Ferrari 312 T4

1979 Ferrari 312 T4

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monaco | May 2024

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Ferrari’s 312T line of cars participated in Formula 1 from 1975 through 1980. Variations won 27 races and three driver’s championships, including in 1979 when the Scuderia entered this car, the 312 T4. It is the car that Jody Scheckter used to win his only F1 championship.

It is powered by a 3.0-liter flat-12 that made somewhere around 500 horsepower. This chassis, 040, has the following competition history:

  • 1979 Belgian Grand Prix – 1st (with Jody Scheckter)
  • 1979 Monaco Grand Prix – 1st (with Scheckter)
  • 1979 French Grand Prix – 7th (with Scheckter)
  • 1979 German Grand Prix – 4th (with Scheckter)
  • 1979 Austrian Grand Prix – 4th (with Scheckter)
  • 1979 Dutch Grand Prix – 2nd (with Scheckter)
  • 1979 Italian Grand Prix – 1st (with Scheckter)
  • 1979 Canadian Grand Prix – 4th (with Scheckter)
  • 1979 United States Grand Prix – 10th, DNF (with Scheckter)

Another Monaco Grand Prix-winning chassis. Scheckter was the only person to have raced this chassis and is the only person to have driven it since the season ended. It’s a big deal, and it has an estimate of $5,600,000-$7,000,000. Click here for more info.

Tyrrell 008

1978 Tyrrell-Cosworth 008

Offered by Bonhams | Monaco | May 2024

Photo – Bonhams

The Tyrrell Racing Organisation – one of the great F1 team names – finished fourth in the constructor’s championship in 1978, their 13th season in F1. They used the 008 for the entire season, which was the first season after their famous six-wheeler.

The cars were powered by a 3.0-liter Cosworth DFV V8, which this car retains. The competition history for this chassis, 008/03, includes:

  • 1978 South African Grand Prix – 2nd (with Patrick
  • 1978 Monaco Grand Prix – 1st (with Depailler)
  • 1978 Belgian Grand Prix – 17th, DNF (with Depailler)
  • 1978 Spanish Grand Prix – 20th, DNF (with Depailler)
  • 1978 Swedish Grand Prix – 19th, DNF (with Depailler)
  • 1978 French Grand Prix – 24th, DNF (with Depailler)
  • 1978 British Grand Prix – 4th (with Depailler)
  • 1978 German Grand Prix – 24th, DNF (with Depailler)
  • 1978 Austrian Grand Prix – 2nd (with Depailler)
  • 1978 Dutch Grand Prix – 23rd, DNF (with Depailler)
  • 1978 United States Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Depailler)
  • 1978 Canadian Grand Prix – 5th (with Depailler)

The car was also involved in the start of the race crash at the 1978 Italian Grand Prix. Depailler would move to a back up car for the restart of the race.

It was later used in privateer racing around the U.K. and then became part of Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason’s collection. It is a Monaco winner and has a pre-sale estimate of $1,170,000-$1,500,000. More info can be found here.

Toyota TF102

2002 Toyota TF102

Offered by Bonhams | Monaco | May 2024

Photo – Bonhams

Toyota announced they were heading to Formula One in 1999, but they didn’t appear on the grid until 2002. The TF102 was their first F1 car, and this is chassis #03. It was used as a test car for the team throughout the year, seeing seat time with both of their drivers: Mika Salo and Allan McNish. It was also driven by Stephane Sarrazin and Alan Briscoe.

The team was both a chassis constructor and an engine manufacturer, and this chassis retains a 835-horsepower, 3.0-liter Toyota V10 (though, some electronics are missing). The TF102 peaked early, earning Salo a 6th place finish in its debut in Australia. Salo would achieve a 6th-place finish two rounds later in Brazil, and it was all downhill after that.

Toyota left F1 after the 2009 season, never having won a race. This chassis was purchased by its current owner in 2020 and has a pre-sale estimate of $320,000-$430,000. Click here for more.

McLaren M23

1973 McLaren-Cosworth M23

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monaco | May 2024

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Turns out former F1 champion Jody Scheckter has quite the collection of old F1 cars, including this, his McLaren M23. The M23 was a helluva car, appearing on the grid in races beginning in 1973 and ending in 1978. Could you imagine someone running a five-year-old F1 chassis in a race today?

