"Holy Grail" Gullwing sets world record

A mythical Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing – a Holy Grail classic car – in 100% original condition, never restored, dismantled and still bearing its original paint finish set a new world record in Paris at the recent Automobile Legends, Artcurial Motorcars auction, selling for a colossal €4,407,800mn ($5,279,107mn).

The museum-worthy 300 SL Gullwing is one of a few examples fitted with the sporting specifications shared by the 29 aluminium-bodied cars that were made in an ultra-lightweight version. It is equipped with the full complement of sports options offered at the time, including the sought-after NSL engine, Rudge wheels, as well as sports suspension and springs. The car is one of only 30 examples delivered new in France and one of just 106 finished in the rare Graphit Graü colour. It has only 34,000 original kilometres on the clock.

The Gullwing also has an intriguing backstory. It arrived in Paris in 1956 – its owner, Claude Foussier, one of the first Coca-Cola importers in Europe, was a multiple Olympic medal-winning shooting athlete. Its second owner, Jean Piger, acquired the car in 1961 and owned it for more than half a century, until 2014. Having been stored for eleven years, only minimal intervention was required to return the car to running condition. It then found a home in Germany with an owner who preserved it like a work of art before it returned to Paris. But here the story takes a strange turn: research conducted with the Paris Prefecture revealed that the car’s last custodian resided at the same address as Claude Foussier, its first owner – the Gullwing had returned to the very garage it was kept in between 1956 and 1961. 

The auction, held on Tuesday, January 27, 2026, racked up total sales of €15mn ($18mn). Amongst the 70 other exceptional vehicles at the auction was a Ferrari F92A Formula One car driven by Jean Alesi, which fetched €2,912,800mn ($3,488,595mn). Motorsport enthusiasts also celebrated the sale of the 1989 Tyrrell 018 – Ford Cosworth DFR, Jean Alesi’s first Formula One car, which sold for €834,400 ($999,472).

 A rare 1967 Lamborghini Miura P400 "Prima Serie", matching numbers and presented in impeccable condition, attracted strong interest and sold for €1,402,801 ($1,680,000). There was also a 1970 De Tomaso Mangusta, one of only 401 ever produced, which sold for €280,120 ($335,518), and a 2006 Porsche Carrera GT, which fetched  €1,647,800mn ($1,976,927mn) at the sale.