Copyright Nino Hamet, Artcurial Motorcars
Paris, France – The official Rétromobile 2025 sales, held for the fourteenth consecutive year at the Salon, once again broke attendance records with over 150,000 visitors. The event achieved a total of €24,600,000 / $25,415,490 under the hammer of Maître Anne-Claire Mandine, accompanied by the dynamic Matthieu Lamoure and historian and specialist Pierre Novikoff.
The first two sales, conducted over five and four hours respectively, saw 87% of the lots successfully sold. One of the standout pieces, a 1966 Ferrari 275GTB Aluminum, fetched €2,159,600 / $2,230,219. This rare model is one of only 93 aluminum-bodied examples ever produced and was fully restored in the 1990s by Cognolato.
Among the prestigious collections presented by the Motorcars department, the Silver Collection achieved €4,382,471 / $4,525,778, featuring highlights such as a 2001 Ferrari 550 Barchetta, which set a world record at €807,360 / $833,760, and a Ferrari 275GTB certified by Ferrari Classiche, finished in its original “Celeste Metalizzatto” shade, which sold for €2,371,640 / $2,449,193.
@Kévin Van Campenhout
Not to be overlooked, the Ferrari 365GTB/4 Daytona, which sold for €671,450 / $693,406, as well as a Lamborghini Countach LP400 S, owned by the same collector for over 25 years, which fetched €554,280 / $572,405. Another Countach, a 25th Anniversary model previously owned by Gerhard Berger, was acquired for €405,280 / $418,532.
On the Porsche side, a 911 Carrera 2.7L RS, one of the first 500 units produced, finished in its original “Tangerine”, reached €417,200 / $430,842, while a Porsche 356 pre-A 1300 “split-windscreen”, kept in the same family for 60 years, changed hands for €429,120 / $443,152.
Among the rare models, a 1967 AC Cobra 289 Sports, one of only eight left-hand drive European AC 289s ever produced, was hammered at €607,920 / $627,999. Meanwhile, a 2001 BMW Z8, originally unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 1999 and displaying just 30 km from new, was acquired for €354,960 / $366,567.
Iconic models also included:
- A 1973 Citroën Méhari in a four-seater version: €20,264 / $20,967
- A Citroën 2CV “Sahara”, one of only 700 units produced: €63,176 / $65,241
Day two delivered
The second auction day proved to be equally exceptional, achieving nearly 100% of lots sold and breaking multiple records. Paul-Émile B.’s “Locomotion in Action” Collection fetched remarkable prices, both in the Automobilia & Collectibles section and in the Vehicles category. A passionate collector who once owned nearly 400 classic vehicles, Paul-Émile B. had made the decision to part with his entire personal museum.
The highlight of his collection, a 1995 Bugatti EB110 GT, the only example finished in Bianco Monaco, achieved €1,530,400 / $1,580,444, setting a new world record. Its legendary predecessor, a Bugatti Type 51 from the Ralph Lauren Collection, was sold for €1,567,600 / $1,639,443.
Additionally, a 1904 Darracq 8 HP, boasting an exceptional history and kept within the same family from 1954 to 2015, reached €88,208 / $91,092. Unique non-automotive lots also attracted strong interest, with a “Pou du Ciel” aircraft finding a buyer for €17,880 / $18,465, and a Renault TN4H Parisian bus selling for €53,640 / $55,394.
Motorcycles were strong sellers
All motorcycle enthusiasts gathered for an auction paying tribute to the Panini Collection, where all 71 models were sold, totaling €1,058,759 / $1,093,380, including a record for the exceptional design piece, the Innocenti Lambretta “Siluro”, which sold for €160,920 / $166,182, and a 1978 MV Agusta 750 America, hammered for €63,176 / $65,242.
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