These 10 astounding cars are for sale at Artcurial's Le Mans auction

If you've got around £15m you could buy them all...

What better way to celebrate an event steeped in history and prestige than by selling a host of exotic machines steeped in history and prestige?

Artcurial wouldn’t disagree: its 7 July auction is set to take place at the Le Mans Classic – an event which sees decades' worth of motorsport’s greatest sports cars compete in anger around one of racing’s greatest circuits.

And, much like the pack on track, the sale is replete with a century-spanning array of invaluable classics – from race-proven Ferraris to a rare pair of barn-find Mercedes.

With the most valuable lot expected to sell for upwards of €6.5m (£5.6m), this is definitely one to watch. Here are the 10 most desirable cars at the auction.

1979 Ford Zakspeed Capri Turbo Group 5

Estimate: £480,000 – £655,000

Somewhere under all of that bodywork is a Ford Capri – but it’s about as far from the roadgoing ‘70s fastback as you can get.

Built by Ford Cologne to contest Group 5 sports car events, this ‘Super Capri’ signalled the American marque’s return to the track after a four-year absence – and, harnessing an aluminium-and-Kevlar construction paired with a turbocharged 1.4-litre engine (good for at least 500bhp), it was quite the comeback.

1979 Ford Zakspeed Capri Turbo Group 5 (cont.)

This particular Zakspeed Capri was raced by reigning champion Harald Ertl to second place in the 1979 season. Between several retirements, the Austrian took two wins and three podiums that year, before the car gained a bigger 1.8-litre, 600bhp engine and a whopping great rear wing ahead of its entry into the faster Division 1 for 1980.

Used sparingly in the intervening decades and maintained for several years in the Herbert Stenger family museum, it’s one of just a handful of examples that exist today.

1968 Lamborghini Miura P400

Estimate: £700,000 – £870,000

How do you announce yourself as a concrete player in the sports car scene? You commission Marcello Gandini to design a stunning, swooping shell, stick a 3.9-litre V12 in the rear and name it after a breed of Spanish bull.

Launched in 1966 as arguably the first true supercar, Lamborghini’s magnificent Miura was a beauty to behold – and, even with reliability concerns, it took the motoring world by storm.

1968 Lamborghini Miura P400 (cont.)

This particular Miura – an early P400 example – started out in France, where its first owner managed to destroy the engine.

After it was reclaimed by his creditor, it was sold on and fitted with the motor and several parts from a later P400 S model.

Subsequently sold again and at some point painted green, this rare and storied Miura has since been treated rather better – with a full engine rebuild and work to the tune of £65,000 meaning it goes to auction as an immaculate example that’s as evocative today as when it left the factory.

1993 Porsche 964 RSR 3.8L

Estimate: £700,000 – £870,000

How do you fund your burgeoning motorsport programme? If you’re Porsche in the early-’90s, you ship a track-ready version of your already rare homologation special to a select few clients.

While the 964 Carrera 3.8 RS derived a sufficiently scary 300bhp on the road, the racing RSR squeezed a further 50bhp from its 3.8-litre M64 motor – and its spec meant it was ready out of the crate to compete at events such as the Le Mans, Nurburgring and Spa endurance races.

1993 Porsche 964 RSR 3.8L (cont.)

A mere 51 examples of this unique track special were made – and this particular one is about as close to new as they come today: never raced, this 25-year-old RSR has a mere 4000km on the clock, having spent most of its life in private collections.

All-original and in outstanding condition, it carries its factory engine and the 120-litre fuel tank fitted with endurance events in mind – not to mention the free exhaust system. Finding any RSR for sale is a tricky task; one in this condition? Well, there’s a reason the upper estimate is €1m.

1956 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing

Estimate: £870,000 – £1.3m

It’s a true mark of a car’s rarity when you can leave one untouched in a barn for decades, only to wheel it out and auction it for upwards of £1m.

So it is with this remarkable Mercedes 300 SL. Replete with race-bred innovation, the mighty Merc was unrivalled when it launched in the mid-’50s with those iconic Gullwing doors.

Derived from its Grand Prix racing cousin, features such as direct fuel injection, a lightweight tubular chassis and a 3-litre straight-6 engine helped make it the fastest production car of its era.

1956 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing (cont.)

This particular Gullwing example is one of a mere 19 to have been sold new in Portugal.

Subsequently moved to Sweden by collector Gunnar Giermark, it was consigned to storage in 1973 with 67,000km on the clock – and never driven again.

When the Swede passed away in 2011, several court battles took place as people tried to claim the car as their inheritance – but to no avail. Instead, the Swedish government is now auctioning the machine with Artcurial and it could well make a pretty penny.

1963 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster

Estimate: £1.3m – £1.75m

One barn-find Mercedes 300 SL is pretty remarkable, right? Well, that can only make this second one – also from the collection of Gunnar Giermark – an absurdity.

An example of the later Roadster variant of the German tourer, it might not carry those ubiquitous Gullwing doors, but it benefits from a host of features that make it arguably the more practical cruiser – including disc brakes and an aluminium engine block.

Just 57 were built in 1963, including the one that Giermark bought new in July of that year.

1963 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster (cont.)

Moved into storage at the turn of the ‘70s, it has an astoundingly low 1380km on the odometer – making it a nearly new example of one of the most famous Mercedes-Benz machines going.

All-original and essentially unused, everything from the pedals and mats to the switches, seats and shell are almost as they were the day this 300 SL Roadster left the factory.

Complete with a raft of documentation, its transport box and even the full original toolkit, this is truly a one-of-a-kind lot – and the price tag reflects every bit of that.

