars ranging from €15,000 to €2,400,000. Only four cars have estimates exceeding a million dollar while 75 have estimates lower than €50,000 and 125 less than €100,000 – a section of the market that performed well in recent months in contrast to cars costing more than a million dollars.
Top Cars at RM Sotheby’s Essen 2019 Sale
The following four cars are on offer at the RM Sotheby’s Essen sale in Germany in 2019 with estimates exceeding a million dollar:
| Year | Car | Estimate (€) |
| 1937 | Mercedes Benz 540 K Cabriolet A | 2,000,000 – 2,400,000 |
| 2013 | Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse | 1,500,000 – 1,700,000 |
| 2018 | Italdesign Zerouno | 950,000 – 1,500,000 |
| 1959 | Mercedes Benz 300 SL Roadster | 850,000 – 1,000,000 |
Million-Dollar Cars at RM Sotheby’s Essen 2019 Sale
1937 Mercedes-Benz 540 K Cabriolet A by Sindelfingen
The lead car for the inaugural RM Sotheby’s Essen classic car auction is a supercharged 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540 K Cabriolet A by Sindelfingen, estimate €2 million – €2.4 million, one of the finest cars built in the 1930s, and with immense performance available from its supercharged, straight-eight engine.
This Mercedes Benz 540 K, chassis number 154078, was ordered by Mercedes-Benz of London in August 1936, shipped by rail to the United Kingdom in light green paint set off by a pale-yellow top, brown headliner and seats upholstered in the finest pig skin. The chassis was delivered in right-hand drive in the sporty Cabriolet A body style, with integrated trunk and covered spare in the elegantly sloping rear deck. The Sindelfingen plant built 32 of these opulent cars and just 18 are believed to remain today.
At recent auctions, Mercedes Benz 540 K Cabriolet A cars have mostly sold for around $3 million, although bidding for 540Ks did not always clear reserve margins.
2013 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse
The second most-expensive car on offer at the Essen sale is a 2013 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse, estimate €1.5 million – €1.7 million. Only 92 Grand Sport Vitesse versions were ever built.
This Grand Sport Vitesse was built by Bugatti to be displayed at the 2013 Geneva International Motor Show. Chassis number 795027 was shown on Bugatti’s stand alongside a Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport and another Grand Sport Vitesse. The car has numerous custom touches throughout including exposed carbon fiber bodywork. It is offered in as-new condition with less than 550km on the odometer.
Bugatti Veyrons have struggled at several auctions in the past twelve months with several failing to sell. In the Grand Sport Vitesse version, results were mostly above $2 million.
2018 Italdesign Zerouno
A 2018 Italdesign Zerouno estimate €950,000 – €1.5 million, is another fascinating lot for serious collectors. This modern supercar was the last of only five produced and the first in-house produced supercar by the company more famous for its designs and coach building.
The Zerouno is finished in unique stealth matte paintwork. It is presented in virtually as-new condition having never been road registered and thus have only delivery and testing mileage on the clock.
1959 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster
One of the landmark cars that often forms a part of important collections is the 1959 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster. RM Sotheby’s could hardly arrange its first German auction without offering one.
This 1959 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster, estimate €850,000 – €1 million, is a stunning example that recently received over 170 hours of mechanical and cosmetic work by German 300 SL specialists Kienle Automobiltechnik and Walter Pusch. It is offered with its original factory hardtop and a set of matching fitted luggage.
Other Cars at the RM Sotheby’s Essen 2019 Sale
Other key lots of interest include a 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo Prototype one of the first 993 Turbo prototypes and featured in Total 911 Magazine (Est. €295,000 – €395,000), a 1994 Lamborghini Diablo SE30 that is virtually as-new throughout a mere 403 km recorded (Est. €395,000 – €495,000), a 1962 Aston Martin DB4 Series IV delivered new to the USA, where it resided for 30 years (Est. €345,000 – €395,000), and a 1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Berlinetta, a desirable European example with Plexiglass nose, retaining its original engine and having undergone recent service work by marque specialists and Classiche certified (Est. €550,000 – €650,000).
Interesting lots at the lower end of the price scale include a desirable Series II 1970 Mazda Cosmo Sport (Est. €85,000 – €125,000), a rare 1999 BMW M Coupe in desirable Estoril Blue (Est. €45,000 – €65,000), a raced and enjoyed 1976 Morgan Plus 8 Super Sport Lightweight featuring numerous unique racing modifications (Est. €50,000 – €75,000), an exceptionally well-maintained, German-delivery 1994 Porsche 968 Clubsport (Est. €55,000 – €85,000), a 2015 Land Rover Defender SVX built for use in the James Bond film Spectre (Est. €175,000 – €225,000), and a Classiche-certified 1984 Ferrari 400i (Est. €75,000 – €100,000).
RM Sotheby’s previously announced a number of Lancia Rally cars for the Essen 2019 sale.
Youngtimer Collection at RM Sotheby’s Essen 2019
The varied nature of the Essen entries is enhanced with the introduction of more cars from the much-buzzed-about Youngtimer Collection, with 85 cars offered in Germany, largely without reserve. Cars from this collection sold astonishingly well at the RM Sotheby’s auctions in Paris and Amelia Island earlier in 2019.
There is a broad representation from key marques within the Youngtimer Collection, including 23 Mercedes-Benzes, 11 Rolls-Royces, 11 BMWs, nine cars by Daimler, Jaguar or Land Rover, eight Bentley models and seven Alpina cars. The most valuable cars consigned include a 2011 Porsche 911 GT3 RS that has covered just under 9,300km from new (Est. €150,000 – €175,000), a Japanese-delivery 1998 Mercedes-Benz SL 70 AMG that remains in largely original condition (Est. €125,000 – €175,000), and a rarely-seen, German-delivery 2007 Wiesmann GT powered by a 4.8-litre BMW V8 engine (Est. €170,000 – €200,000).
