The £5.9million paid for an ex-Tazio Nuvolari 1935 Alfa Romeo 8C set a new world record price for an Alfa sold at auction during Bonhams' sale at the Goodwood Revival Meeting. The appeal of the fabulous racer was also added to by early Scuderia Ferrari history.
Although the Alfa result grabbed the headlines, there were some other extraordinary prices paid including £225,000 for a 1961 Jaguar E-type S1 flat-floor roadster. The bidding was fuelled in part by the fact that even though all early 3.8 S1s are highly desirable, this one had been in the same family's ownership since it was two years old.
Two other remarkable machines just dipped under the million pound mark, but it doesn't make their prices any less astonishing.
One was the ex-Rod Stewart 1972 Lamborghini Miura SV, very rare in right-hand drive, that made £919k, while the well-campaigned 1931 Invicta S-Type Low Chassis Sports with Cadogan coachwork made £954,000.
The biggest restoration project shock came when a 1961 Ferrari 250GT Pininfarina Cabrio topped £700,000.
There was big money, too, for another celebrity owned car when the ex-Eric Clapton and London Motor Show Ferrari Classiche-certified 1969 365GTC made £578,300.
Also looking pricey was the £236k paid for a 1972 Dino 246GT, the £163,900 shelled out for a 1970 Mercedes-Benz 280SE 3.5 Cabriolet and the £115k paid for a 1985 Audi quattro Sport.
It wasn't all mega-bucks prices, however, and a 1970 Aston Martin DBS Vantage looked decent value at £49,450, as did a 1949 Lea-Francis 14hp Shooting Brake at just over £15k.
Buy of the sale, however, could turn out to the ex-Stig Blomqvist 2000 London-Sydney Marathon-winning 1969 Ford Capri. With the Capris on the brink of recognition price-wise, the £20k that bought this Perana-spec V8 could turn out to be a bargain.
James Elliott is a former Editor of Classic & Sports Car