- McLaren F1 GTR chassis 10R sold for $34,655,000 at RM Sotheby’s Monterey, becoming the priciest McLaren and British-built auction car.
- 10R is a 1996 McLaren F1 GTR, one of nine 1996 cars and one of two short-tail GTR prototypes.
- It ran Le Mans tests, was road-converted by McLaren specialists and was owned by Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason.
The hammer fell at RM Sotheby’s Monterey sale and a one-off McLaren F1 GTR in wild “Pop Art” colors brought $34,655,000, blowing past most expectations and freezing the room. Collectors just watched a track-born prototype, once owned by Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason, become the most expensive McLaren and most expensive British-built car ever sold at public auction.
The car crossing the Monterey block was chassis 10R, a 1996 McLaren F1 GTR built to the lighter, more focused race specification developed after McLaren’s Le Mans win in 1995. It is one of just nine cars in that 1996 batch and, even inside that tiny group, stands out as one of only two short-tail GTR prototypes known to enthusiasts and historians.
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Source: RM Sotheby’s
RM Sotheby’s results page describe this car as the most expensive McLaren and the most expensive British-built car publicly auctioned, with the $34,655,000 result edging above previous F1 sales but still under rumored private deals. For collectors, that makes 10R the new public benchmark for McLaren values and for British supercars in general.
Why Chassis 10R And Nick Mason Matter So Much
Chassis 10R did not start life as static art. Built for the 1996 season, it served as McLaren’s development and test car as the F1 GTR evolved to take on pure-bred GT1 racers. Records show it ran in pre-qualifying and test sessions for the 24 Hours of Le Mans that year, giving it direct ties to La Sarthe even though another sister car contested the race itself.
On top of that competition pedigree, auction documents point out that 10R was converted for road use by McLaren and specialists associated with the original program, making it one of an estimated handful of GTRs legally adapted for the street. That dual identity resonates with fans who already follow cars like the Lanzante 95-59 McLaren F1 road-converted racer and other race-bred specials that escaped the track.
1996 McLaren “Pop Art” F1 GTR
Photo by: RM Sotheby’s
The Pop Art label is not marketing fluff. Period photos and contemporary reports describe this as the only F1 GTR to leave the factory in a bold scarlet base with contrasting yellow graphics, a livery that mirrors 1990s pop-art themes and made the car instantly recognizable at BPR Global GT events and test days. When you add Nick Mason’s long-term ownership after he acquired it in 1999 to join a garage that has included a Ferrari 250 GTO and Maserati 250F, you get the full package of prototype status, Le Mans testing role, road conversion by the right people, one-off factory livery, and rock-royalty provenance.
Motor1’s Take: The sale shows how much weight collectors now give to factory prototypes, unique liveries, road-converted racers, and rock-star provenance, and it is likely to push more money toward short-tail GTRs, street-legal McLaren race cars, and any example with bulletproof documentation at future blue-chip auctions.
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