10 Craziest Cars You Might Have Seen at an Auction

Classic cars at an auction

A used car auction is a delightful place to be. It can either be a treasure trove or a dumpsite, but you will definitely find some crazy options there. In this article, we bring you some of the craziest cars seen at auctions and some weird ones that make you wonder, why did nobody tell the manufacturer not to put these on the streets?

We’ll start with some of the price point-wise crazy options you could possibly find at an auction sometime in the future.

1. John Lennon’s Painted Rolls Royce

Production 1959–1968 832 produced

Price: $2.3 million

The car brought in over USD 2 million at an auction. Where it is normal for Hollywood stars to put out their limited edition cars at auctions occasionally and fetch an average of 6 figures for their prized vehicles, Lennon’s car brought a lot more. But then again, the Beatles’ popularity is hard to beat. Even harder to beat is that of the classic car market.

Lennon’s Rolls Royce is a 1966 Phantom V. The company produced only 517 of these in total. The car was way ahead of its time with tinted windows, portable televisions, reading lamps, and a writing desk fitted inside. He paid around £11,000 for the car back then, around USD 240,000 now and the car sold at a whopping USD 2 million.

2. Duesenberg SSJ

1934 Duesenberg Model SJ Walker La-Grande Convertible Coupe

Production 1928–1937

Price: $22 million

The Duesenberg SSJ made an appearance at a car auction at Pebble Beach in 2018 and sold for USD 22 million. The company produced only two Duesenberg SSJ, and this one was owned by Hollywood star Gary Cooper thus the high price tag.

This car, too, was way ahead of its time and was one of the fastest cars back then with a top speed of 140mph. It features an eight-cylinder engine, making it one of the most powerful cars of its time. Owing to the SSJ’s success, Duesenberg soon became the most popular brand among big-screen stars.

3. 1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale by Scaglietti

1965 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale by Scaglietti

Production 1964–1966 (275 GTB, GTS) 1966–1968 (275 GTB/4) 1967 (275 GTS/4 NART Spyder)

Price: $26 million

When on the subject of cars, we cannot exclude a few luxury brands such as Ferrari. The 1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale appeared in the RM Sotheby’s Auction in 2014 and sold for USD 26.4 million. Only three of these were ever made by Maranello Marque in 1964 to challenge other industry leaders.

It is a lightweight racing car with an aluminum frame, a V12 engine, and a lighter chassis to adjust the car’s center of gravity, bringing it closer to the track for better performance. Only one of the three 275 GTB/C ever performed in competition, and though this was not it, the car is very valuable.

4. 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196

Debut 1954 French Grand Prix

Price: $29.6 million

The 1954 Mercedes Benz W196 is another one of the most expensive cars ever sold at auctions, having fetched USD29.6 million at the Goodwill Festival of Speed Auction in 2013. Five Time Formula one World Champion winner Juan Manuel Fangio drove the car to the auction.

It was sold in original condition, with visible scrapes and a layer of grime. Despite the lack of maintenance, the Grand Prix winner fetched USD29.6 million. If you can pay such a huge amount of money for the car, you can pay for a car wash too, right.

5. The 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO

Production 1962–1964 (36 produced)

Price: $48 million

The 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO is the most expensive car ever sold at an auction, fetching USD 48 million at RM Sotheby’s auction in 2018. Dr. Gregory Whitten, the car’s previous owner, was a Ferrari enthusiast who had the car in his possession for two decades.

Five times Le Mans winner Derek Bell drove the car to the auction, so to say it was a sight to behold would be an understatement. Within 10 minutes, the car’s bidding was complete setting a record for the most expensive car ever sold at an auction.

The 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO marks the end of our list of the most expensive cars ever found at auctions. We will now present five of the weirdest cars ever made that you hopefully will never see at any auction ever. The majority of these are no longer in production, and some of these never even made it to the road.

6. 1973 Reliant Robin

By <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:Pazza328&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="User:Pazza328 (page does not exist)">Pazza328</a> - I took this picture, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0" title="Creative Commons Attribution 3.0">CC BY 3.0</a>, <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6423435">Link</a> Production 1973–1981 (UK) 1989–2001 (UK revamped)

Price: $6,500

The 1973 Reliant Robin is a three-wheel drive initially introduced in the market in 1973. The company halted production in 1981 and restarted in 1989 to end it completely in 2003. The robin is a three-while drive, so you can drive it with a motorcycle license even though the car can accommodate four people.

It is one of the most popular fiberglass bodied vehicles in the world. In fact, the company sold over 63,000 vehicles. You can still find these on the market or at an old car auction for less than £5,000, around USD 6,500.

7. 1962 Peel P50

By Philip (flip) Kromer from Austin, TX - Philip (flip) Kromer from Austin, TX, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3730437

Price: $176,000

The 1962 Peel P50 by the Peel Engineering Company is the smallest car ever made. The production started in 1962 and ended in 1965, and the company only prodcued50 of these, of which 27 remain. In fact, in 2016, one of the originals sold for USD 176,000 at an auction in Florida.

The Peel P50 is a one-person car that is tiny enough to drive around inside a building. Top Gear host, Jeremy Clarkson, actually did drive the car inside BBC headquarters on his show recently. The car measures 54 inches in length and 41 inches in width. It has one headlight, one door, one wiper, and seats one plus their grocery bag.

8. 1956 BMW Isetta

Production Iso Isetta (1953–56) BMW Isetta (1955–62) VELAM Isetta (1955–58) Romi-Isetta (1956–61)

Price: from $15,000 to $40,000+

The 1956 BMW Isetta, or the bubble car as it is known, is quirky, to say the least. Initially, it featured a single wheel in the back, a second was added later on for stability, and the front of the car doubled as the door. The tiny vehicle came with a tiny engine that produced just 9.5 horsepower.

BMW sold more than 160,000 units of the Isetta until the company seized production. You can still expect to find some of these at auctions with varying price points ranging from USD 15,000 to USD 40,000+.

9. 1996 Suzuki X90

Production 1995–1997

Price: $2,000+

We all know and love a good SUV, but the 1996 Suzuki X90 is a controversial SUV. Initially, when the demand for SUV’s grew, manufacturers experimented by merging the functions with other car models, and let’s just say that didn’t work.

The car featured a 95 horsepower engine and truck-like chassis. Even though Red bull used a fleet of X90s for promotion, the car did not settle well with the customer as it did not go very fast, and the handling was also mediocre. The company stopped production in 2007. It will be hard, but you could come across one at an auction for a couple of thousand dollars.

10. 2001 Pontiac Aztek

Production July 2000 – August 2005

Price: $2,000+

In the year 2000, Pontiac released the Plastic bodied Aztek into the market. Let’s just say that didn’t work out well for the company as the idea didn’t sit well with the customers, and the company seized production in 2005.

The car was not very visually appealing, and even though it made an appearance in the series Breaking Bad, it did nothing for its popularity. The vehicle may still be available for around USD 2,000. If you can get past the exterior, it does offer unique storage spaces and decent performance.

The list is endless, but these are our top pick for the craziest cars seen at auctions.

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