RM Sotheby’s and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum offer 11 top cars including a 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196R Formula 1 racer and a Le Mans-winning 1964 Ferrari 250 LM at auctions in 2024.
The top cars from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum collection heading for RM Sotheby’s auctions later in 2024 or early 2025 include a 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196R Formula One car driven by Juan Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss, the 1965 Le Mans-winning Ferrari 250 LM, a Le Mans-raced 1966 Ford GT40 Mk II. The sales will also include several early, pre-First World War racing cars.
RM Sotheby’s Auctions of Indianapolis Speedway Museum Cars in 2024
RM Sotheby’s announced that it will sell 11 top cars from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum at various auctions from the fall of 2024. The exact auctions and dates have not been revealed yet but are expected to be at the end of 2024 or early 2025. These cars are being offered from the museum’s collection of over 150 cars to finance the museum’s redevelopment and to ensure future funding.
The top cars on offer include a 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196R Formula One racer driven by Juan Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss, the 1965 Le Mans-winning Ferrari 250 LM, a Le Mans-raced 1966 Ford GT40 Mk II, and some of the most significant Grand Prix cars from the early 1900s.
The 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196R with streamlined bodywork will be offered at a sale at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, Germany, towards the end of 2024. It is also the only car for which an estimate was released by RM Sotheby’s: a whopping $50,000,000 – $70,000,000 — a result will likely make it the most expensive F1 car ever sold and the second-most expensive car ever.
Top Indianapolis Museum Cars at RM Sotheby’s Auctions 2024
The top four cars from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum that will be sold at RM Sotheby’s auctions in 2024 or 2025 are:
1954 Mercedes-Benz W196 Streamliner ‘Monza’
This 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196R Streamliner ‘Monza’ was driven by two of motor racing’s best drivers, Juan Manuel Fangio and Sir Stirling Moss in the 1955 season. Originally featuring an open-wheel body, Fangio raced this car in a non-points race in Buenos Aires in 1955 to two second places. Later on, this chassis received the iconic streamlined bodywork and was then driven by Moss at the 1955 Italian Grand Prix at Monza. At the race, Moss failed to finish the race but achieved the fastest lap earning him one point in the World Drivers’ Championship that year. Mercedes-Benz subsequently used the car as a practice and test car.
This Mercedes-Benz was donated to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in 1965 directly from the factory (Estimate: $50,000,000 – $70,000,000 USD).
1964 Ferrari 250 LM
This historically significant 1964 Ferrari 250 LM was the Chinetti/NART entry for the 1965 running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a race in which Masten Gregory and Jochen Rindt achieved an impressive first overall finish, a feat not accomplished again by a Ferrari until 2023.
Following Le Mans, the Ferrari competed in the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona finishing sixth in class and ninth overall with Jochen Rindt and Bob Bondurant behind the wheel. Two months later, it was displayed at the New York Auto Show.
This 250 LM competed at Le Mans two more times, making it a three-time entrant in the 24-hour endurance classic, and one of just six Ferraris to compete at Le Mans three times in the Enzo era (1947 to 1988). Incredibly, of the eight races it participated in during its racing career, seven were 24-hour endurance races—a three-time entrant in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and a four-time entrant in the 24 Hours of Daytona.
This special Ferrari has been shown at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance and the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. The Ferrari was acquired by the IMS Museum in 1972 from Kirk F. White.
No estimate was released yet but two 1964 Ferrari 250 LM cars have sold for over $17 million but neither was a Le Mans winner.
1966 Ford GT40 Mk II
This 1966 Ford GT40 Mk II made its racing debut as the Holman-Moody entry at Sebring in 1966, driven by Walt Hansgen and Mark Donohue. They finished second behind Ken Miles and Lloyd Ruby in the Shelby American entry. To date, it marked the best finish for Holman-Moody at Sebring.
Following further testing, this car was prepared by Holman-Moody for the 1966 running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans where it was driven by Mark Donohue and Paul Hawkins. It was one of three Ford Motor Company/Holman-Moody GT40 Mk IIs participating in the race. After Le Mans the car was shown in Europe and by 1967 it was returned to Holman-Moody and put into storage, never to race again.
Consequently, this car is believed to be one of the more original Mk II examples as the car did not receive the racing updates other examples that continued their racing career did. This GT40 Mk II benefits from a restoration in the 2000s and is presented as it was raced at Le Mans in 1966 finished in the unique period Mustang shade of Emberglow with white side stripes and green DayGlo patches. Ford Motor Company donated the car in the 1970s.
