Early ‘supercar’ that drew gasps at 80mph set to sell for £8m
IT WAS bought in 1903 by the press baron Alfred Harmsworth and was able to reach the then almost inconceivable speed of 80mph.
No wonder it has been described as one of the world’s first “supercars”.
The Mercedes-simplex 60 HP was the fastest production car in the world at the start of the 20th century.
Now it is set to break more records when i t goes under t he hammer in theunited States with an anticipated auction price of £8million, making it the most expensive antique car to be sold at auction.
Interest from wealthy collectors is expected to be high, with hot competition for a vehicle described as “among the finest and most significant of all antique cars” ever made.
The record for a pre-1930s car is currently held by a 1924 Hispano-suiza H6C “Tulipwood” Torpedo which sold for $9,245,000 (more than £7.3 million) in 2022.
The Mercedes-simplex 60 HP “Roi des Belges” is being sold by Gooding and Company’s Amelia Island Auctions in Florida on Feb 29 and March 1. Charlie Ross, UK auctioneer and
Bargain Hunt, Antiques Road Trip and Flog It! star, who will lead the sale, said: “I simply can’t wait for the chance to offer this magnificent and truly historic motor car. The importance of this Mercedes is certainly not to be underestimated.”
Harmsworth, t he f i rst Viscount Northcliffe, who founded the Daily Mail in 1896 and went on to own the
Daily Mirror and The Times, was among the first to buy a Mercedes-simplex 60 HP “Roi des Belges”. He made it one of the centrepieces of his collection at Sutton Place, his Tudor mansion home in Surrey.
On Lord Northcliffe’s death in 1922 at the age of 57, the Mercedes was passed down to his 12-year-old son, Alfred John Francis Alexander Harmsworth.
A car enthusiast in his own right, John Harmsworth took the 60 HP to his home in the New Forest.
In 1954 the “Old Sixty” was towed to t he newly opened Beaulieu Motor Museum in Hampshire, where it was restored and remained on display for more than six decades.
During this time it took part in several London-t o-brighton veteran car runs.