This car is chassis M23-2, and it is powered by a Cosworth V8. In period, the 3.0-liter DFV made about 465 horsepower. The competition history for this chassis includes:

  • 1973 Spanish Grand Prix – 4th (with Peter Revson)
  • 1973 Belgian Grand Prix – 16th, DNF (with Revson)
  • 1973 Monaco Grand Prix – 5th (with Revson)
  • 1973 Swedish Grand Prix – 7th (with Revson)
  • 1973 British Grand Prix – 1st (with Revson)
  • 1973 Dutch Grand Prix – 4th (with Revson)
  • 1973 German Grand Prix – 9th (with Revson)
  • 1973 Austrian Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Revson)
  • 1973 Canadian Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Jody Scheckter)
  • 1973 United States Grand Prix – 18th, DNF (with Scheckter)
  • 1974 South African Grand Prix – 19th (with Dave Charlton)
  • 1975 South African Grand Prix – 14th (with Charlton)

It also competed in F5000 and Can-Am races through 1980! It remained part of McLaren’s collection before being traded into Scheckter’s. It now has an estimate of $1,860,000-$2,400,000. More info can be found here.

McLaren MP4/21

2006 McLaren-Mercedes MP4/21

Offered by Bonhams | Abu Dhabi, U.A.E. | November 25, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

The 2006 Formula One season was a classic Fernando Alonso/Michael Schumacher dogfight, with Alonso coming out on top. Behind Ferrari and Renault was McLaren, and this was their car for that year. Kimi Raikkonen was in one car, while Pedro de la Rosa replaced Juan Pablo Montoya in the other car midway through the season.

It was an Adrian Newey design and was powered by a Mercedes-Benz 2.4-liter V8 good for 750 horsepower. The competition history for this chassis, MP4/21-2, includes:

  • 2006 Bahrain Grand Prix – 3rd (with Kimi Raikkonen)
  • 2006 Malaysian Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Raikkonen)
  • 2006 Australian Grand Prix – 2nd (with Raikkonen)
  • 2006 San Marino Grand Prix – 5th (with Raikkonen)
  • 2006 European Grand Prix at Nurburgring – 4th (with Raikkonen)
  • 2006 Spanish Grand Prix – 5th (with Raikkonen)
  • 2006 Monaco Grand Prix – 20th, DNF (with Raikkonen)
  • 2006 French Grand Prix – 5th (with Raikkonen)

McLaren restored the car before selling it off, and it hasn’t been used since. The pre-sale estimate is $2,500,000-$3,500,000. Click here for more info.

John Player Special

1978 Lotus-Cosworth Type 79

Offered by Bonhams | Abu Dhabi, UAE | November 25, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

Well, F1 cars don’t come much more famous or significant than this. Bonhams has littered their listing with superlatives and a lot of words, so let’s try to distill it down a bit. The Type 79 was developed in late 1977 and would debut midway through 1978, dominating and being carried over for the 1979 season as well.

The car was advanced for its time, with the aerodynamics taking advantage of “ground effects”, sucking the car to the road in the corners. It’s powered by a 3.0-liter Ford-Cosworth DFV V8 that made about 475 horsepower. The competition history for this chassis, 79/4, includes:

  • 1978 Dutch Grand Prix – 1st (with Mario Andretti)
  • 1978 Italian Grand Prix – 6th (with Andretti)
  • 1978 Canadian Grand Prix – 8th (with Andretti)
  • 1979 Argentine Grand Prix – 5th (with Andretti)
  • 1979 Brazilian Grand Prix – 23rd, DNF (with Andretti)
  • 1979 French Grand Prix – 13th (with Carlos Reutemann)
  • 1979 British Grand Prix – 23rd, DNF (with Andretti)
  • 1979 Austrian Grand Prix – 18th, DNF (with Reutemann)
  • 1979 Dutch Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Reutemann)
  • 1979 Italian Grand Prix – 7th (with Reutemann)

A few other notes. For 1978, the team ran the cars in the John Player Special livery, but the 1979 paint scheme was Martini. This car was also used in Mario Andretti’s 1978 championship season (in which he won the driver’s championship and Lotus the constructor’s).

Lotus kept the car until selling it in 1983. It suffered a big crash in a vintage event in 1989. Later rebuilt, the car changed hands next in 1999, when the current owner bought it. This car has an estimate of $6,500,000-$9,500,000 – the high end of which is short of RM’s low estimate on their modern Mercedes F1 car. Which seems backwards. Click here for more info.

Mercedes W04 F1

2013 Mercedes-AMG W04

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Las Vegas, Nevada | November 17, 2023

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Mercedes-Benz took quite the hiatus from Formula One, departing in 1955 after murdering a bunch of spectators. They returned as an engine supplier in the 1990s, but didn’t come back with a full team effort until the 2010 season, a year after purchasing reigning champions Brawn GP.

After three somewhat disappointing seasons, they showed up in 2013 with this, the W04 that was to be fielded by drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. It would take them to second in the constructors championship, bettering the fifth they achieved the year prior. It was clear they were onto something, as the following year they would win the championship… and then keep doing so year after year after that.

