Very rare Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR becomes world's most expensive car
Has there ever been a car in the world worth $142 million? If reports are to be believed, there is one now. The car in question is the very rare Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe. The company had built only two units of the car after it exited the racing scene in 1955 and one of them has been sold to someone very rich.
- Mercedes-Benz is known for several things in the automotive world. Now, it apparently has the title of making the most expensive car ever.
- Over the decades, the company has been hell-bent on not selling the two 300 SLR Coupes. We don't know what made the company sell one of them.
- For all we know, the details around the sale will likely remain a "secret."
Mercedes-Benz reportedly had a secret auction for one of the 300 SLR Uhlenhaute Coupe cars at its museum in Stuttgart. Only 10 or fewer selected car collectors were invited. Apart from having the means to purchase the car, Mercedes also made sure that the buyer had the best interest of the car in their mind and wasn't just going to flip it for profit.
If reports are true, the 1956 Mercedes-Benz SLR 300 Uhlenhaut Coupe's $142 million price tag doubles the previous record for the most expensive car. It overtook the Ferrari 250 GTO's sale price of $70 million set in 2018.
Mercedes-Benz made the SLR 300 race car in 1950. Till 1955, it dominated the racing scene with nine wins out of 12 races. It was driven by legendary drivers like Juan Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss. However, the 1955 Le Mans crash involving the car that killed driver Pierre Levegh and 83 spectators led the company to exit the racing scene.
In 1956, Mercedes-Benz made two hardtop versions of the 300 SLR. However, they never entered a competitive race track. One of the two was used by the automaker's test department's head, Rudolf Uhlenhaut. This gave the car the name 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe. The cars have been in Mercedes's care since then and have been widely regarded as the most valuable cars.