1976/1983 Ferrari 308 GTB Group B

Estimate: £700,000 – £870,000

Ferraris might be more at home on the track, but that didn’t stop racing specialist Michelotto from taking the Italian marque’s V8-equipped 308 GTB and turning it into a rallying force in the late-’70s.

The machine was never officially campaigned by Ferrari itself, but Michelotto was given factory backing and free rein to tune and tweak the 308 to his liking, before shipping the modified cars to privateer customers.

Originally developed for Group 4 rallying, when the regulations changed so did the Ferrari – and four 308s were made up to Group B spec.

1976/1983 Ferrari 308 GTB Group B (cont.)

Of the 15 models built by Michelotto, this example – chassis 18869 – was the first to be tweaked for the monstrous Group B category in the early-’80s.

Built for the Pro Motorsport team, the 300bhp 308 GTB was highly successful, claiming five wins in its first season, followed up with a third place in the 1984 Targa Florio. In the hands of Antonio Zanini, it would win the Spanish Rally Championship that same year.

Recently serviced, this rare beast remains ready to compete in classic rallies – if the buyer dares risk their new £700,000 baby.

1973 Porsche 911 Carrera 2.7 RS Lightweight

Estimate: £870,000 – £1m

Built to qualify for Group 4 racing, the 2.7 RS was a formidable machine – and never more so than in Lightweight spec.

Its fuel-injected 2.7-litre engine might only have been good for a middling 210bhp, but with a kerbweight of less than a ton – achieved by stripping out the interior and using thinner steel – the featherweight racer delivered pure Porsche performance.

Simple by design, the 2.7 was the original and, arguably, the best RS – complete with ducktail spoiler and tyres as fat as they come.

1973 Porsche 911 Carrera 2.7 RS Lightweight (cont.)

One of only 200 Lightweight models ever produced, this 1973 2.7 RS is a matching-numbers example that’s about as close as you can get to factory spec today. From the Fuchs wheel rims to the engine to the aluminium brake calipers, everything about this RS has been confirmed as correct against the original specification.

What’s more, thanks to a bare-hull restoration around 14 years ago and an engine overhaul last year, it’s in magnificent condition today – which probably explains the £1m estimate.

2012 Aston Martin One-77 Q-Edition

Estimate: £1.65m – £2m

It might be younger than the rest, but this Aston Martin One-77 is certainly a future classic. Teased at the 2008 Paris Motor Show before a big reveal at Geneva in 2009, only 77 (of course) of the high-end British machines were built to client specifications between 2009 and 2012.

Pairing a 7.3-litre V12 engine with a lightweight carbonfibre monocoque construction, each of the exclusive 750bhp hypercars was good for a staggering 220mph.

2012 Aston Martin One-77 Q-Edition (cont.)

Aston wasn’t finished there, though: a seven-car run of ultra-rare Q-series models was announced. This 2012 example is one of those seven.

Identical to the ‘standard’ One-77 on performance, the ‘Q’ moniker – a nod to the marque’s custom department and, probably, James Bond’s equivalent – means your One-77 gets a unique livery with red flourishes and, naturally, an inflated price tag.

With one owner from new and a mere 360 miles on the clock, this is essentially a brand new Q-Edition with all the trimmings.

1975 Lamborghini LP400 Countach

Estimate: £790,000 – £870,000

The successor to the magnificent Miura, Lamborghini’s Marcello Gandini-designed Countach was only its second supercar – yet it set the trend for angular, aggressive car design for decades to come.

From the scissor doors to the scattering of vents and air intakes, it made an uncompromising statement in every way – not least with its 3.9-litre V12 engine, good for 375bhp.

Capricious and often impractical, it quickly became the poster boy for ‘70s Italian sports cars.

1975 Lamborghini LP400 Countach (cont.)

This Countach spent its early life in Saudi Arabia, before being found – covered in dust – by an Italian, who set to work overhauling it.

Everything from the electrics to the mechanicals were restored, with the shell refinished and several refinements made to the cabin, including returning it to its original tobacco leather finish.

Its engine number doesn’t match the chassis – but, according to a test driver, this was common: Lamborghini couldn’t afford to delay deliveries, so it simply switched out faulty engines.

Comprehensively maintained, it goes to auction with Artcurial in pristine concours condition.

1969 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Competizione Gr.4

Estimate: £5.7m – £6.5m

Seeing ‘Ferrari’ and ‘Daytona’ in the same sentence is enough to get any classic car enthusiast excited. Add ‘Competizione’ to the mix and you might well need a cold flannel.

Ferrari built just 15 track-ready versions of its magnificent 365GTB/4 tourer, bodied in aluminium for privateers to race. Before those, though, came a handful of prototypes – including this 1969 machine.

Rare enough by name alone, chassis 12467 is more notable, still, for having finished 5th overall in the 1971 running of the Le Mans 24 Hours.

1969 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Competizione Gr.4 (cont.)

One of only two or three development versions modified to qualify the model for competition, this Gr.IV Daytona reportedly shipped with a steel body, plexiglass windows and an engine tuned to deliver 400bhp.

Delivered by Ferrari directly to Luigi Chinetti at the Le Mans circuit in 1971, it subsequently competed in several US events – including endurance races at Sebring and Daytona.

Ferrari Classiche-certified and going to auction with its original engine block, machines like this are rarely seen, let alone sold. And, with an estimate in the region of £6m, it’s doubtless the star of the show.

Artcurial's Le Mans Classic auction takes place on 7 July. You can view the full catalogue here