The W04 is powered by a 2.4-liter V8 with a KERS system that can produce 750 horsepower (or 830 with the KERS enabled). All while revving to a cool 18,000 rpm. This was the last season of F1 to feature V8 engines. The race history for this chassis, #F1W04-04 includes:

  • 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix – 3rd (with Lewis Hamilton)
  • 2013 Chinese Grand Prix – 3rd (with Hamilton)
  • 2013 Hungarian Grand Prix – 1st (with Hamilton)
  • 2013 Belgian Grand Prix – 3rd (with Hamilton)

This chassis was actually used in 14 races that year. It has somehow escaped Mercedes’ hands and has a pre-sale estimate of $10,000,000-$15,000,000. Click here for more info.

Ferrari F2001B

2002 Ferrari F2001B

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 16-19, 2023

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Ferrari’s F2001 was a dominant car in Formula One. Michael Schumacher won eight races in an F2001, securing the driver’s and constructor’s titles. For the start of the 2002 season, Ferrari tweaked the prior year’s chassis and dubbed it the F2001B. This car was used by Schumacher for the first two races of the 2002 season and the first three for teammate Rubens Barichello.

This chassis, #215, was a success right out of the gate. It’s competition history consists of:

  • 2002 Australian Grand Prix – 1st (with Schumacher)
  • 2002 Malaysian Grand Prix – 3rd (with Schumacher, from pole)

Schumacher won the title again in 2002, using the F2002 for the rest of the season. They used 3.0-liter screaming V10s during this era. This car is one of likely two built, and it’s a race winner to boot. You can read more about it here.

Update: Withdrawn.

Lotus 107C

1993 Lotus 107C

Offered by Bonhams | Goodwood, U.K. | July 14, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

Lotus has a long history in F1. From the days of Colin Chapman and Jim Clark to dominance in the ’70s and Mario Andretti’s only F1 championship. Lotus survived into the ’90s, selling out to what would become Pacific Racing, a team that disappeared after one season. The name then returned in the 2010s for a few years, which basically a holding place after Renault left and before they returned again.

Anyway, the Type 107 was designed by Chris Murphy (and team) and debuted for the 1992 season. The car was updated to “B” spec for 1993 and then to “C” specification for the first half of 1994 before it was replaced by the 109. Power in period was from a Ford-Cosworth V8 in ’92 and ’93 and a Mugen-Honda 3.5-liter V10 in 1994. Output was 725 horsepower for the Honda.

The history for this chassis, 107C-01 includes:

  • 1994 Pacific Grand Prix at Aida, Japan – 8th (with Pedro Lamy)
  • 1994 San Marino Grand Prix – 10th (with Johnny Herbert)
  • 1994 Monaco Grand Prix – 11th (with Lamy)

Lamy then used this car in testing at Silverstone when it suffered a catastrophic failure and was essentially destroyed. After Team Lotus failed in 1995, the remnants of this chassis were purchased by the current owner in 1997 along with some spares and rebuilt to show-car status. The Mugen-Honda V10 is long gone, but a mocked-up Judd V10 without internals is in there. The estimate is still $90,000-$125,000. Read more about it here.

Update: Sold $124,208.

Tyrrell 014

1985 Tyrrell 014

Offered by Bonhams | Goodwood, U.K. | July 14, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

Tyrrell was an innovative F1 team, especially in the 1970s. Ken Tyrrell started campaigning cars in other Formula in the late 1950s, arriving on the F1 scene in 1966. The team’s peak occurred in the late 1960s and early ’70s. Their final win came in 1983, and the mid-1980s were not kind. Their last season was 1998 before being bought by BAR, which became the Honda F1 team.

The 014 was the replacement for the 012 (which was a car that got Tyrrell disqualified from the 1982 championship season). The 014 was used for the latter half of the 1985 season and the first few races of 1986. The team’s drivers during that span consisted of Martin Brundle, Stefan Bellof, Ivan Capelli, and Philippe Streiff.

This car was raced with power from a Renault-Gordini turbocharged 1.5-liter V6. Only four 014 chassis were made, and the history for this one, 014/3, includes:

  • 1985 Italian Grand Prix – 8th (with Martin Brundle)
  • 1985 Belgian Grand Prix – 13th (with Brundle)
  • 1985 European Grand Prix at Brands Hatch – 18th, DNF (with Brundle)
  • 1985 South African Grand Prix – 7th (with Brundle)
  • 1985 Australian Grand Prix – 13th (with Brundle)
  • 1986 Spanish Grand Prix – 10th, DNF (with Brundle)

This car is described as being “in as-last-raced condition” and does not have an engine. But the gearbox is there! So you can sit in it and pull through the gears making revving noises. The estimate here is $63,000-$100,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $73,933.