1957 Chevrolet Corvette SS Project XP64
The Corvette SS was Chevrolet’s first purpose-built race car utilizing the best materials and proven designs of race cars of the 1950s and may be the only magnesium-bodied Corvette ever made. It also marked the first use of SS on a Chevrolet product, two letters synonymous with performance and the Chevrolet brand today. This Corvette SS is one of just two examples built, this and a prototype.
Corvette SS made its racing debut at Sebring 1957 to critical acclaim, earning a pole position to start the race for team drivers John Fitch and Piero Taruffi. Sebring would mark the car’s first and only race as just a few weeks later the Automobile Manufacturers Association (AMA) enacted a ban on motor racing for member companies which included GM and its Chevrolet Division. Zora Arkus-Duntov who was involved in the project would later play a role in this car being donated to the IMS Museum in the late 1960s.
Early Racing Cars from Indianapolis Speedway Museum at RM Sotheby’s 2024 Auctions
Some fantastic early racing cars from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum collections will be offered at the RM Sotheby’s auctions in 2024 or 2025:
1908 Mercedes Brookland-Semmering Rennwagen
Purpose-built as a works entry for the 1908 Semmering Hill Climb, this car has higher specs than a Grand Prix car of its time, standing out as a prime example of early racing cars. With a 150HP 17.4-liter engine built specifically for one race, it not only won but set a course record. This one-off car drove to the 1909 race under its own power and won again setting a record that stood for 15 years. Of the three surviving Mercedes race cars of the Brookland type, this is the only one with a fully documented race history.
After its racing career, it was taken to Australia in 1909 and eventually brought to the US in the 1950s by David Grey jr, son of the major initial investor in Ford Motor Company. In 1964, it sold for around $30,000, possibly the highest price for a car at that time, and has been a museum centerpiece since then. This car epitomizes the pinnacle of chain-drive, large-displacement Grand Prix cars, with Mercedes being the most advanced and successful of the era.
1907 Itala
Built by the Itala factory in Torino, Italy, and driven by Henri Fournier, the 1907 Itala is a renowned example of early Grand Prix racing excellence. This car, long believed to be the #17 car that placed 8th in the 1907 US Grand Prix in Savannah, GA, was acquired by the IMS Museum in the mid-1960s. It has since been showcased at Pebble Beach and Amelia Island. In 1935, Itala became part of Fiat, and it is believed that only three of these cars still exist. Unlike road cars of the time, this racing machine features a 14.5-liter engine and is shaft-driven, contrasting with the chain-driven Mercedes of the same era.
1911 Laurin & Klement Racer
This car is exactly as it was in its period. Commissioned by Baron Leo Haan, it is likely the first car ever to incorporate active aerodynamics, featuring a rudder attached to the steering wheel. This car is an exceptional example of the era, maintaining its high originality, including the upholstery and a 2-cylinder 883 cc motor.
1911 Mercedes 22/40 “Colonial Car” Touring
An early chain drive touring car, built for South America with oversized wheels, showcasing the engineering of its era. This rare survivor has its original Mercedes Sindlefingen touring coachwork and is highly complete and unmodified. Riding on 42″ tires with a widened track this is a most imposing machine.
Other Cars Heading for Auctions
1928 Bugatti Type 35B Grand Prix
The 1928 Bugatti Type 35B Grand Prix is a legendary car with a storied history. Produced in 1928, it is believed to have been retained and raced by the factory. Delivered new to Georges Bouriano, a Romanian racing driver, in the spring of 1930, it was originally painted dark red. Bouriano competed in the car until he sold it in 1934 to French driver Arthur Legat, who raced it successfully. The next owner, Pierre Vingerhoedts of Antwerp, gave the car a new racing body in the 1950s. It then passed to Jean de Dobbeleer, and later to Mr. Felton, who was the Vice President of VSCCA. The Feltons donated the car to the IMS Museum in 1960.
1991 Benetton B191 Formula 1 Car
With Benetton’s new car not yet ready for the 1992 season, 1991 cars were utilized for the first three races of the year. Camel Benetton-Ford team drivers for 1992 were Martin Brundle and Michael Schumacher. Schumacher had competed in the last five races of the 1991 season and 1992 marked his first full year in Formula 1. This car was used by Schumacher in the very first race of the 1992 season, the South African Grand Prix, a race in which Schumacher started sixth and finished fourth behind Nigel Mansell, Riccardo Patrese, and Ayrton Senna, respectively.
1964-5 Sonic I – The Spirit of America
Named after Craig Breedlove’s goal of breaking the sound barrier, 1964-5 Sonic I set the ultimate land speed record five times, the fastest being 600.601 mph. Craig’s wife, Lee, set the women’s land speed record in this car, averaging 308.56 mph.