A 1994 road-going McLaren F1 sold for $25,317,500 at RM Sotheby’s Abu Dhabi auction on 5 December 2025, making it the most expensive McLaren sold at auction at that time. That record was later surpassed: a 1996 McLaren F1 GTR sold for $34,655,000 at RM Sotheby’s Monterey auction in August 2026. The two results concern different kinds of McLaren F1: a road car and a racing-derived GTR.
Two McLaren F1 auction records, and what they mean
| Sale | Vehicle | Date and venue | Reported price | Record context |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RM Sotheby’s | 1994 road-going McLaren F1 | 5 December 2025, Abu Dhabi | $25,317,500 | Record-setting McLaren F1 auction result at the time |
| RM Sotheby’s | 1996 McLaren F1 GTR, chassis 10R | August 2026, Monterey | $34,655,000 | Later McLaren F1 auction record; a GTR, not a road car |
RM Sotheby’s reported the 2025 road-car result as the most expensive example ever sold at auction when it announced the sale. Its August 2026 release documented the higher GTR result, so the $25.3 million sale is now a historical record rather than the current all-McLaren auction record.
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Driving Ambition: The Official Inside Story of the McLaren F1 | Buy on Amazon |
What sold for $25.3 million?
The 2025 lot was a 1994 road-going McLaren F1, the 14th of 64 road cars to leave McLaren’s Woking works. RM Sotheby’s says it was originally delivered to the Brunei Royal Family in Titanium Yellow. In 2007, McLaren comprehensively updated it, adding the High-Downforce Kit and an LM-specification interior, and refinishing it in Ibis White.
Those documented details distinguish this particular car from a standard, untouched road-going F1. The sale price should not be treated as a general valuation for every F1: it belongs to this specific auction lot and its history and specification.
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The later record: a different car, a different category
The higher result belongs to chassis 10R, a 1996 McLaren F1 GTR. RM Sotheby’s identifies it as the first GTR built to the highly developed 1996 specification and one of two short-tail factory XP prototypes. It wore the factory-created Blood Red and yellow “96 GTR” design. McLaren retained the car from new, and Nick Mason bought it directly from McLaren in 1999, according to RM Sotheby’s.
Chassis 10R sold for $34,655,000 at Monterey in August 2026. It is therefore important not to describe the 2025 road car as the current all-time McLaren auction record, or to confuse the GTR result with a road-car sale.
What the prices do—and don’t—tell you
The two sales establish that the 2025 road-going F1 set a major auction benchmark at the time, while the later GTR achieved a higher reported price. They are not like-for-like road-car comparisons: the vehicles, sale dates, venues, and record contexts differ. The dossier does not establish a separate hammer price for the 2025 lot, so its reported sale price should not be split into a hammer amount and buyer’s premium.
RM Sotheby’s also reported that its entire Abu Dhabi auction grossed $85,064,125 and attracted bidders from 45 countries. Those figures describe the auction overall, not the F1 lot or its individual bidders.
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How much did the 1994 McLaren F1 sell for?
It sold for $25,317,500 at RM Sotheby’s Abu Dhabi auction on 5 December 2025.
Is the $25.3 million McLaren F1 still the auction record?
No. A 1996 McLaren F1 GTR, chassis 10R, sold for $34,655,000 at RM Sotheby’s Monterey auction in August 2026. The GTR is a racing-derived car, not a road-going F1.
What was notable about the 2025 road car?
RM Sotheby’s said it was the 14th of 64 road cars to leave McLaren’s Woking works, was originally delivered to the Brunei Royal Family in Titanium Yellow, and received a comprehensive McLaren update in 2007 that included the High-Downforce Kit, an LM-specification interior, and an Ibis White finish.
Do the two sale prices compare directly?
Not as road-car valuations. The $25,317,500 result was for a 1994 road-going F1; the $34,655,000 result was for the 1996 F1 GTR chassis 10R. Both are reported auction sale prices, but they concern different vehicle types and auctions.
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