Ferrari 555 F1

1955 Ferrari 555 F1

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 2025

Photo – Bonhams

Scuderia Ferrari’s 1953 Formula competitor was the 553, which was actually designed to F2 specs, which is what the World Championship formula was that year. They made an F1 version of the 553 for 1954. For 1955, Ferrari updated the 553 to the 555. The new bodywork was longer and more rounded than the year before and earned the car the name the Supersqualo (super shark).

The car is powered by a 2.5-liter Lampredi inline-four that made about 260 horsepower. This car, chassis 555/1, had the following competition history:

  • 1955 Monaco Grand Prix – 8th (with Paul Frere and Piero Taruffi)
  • 1955 Belgian Grand Prix – 4th (with Frere)
  • 1955 Dutch Grand Prix – 7th (with Mike Hawthorn)
  • 1955 Italian Grand Prix – 10th, DNF (with Hawthorn)

The car was also driven in a non-points race by Nino Farina. In 1956, Ferrari had moved on and sold the 555s, including this one. The car was slightly modified and successfully raced in Australia and New Zealand through 1959.

The car was damaged in an event in 1963, after which the engine was removed for use in a boat. The chassis was fitted with Morris Minor (!) bodywork and a Chevrolet V8. In the 1990s, the car was restored back to stock, and now it’s selling at no reserve with an estimate of $4,200,000-$6,300,000. More info can be found here.

Lotus E21

2013 Lotus E21

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Paris, France | February 2025

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Things were weird in F1 in the 2010s. In 2010 and 2011 there was a Lotus Racing F1 team that was not directly affiliated with Lotus Cars. It was a Malaysian-owned team that licensed the use of the Lotus name. Their cars were green and yellow.

Meanwhile, in late 2010, the actual Lotus car company purchased part of the Renault F1 team. So, for 2012, that team would been known as Lotus-Renault. Also for 2012, Tony Fernandes, the guy who was running the green-and-yellow Lotus Racing F1 team, also had purchased Caterham, a company that has produced Lotus replicas for decades.

So for 2012, the new Lotus-Renault debuted (with their black and gold cars) and the old Lotus Racing team re-debuted as Caterham F1, with still-green cars. Caterham disappeared after the 2014 season. The Lotus name would continue through the 2015 season, when the team would revert back to Renault branding.

So, the team’s car for the 2013 season was the E21, which would’ve had a 2.4-liter Renault V8 and a KERS system. Output was 750 horsepower. The E21 was kind of a success, winning on debut in Australia. This car is without an engine and is being sold as a roller. This car, chassis E21-04, has the following race history:

  • 2013 British Grand Prix – 5th (with Kimi Raikkonen)
  • 2013 German Grand Prix – 2nd (with Raikkonen)
  • 2013 Hungarian Grand Prix – 2nd (with Raikkonen)
  • 2013 Belgian Grand Prix – 21st, DNF (with Raikkonen)
  • 2013 Italian Grand Prix – 11th (with Raikkonen)
  • 2013 Singapore Grand Prix – 21st, DNF (with Romain Grosjean)
  • 2013 Korean Grand Prix – 3rd (with Grosjean)
  • 2013 Japanese Grand Prix – 3rd (with Grosjean)
  • 2013 Indian Grand Prix – 3rd (with Grosjean)
  • 2013 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – 4th (with Grosjean)
  • 2013 United States Grand Prix – 2nd (with Grosjean)
  • 2013 Brazilian Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Grosjean)

Since then, the car has been retained by the team, which is now known as Alpine. They are selling it. It has an estimate of $365,000-$465,000. More info can be found here.

RAM Formula One

1983 RAM March-Cosworth 01

Offered by Mecum | Monterey, California | August 2024

Photo – Mecum

RAM Racing was founded in 1975 by Mike Ralph and John Macdonald. They first appeared on the F1 grid in 1976 with year-old Brabham chassis. Then they ran March and Williams chassis in 1977 and 1980, respectively. For 1983, they debuted the RAM March 01.

It was a derivative, or evolution, of the March 821 F1 car and was the first RAM chassis designed/built in-house. Power is from a 3.0-liter Ford-Cosworth V8 that makes 530 horsepower. The 1983 season was a disaster, with the 01 failing to qualify for all but three races it entered. It made the first two events in 1984 before being replaced by the RAM 02. In 1985, they ran the RAM 03 before folding.

