$4.1 Million for the supercar of supercars

Credit markets might be suffering, but ultra rich guys are still spending cold hard cash on high end classics. For evidence, look no further than the Automobiles of London auction put on by RM in association with Sotheby's. The top 10 sale prices alone pulled in more than $17 million at the October 29th event. And among those top finishers were several significant Ferraris from the 1950s-1960s, a 1938 Bugatti and a teardrop-tastic 1950 Talbot-Lago. But the top bread winner, a 1997 McLaren F1, wasn't very classic at all. That didn't stop one deep pocketed individual from shelling out $4.1 million for the supercar icon though.

"That's the power of the marketplace right now for a car in such high demand", says Tom duPont, publisher and co-founder of the well known duPont Registry classifieds. "It's an extraordinary price for an extraordinary car. Keep in mind that however impressive the $4.1 million sale price was, there was twice that much was chasing the car before the gavel came down. If you've got the product, there are buyers out there."

That $4.1 sum represents a 323% increase from the roughly $970,000 asking price back in 1997. Not a bad return on investment for the anonymous Asian gentleman who purchased the car directly from the Park Lane showroom that has since been closed. The final sales price more than doubled the pre-sale estimate.

So why did this particular Magnesium Silver F1 fetch so much coin? Well, for starters, it is immaculate and only has 300 flippin miles on the odometer. It is also the last roadgoing F1 ever produced and was the factory's flagship car for many years. Regardless of condition though, F1s are super rare - just 69 examples (including the 5 prototypes) were built for road use by the time production ended.

In case you have been hiding under a rock for the last 15 years, the F1 is held by many to be the most significant supercar of all time. Aside from its sexy looks, courtesy of Gordan Murray, the car held the top speed record [243 MPH] for nearly a decade before being dethroned by Koenigsegg's CCR in 2005. It remains the fastest naturally aspirated (no turbos, no superchargers) car on the planet.

The F1 designation was deemed appropriate because of all the racing technology harnessed under the shapely silhouette. The driver even sits in the middle, ahead of two small passenger seats. The F1 was the first vehicle to feature a monocoque composed of ultra light-weight carbon fibre. And while we are on the subject of high tech build components, magnesium, titanium and Kevlar were used throughout the car for strength and weight savings. At the end of the day, we are talking about a car with near perfect weight distribution (42% front - 528% rear), and power to weight ratio that would make Colin Chapman wet himself (621 HP and roughly 2,500 pounds).

Fast forward to the present where Gordon Murray is at it again, this time working on a successor to the F1 code named P11. Only this time it will be smaller, less expensive and produced in higher volume than its F1 sibling. McLaren is aiming directly at the "entry level" exotic market for P11, which means they are going head to head with Ferrari's F430 and Lambo's Gallardo LP560-4.

Some enthusiasts scoff at the P11, say that McLaren is lowering themselves by entering this "lower" end of the market. Further, that P11 will in some way tarnish the F1 legacy by trying to appeal to more of a mainstream audience. duPont, an exotic car expert in his own right, says that kind of talk is malarkey.

"The pyramid is not upside down. If you sell a very expensive car first, there will be more buyers next time around as you head downstream. Take some of the attributes from the higher end model and drop them in. It's a strategy that had worked quite well for other automakers. Ferrari is a master at this."

Our friends at AutoExpress recently spied a P11 mule in development and crafted some renderings they claim to be dead on accurate. We definitely like what we see. Judging by the short overhangs, greenhouse shape and high tail, it's clear that stylists used the F1 as a source for inspiration. Also similar between the two cars is the front air damns and headlamp positioning. Regardless of design DNA between the two cars, there is certainly enough differentiation to allow P11 to stand on its own. The side profile and rear, for instance, are a drastic departure from the F1.

A win on Sunday, sell on Monday approach will be taken with P11 in terms of F1 technology contained within. And the brand will likely look to their F1 engine supplier Mercedes for a powerplant, speculated to be a turbocharged eight from their AMG line.

What about the Mercedes SLR McLaren that you ask? Well, P11 ain't no joint venture and it will be developed completely in house at the McLaren Formula One team's factory in Woking. Look for it in 2010.

Post from autopia