The $7.1m Bugatti plus all the weekend’s other top lots at Amelia Island

One-of-11 Bugatti is the runaway leader

After a frantic few days of bidding on Florida’s Amelia Island, there was one car that blew away all the others.

The hammer came down on this 1932 Bugatti Type 55 Super Sport Roadster at an eye-watering $7,100,000 (£5,459,346) at Bonhams’ sale last Thursday, against a $6.5-9.5m estimate – that was the second-highest guide price of all the big Amelia auctions.

That pre-sale top spot had been held by a 1958 Ferrari 250GT LWB California Spider consigned to Gooding & Company ($9-11m), but this failed to find a new home.

Let’s find out what makes this Bugatti so special – and check out Amelia Island 2020’s other top 10 biggest sellers.

1. 1932 Bugatti Type 55 Super Sport Roadster – $7.1m

There’s no escaping the fact that more than $7m meant the Bugatti’s winning bidder had to dig seriously deep – but this is a very special car.

A mere 38 of these Super Sport Bugattis were built, of which only 14 left the factory with this Jean Bugatti Roadster coachwork – and this is one of just 11 of these remaining today with that original bodywork. It is a stunning survivor. 

1. 1932 Bugatti Type 55 Super Sport Roadster (cont.)

This Type 55 has lived much of its life in the UK and, pleasingly, has been much-enjoyed.

It is also a former Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance class winner, no less.

We don’t know where it will be kept by its new owner, but let’s hope he or she is keen to share this rarity with the world.

2. 1907 Renault Type AI 35/45HP Vanderbilt Racer – $3.3m

We’ll admit that this lot rather slid under our radar, but fetching more than $3m, also with Bonhams, made it a French one-two in Florida.

A former resident of the Indianapolis Speedway Museum, this is one of five authenticated Renault Vanderbilt racers and it’s thought it was campaigned in the Brighton 24hrs of 1907 by Louis Raffolovitch.

Its consignor cared for it, used and even raced it – we wonder what its future has in store.

3. 1914 Rolls-Royce 40/50hp Silver Ghost Torpédo Phaeton – $2.2m

This magnificent Rolls-Royce hit the headlines over at the Gooding & Company Amelia Island sale, netting the firm’s top spot with a $2,205,000 sale price.

A little under its $2.7-3.5m estimate, then, but what this car’s lucky new owner gets isn’t just a sensational 7428cc, six-cylinder beauty, but one with an opulent rear cabin that treats its occupants to, among other things, drink decanters and glasses, cigar holders, brushes and a mirror. Fancy.

4. 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Cabriolet by D’Ieteren – $1.655m

Next it’s RM Sotheby’s star lot which crept over the lower end of its pre-sale estimate – and it’s another Bugatti.

In addition, this is unique, being the only Type 57 Bugatti built in the three-seater Aravis-inspired body style by Belgian firm D’Ieteren.

It still has its original body, chassis and engine, and its winning bidder also acquired its original and unrestored luggage set.

5. 1963 Ferrari 250GT/L Berlinetta Lusso – $1.6m

Hot on the Bugatti’s heels at RM Sotheby’s was this meticulously cared for Ferrari Lusso.

Scaglietti-bodied and fresh from 48 years of single ownership, in which time it twice took home trophies at the Cavallino Classic, its odometer shows just 22,055km (13,704 miles).

6. 1967 Ferrari 330GTS – $1.475m

At number six, it’s another Ferrari – and this is the 28th of only 100 examples of the 330GTS.

Striking in Oro Chiaro and having covered just 50,952 miles since it was built new for the American market, it might have just failed to hit its $1.8-2.2m pre-sale estimate, but that’s still a pretty sum for a very pretty classic car.

7. 1969 Lamborghini Miura P400S – $1.435m

One car that did achieve its pre-auction guide price was this eye-catching Miura that crossed the block with Gooding & Company.

Well, it is rather special, being a sub-17,500-mile, just three-owner car, with its matching-numbers engine and body, and its original interior, and it was sold with a stack of paperwork.

8. 1976 Porsche 934 – $1.38m

When the gavel fell at $1,380,000 for this Porsche 934 on Friday, it set a new world record for the model – also comfortably beating its $1.25m lower estimate.

Unsurprisingly, this result triggered a standing ovation and cheers from the packed tent when this, the first of 13 934s built, set a new model benchmark.

9. 1961 Ferrari 250GT Cabriolet Series II – $1.35m

One of seven delivered in Grigio Fumo with a Pelle Beige interior, this Pininfarina-bodied Ferrari boasts a Pebble Beach concours-quality restoration, which surely helped it achieve its $1,352,500 sale price.

It’s number 131 of the 200 built, has that all-important Ferrari Classiche certification and is, quite simply, a wonderful example of a beautiful classic Ferrari. What more can be said?

10. 1932 Duesenberg Model J Stationary Victoria – $1.325m

We think you’ll all agree when we say there’s no shame in coming 10th in such an illustrious list. Quite the opposite! Indeed, reaching the heights of a top 10 price at the prestigious Amelia Island auctions is no mean feat – and this is quite a car.

It is a unique, bespoke Duesenberg, the only Model J delivered with this body style, a fixed-roof or ‘stationary’ version of Rollston’s convertible Victoria.

And what’s amazing is that original photographs of the car as-new survive, showing its body shape and trim.

And this is just the beginning…

Want more from the big three Amelia Island 2020 sales?

If so, click here to see RM Sotheby’s full results, here to check out Gooding & Company’s and for Bonhams’ results, head this way.