The competition history for this chassis, whose number is not provided, is said to include:

  • 1983 Brazilian Grand Prix – 15th (with Eliseo Salazar)
  • 1983 South African Grand Prix – 12th (with Kenny Acheson)

Both Jacques Villeneuve, Sr. and Jean-Louis Schlesser both DNQ’d the car during that season. This former F1 car has since been used a fair bit in historic racing and now has an estimate of $400,000-$650,000. More info can be found here.

Force India VJM01

2008 Force India VJM01

Offered by Bonhams | Goodwood, U.K. | July 2024

Photo – Bonhams

The Midland F1 team was what Jordan Grand Prix became for the 2006 season. At the end of ’06, they sold out to Spyker, who produced one car for F1: the Spyker F8-VII. During the 2007 season, Spyker was bought by Vijay Mallya, who was going to rename it Force India for 2008.

The first Force India race car chassis were actually slightly updated Spykers from the year before. They built a couple of chassis on their own too, which is what this is, apparently (chassis VJM01-05). It would’ve been powered by a 2.4-liter Ferrari V8 making 750 horsepower. Now it’s just a rolling show car with a Dexter Brown “art car” livery that was created for a 2011 charity auction.

The actual competition history for this chassis consists of:

  • 2008 Australian Grand Prix – 21st, DNF (with Giancarlo Fisichella)
  • 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix – 12th (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 Bahrain Grand Prix – 12th (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 Spanish Grand Prix – 10th (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 Turkish Grand Prix – 20th, DNF (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 French Grand Prix – 18th (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 British Grand Prix – 17th, DNF (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 German Grand Prix – 16th (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix – 15th (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 European Grand Prix – 14th (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 Belgian Grand Prix – 17th (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 Italian Grand Prix – 20th, DNF (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 Singapore Grand Prix – 14th (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 Japanese Grand Prix – 16th, DNF (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 Chinese Grand Prix – 17th (with Fisichella)
  • 2008 Brazilian Grand Prix – 18th (with Fisichella)

The estimate here is $100,000-$150,000. Click here for more info.

The First Lotus F1 Car

1957 Lotus-Climax 12

Offered by Bonhams | Monaco | May 2024

Photo – Bonhams

Lotus’s track-focused cars built prior to this were mostly of the sports racing/prototype variety. The 12 was unveiled at the 1956 London Motor Show but wouldn’t hit the track until 1957. That first year it contested three F2 races, one each at Silverstone, Goodwood, and Oulton Park. Drivers Henry Taylor and Graham Hill split driving duties.

After a few more F2 outings in 1958, the car was ready to step up to F1. It was Lotus’s – and Graham Hill’s – first Formula One appearance when the car appeared at the 1958 Monaco Grand Prix. The competition history for this chassis, 353, includes:

  • 1958 Monaco Grand Prix – 9th, DNF (with Graham Hill)
  • 1958 Dutch Grand Prix – 14th, DNF (with Hill)
  • 1958 Belgian Grand Prix – 13th, DNF (with Hill)

Then it was back to F2 for some events in 1958 and 1959. And don’t think the 12 was an F1 dud. Hill’s teammate in ’58 was Cliff Allison, and Allison finished 6th, 6th, and 4th, respectively, in the same outings Hill had.

Power in the car is from a Coventry Climax inline-four. The car was purchased by its current owner in 1991 and was later restored. Quite the specimen of F1 and Lotus history, the car could fetch between $310,000-$420,000. You can read more about it here.

Update: Sold ~$211,332.

McLaren M19A

1971 McLaren-Ford M19A

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monaco | May 2024

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

McLaren’s M19 was used in three different seasons of Formula One, with the A variant in use in 1971 and the C variant raced for ’72 and ’73. The team’s main drivers in 1971 were Denny Hulme and Peter Gethin, with Peter Revson taking Gethin’s place in 1972. Jody Scheckter would also debut for McLaren in 1972, and he currently owns this car.

