Classic Cars Auction house
Rank 02
RM Sotheby's
The deepest-liquidity saleroom for blue-chip collector cars, with the week-defining totals at both Monterey and Paris in 2026.
Photograph: RM Auctions Paris sale by Thesupermat, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, resized
Why it is here
Hagerty's Monterey 2026 tally gives RM Sotheby's $376.1M from 171 of 194 lots sold (88% sell-through) and a $2.2M average, more than double the next house (2026-08-17). In Paris it was the top-grossing sale at about €68.7–68.8M, with the week's top lot, a 1960 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider at €14,067,500; Magneto notes about 30% of lots sold below estimate (Magneto 2026-02-04; Hagerty 2026-02-05). Reuters reported RM's 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196 R Stromlinienwagen sale at €51.155M in Stuttgart, a record for a Grand Prix car (2025-02-01). Score drivers: prestige 9.6 because it posted the top totals in both major markets; provenance 9.2 because it consigns museum-grade cars (the IMS-owned W196 R) but buyers still carry due-diligence risk; expertise 9.3; community 8.8; experience 9.0, held back by the crowding and queues Magneto reported at the Louvre venue. The 2026 Monterey total includes a $40M Ferrari Luce charity lot flagged by Hagerty, so the headline overstates pure market demand.
Who it is for
Sellers of seven- and eight-figure cars who need maximum global bidding depth, and buyers who want to compete for headline lots.
Sources
- 2026 Monterey Car Week Auctions Shatter Record with $756M in SalesRM Sotheby's $376.1M, 171 of 194 sold (88%), average $2,199,360; Ferrari Luce $40M charity lot flagged.
- 2026 Paris auctions: Records fall, but older Ferraris and pre-war cars struggleRM top-grossing Paris sale (about €68.7M, 78% sold); top lot of the week the €14.07M 250 GT SWB California Spider; about 30% sold below estimate.
- Mercedes 'streamliner' fetches record 51 million euros at auctionRM Sotheby's sold the ex-IMS W196 R Stromlinienwagen for €51.155M, a record for a Grand Prix car.
- Rétromobile 2026 Auction Recap: Big Cars, Mixed ResultsRM Paris €68,785,950, 61 of 78 sold, highest of the 2026 Paris sales.
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