Record-breaking sales total £33million at Quail sale

In total, a very strong 96 percent of the 109 lots found new owners and they totalled a staggering $44.7million (£33million) worth of sales. It was the modern hypercars that claimed the biggest figures as the hammer continued to fall. Bugattis dominated not just in proliferation but also in individual values.

The highest value was achieved by the 2020 Bugatti Divo, which set a world record of $8.6million (£6.3million). It was virtually as new with just 800 miles recorded on the odemeter. From the same collection came another world record sale – the 2022 Apollo Intensa Emozione ‘Ocean Dragon’ sold for $3.5million (£2.6million).

When it comes to raw numbers, though, the Apollo was beaten by another pair of Bugattis. The 2021 Chiron Pur Sport reached $3.9million (£2.9million) while the 2023 Chiron Super Sport sold for $3.4million (£2.5million).

The 2017 Pagani Huayra Roadster achieved a sale of $3.3million (£2.4million), while the more hardcore 2022 Huayra R reached $3million (£2.2million). Rounding out the range of hypercars was the 2021 Koenigsegg Regera, which sold for $2.7million (£2million). Most of the bidding for these most rarefied lots came from within the room, where 700 people crowded in for their chance to take a hypercar home. 

Nearly new hypercars weren’t the only lots to reach seven figures. An ex-works Audi Sport Quattro S1 Group B rally car attracted a maximum bid of $1.7million (£1.3million). And if all of that sounds a bit too extreme, a 1956 Ferrari 250 Europa GT set a more sedate pace but still brought in $1.5million (£1.1million).

Just to make the point that you didn’t need a billionaire’s means to raise your auction paddle, the cheapest car, a 1957 Volkswagen General Purpose Buggy, sold for just $2,912 (£2,155). What it lacks in Bugatti levels of luxury, the modest 36PS (26kW) dune buggy makes up for with go-anywhere ability. Other offerings at the more affordable end of this impressive sale included a 1970 Fiat 500 Giardiniera for $7,840 (£5,800), a 1924 Georges Richard Unic 10hp Type L2 Boulangere for $10,640 (£7,900) and a BMW Isetta 300 for $21,280 (£16,000).