Power is from a Ford-Cosworth DFV V8 that displaced 3.0 liters. McLaren built four M19 chassis, two of which were M19A spec. This car, chassis M19A-1, has the following competition history:

  • 1971 South African Grand Prix – 6th (with Denny Hulme)
  • 1971 Spanish Grand Prix – 5th (with Hulme)
  • 1971 Monaco Grand Prix – 4th (with Hulme)
  • 1971 Dutch Grand Prix – 15th, DNF (with Peter Gethin)
  • 1971 French Grand Prix – 9th (with Gethin)
  • 1971 British Grand Prix – 15th, DNF (with Gethin)
  • 1971 German Grand Prix – 17th, DNF (with Gethin)
  • 1971 Austrian Grand Prix – 9th (with Jackie Oliver)
  • 1971 Canadian Grand Prix – 3rd (with Mark Donohue)
  • 1971 United States Grand Prix – 10th (with David Hobbs)
  • 1972 South African Grand Prix – 3rd (with Peter Revson)
  • 1972 Spanish Grand Prix – 16th, DNF (with Hulme)
  • 1972 French Grand Prix – 9th (with Brian Redman)
  • 1972 British Grand Prix – 3rd (with Revson)
  • 1972 German Grand Prix – 5th (with Redman)
  • 1972 United States Grand Prix – 9th (with Jody Scheckter)

I mean. Look at those names. It’s no wonder there is an estimate of $800,000-$1,100,000. The car was also used in the 1974 F5000 championship, and in F1, it was a Team McLaren AND a Team Penske car at different points. Read more about it here.

Update: Sold ~$879,458.

Tyrrell 007

1975 Tyrrell-Ford-Cosworth 007

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monaco | May 2024

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Here’s another Tyrrell Formula 1 car. This sale also has a re-creation of the team’s famous six-wheeler. The 007 was actually the car that was used right before the P34 (the six-wheeler) debuted. The 007 was on the F1 grid from 1974 through 1977 with various teams.

Power is provided by a 3.0-liter Ford-Cosworth DFV V8. This car, chassis 007/06, has the following competition history:

  • 1975 French Grand Prix – 9th (with Jody Scheckter)
  • 1975 British Grand Prix – 3rd (with Scheckter)
  • 1975 German Grand Prix – 14th, DNF (with Scheckter)
  • 1975 Austrian Grand Prix – 8th (with Scheckter)
  • 1975 Italian Grand Prix – 8th (with Scheckter)
  • 1975 United States Grand Prix – 6th (with Scheckter)
  • 1976 Brazilian Grand Prix – 5th (with Scheckter)
  • 1976 South African Grand Prix – 4th (with Scheckter)
  • 1976 United States Grand Prix West – 13th, DNF (with Scheckter)
  • 1976 Spanish Grand Prix – 16th, DNF (with Scheckter)

After that, the car was purchased by privateer driver Otto Stuppacher, who managed to not qualify or start three races later in 1976. It went hillclimbing in 1979 and 1980 and later made it’s way into the collection of Jody Scheckter. It now has an estimate of $700,000-$950,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $737,695.

Wolf F1

1977 Wolf-Ford-Cosworth WR3

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monaco | May 2024

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Walter Wolf made money in the Canadian oil business and later came to know Frank Williams, whose first F1 team was struggling. Wolf bought in. Then he bought Hesketh. Then he bought bits of Graham Hill’s former team. At the end of 1976, Wolf forced out Williams, who went on to found Williams Grand Prix Engineering, which is still on the grid.

Walter Wolf Racing first appeared in F1 in 1977. They ran a single car all season for Jody Scheckter, who currently owns this, a derivative chassis of their first entry: the WR1. They would upgrade the car throughout the year as the WR2, WR3, and WR4. This car is chassis WR1/3 (aka WR3, which debuted in March 1977), and it’s competition history includes:

  • 1977 Belgian Grand Prix – 16th, DNF (with Jody Scheckter)
  • 1977 French Grand Prix – 15th, DNF (with Scheckter)
  • 1977 Austrian Grand Prix – 18th, DNF (with Scheckter)
  • 1977 Japanese Grand Prix – 10th (with Scheckter)
  • 1977 United States Grand Prix West – 13th, DNF (with Scheckter)
  • 1978 German Grand Prix – 10th (with Keke Rosberg)
  • 1978 Austrian Grand Prix – 11th, DNF (with Rosberg)

The car features a 3.0-liter Ford-Cosworth DFV V8 and a Hewland gearbox. After Wolf got their WR4 and WR5 cars ready in 1978, they sold WR3 and WR3 to Theodore Racing, who used them with Keke Rosberg. The car ran in F5000 in Australia in 1979 and then in the 1980 Aurora AFX British F1 Championship with the likes of Kevin Cogan and Desire Wilson.

This car was rebuilt under Scheckter’s ownership and now has an estimate of $480,000-$695,000. More info can be found here.

Update: Sold ~$595,931.

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.

Update: Sold ~$8,038,515.

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.

Update: Sold. Price lamely withheld.