A Jaguar D-Type, Ferrari Daytona Spider, Lamborghini Veneno, and Porsche 904 GTS were announced for the RM Sotheby’s Paris 2020 Rétromobile classic car auction.
RM Sotheby’s announced several further rare exotic cars for road and track for its seventh annual Paris sale on 5 February 2020 at Place Vauban location during Rétromobile week. These cars include a historic 1955 Jaguar D-Type (Est. €5.900.000 – €6.400.000), the seventh customer model produced. Other rare cars include a 2015 Lamborghini Veneno Roadster, one of just nine made, an iconic 1972 Ferrari 365 GTS/4-A Daytona Spider with, remarkably, less than 28,000km from new, and a stunning matching-numbers 1964 Porsche 904 GTS.
1955 Jaguar D-Type at RM Sotheby’s Paris 2020 Sale
The 1955 Jaguar D-Type (Est. €5.900.000 – €6.400.000), chassis number XKD 520, boasts period competition history and still presents in highly original condition. This particular car is the seventh D-Type ever produced for private customers. Delivered new to four-time Australian Drivers’ Champion Bib Stillwell in Melbourne in January 1956, the car was used extensively by Stillwell on local circuits and was briefly prepared for a run at a land-speed record before returning to sports car class competition, winning the Bathurst Road Racing Championship in 1956.
The Jaguar D-Type changed hands during the ‘50s and ‘60s, undergoing sympathetic restoration and upgrades along the way – including the installation of a factory-supplied, 3.8-litre engine for prolonged competition use – before being bought by Australian marque expert Chris Keith-Lucas in 1977. The D-Type’s current owner acquired the car in 2014 and now makes this fabulous and rare car available to the most discerning international collectors in Paris.
A 1955 Jaguar D-Type, chassis XKD501, sold for $21,780,000, at the RM Sotheby’s Monterey 2016 classic car auction. This car won the 1956 24 Hours of Le Mans race and set both a marque and British car record – the latter since surpassed by a 1956 Aston Martin DBR1. Other D-Types have mostly sold for below $5 million while two spectacularly failed to sell during Scottsdale 2018 with unsuccessful highest bids of $9.8 and $8.85 million.
2015 Lamborghini Veneno Roadster at RM Sotheby’s Paris 2020
Another exclusive car for sale in Paris is a 2015 Lamborghini Veneno Roadster (Est. €4.500.000 – €5.500.000), one of just nine examples ever built and rarely appearing at auction. This car has covered only 450 km from new, having been retained by two owners including a member of the Saudi Arabian royal family, and is sold virtually as-new throughout. Perhaps the most outlandish automobile ever produced from a company built on the reputation of wild designs, the Veneno caused a fanfare when it was unveiled with its striking looks and a design so centric on carbon fibre construction.
Set to be a future classic and undoubtedly one of Lamborghini’s most desirable models ever built, the Veneno Roadster would be the centerpiece of any collection of 21st-century hypercars.
Bonhams set a new marque record when a 2014 Lamborghini Veneno Roadster sold for $8,337,182 at the Bonmont 2019 sale in Switzerland.
1972 Ferrari 365 GTS/4-A Daytona Spider at RM Sotheby’s Paris 2020
The 1972 Ferrari 365 GTS/4-A Daytona Spider by Scaglietti (Est. €2.400.000 – €2.600.000) is not only rare but the model also has to be one of the most iconic sports cars of the 1970s. Ferrari produced 96 Spiders on the Daytona platform as 365 GTB/4 models and 19 European-specification spiders as 365 GTS/4 models. Of these 19, 9 were produced with a reinforced chassis and are termed as 365 GTS/4-A.
The Ferrari Classiche certified 365 GTS/4-A on offer was previously owned and restored by Ferrari collector Luigi Calvasina and has covered less than 28,000 from new.
1964 Porsche 904 GTS at RM Sotheby’s Paris 2020
The fully matching-numbers 1964 Porsche 904 GTS (Est. €1.600.000 – €1.800.000) is a stunning two-seat dual-purpose sports car retaining its original engine and gearbox. A fantastic example of the first Porsche to wear a lightweight fibre-glass bodyshell, chassis no. 904-061 landed with noted French driver Raymond Touroul in 1969, who raced the car in a handful of events in period, including the Tour de France and the Coupes de Vitesse at Montlhéry.
In the 2000s, under the ownership of collector Alain Salat, the 904 was fitted with a period-correct Type 906 Carrera 6 engine to preserve the original powerplant, which has since been restored to its former glory and is offered alongside the car in Paris. Offered from 12 years of single-ownership, the 904 is presented with its FIA Historic Technical Passport, a significant history file, and showing just 24,000 km – which are believed to be original.
Paris Retromobile Week Auctions 2020
Classic Car Auctions
The traditional Paris Rétromobile Week auctions in early February include:
- Bonhams: Les Grandes Marques au Grand Palais Sale on 6 February 2020.
- Artcurial: Rétromobile Classic Car Auctions on 7 – 9 February 2020.
- RM Sotheby’s: Paris Auction at Place Vauban on 5 February 2020.
Paris Auction Results 2020:
- 2020 Artcurial Paris Rétromobile Sale (Auction Results)
- 2020 Bonhams Paris Sale (Auction Results)
- 2020 RM Sotheby’s Paris Sale (Auction Results)
Press Releases 2020:
- Artcurial: Highlights (including 1929 Mercedes Benz 710 SS Sport Tourer)
- Bonhams: Top Bugattis (and prewar cars)
- Bonhams: 1966 Ferrari Dino 206S/SP Sports Prototype
- Bonhams: 1932 Bugatti Type 55 Roadster by Figoni
- RM Sotheby’s: Three Delahaye 135 Cars
- RM Sotheby’s: Exotic Cars (including Jaguar D-Type, Veneno & Porsche 904 GTS)
