The World's Most Expensive Car... Wrecks

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed)
Apr 1st 2010 at 8:01AM

Here at Luxist we write a lot about the world's most expensive cars. Now the London Telegraph has compiled a list of the world's most expensive car wrecks, following Jackie Stewart's trashing of a Pagani Zonda supercar in Scotland, which my colleague Noah Joseph reported on last week. Here's the paper's list of flaming Ferraris, burned-out Bugattis and other smashed-up supercars. The values given are those at the time the crashes occurred as calculated by the Telegraph. Let's hope all the insurance was in order:

1. 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO: $28.5 million

The car's British owner, who has never been named, was participating in an historic car race when he crashed into the back of another car in slow traffic. He had bought the car at auction in 2008 for $28.5 million.

2. 1961 Ferrari 250 GT Spyder: $10 million.

The 1961 car was bought at auction in 2008 for $10 million. But the unfortunate owner, who has not been named, stored the car near a beach in California and it was wrecked in a hurricane and literally buried in the sand.

3. 1959 Ferrari 250 GT TDF: $1.65 million

The unnamed owner of this $1.65 million car, nicknamed "Tour de France", crashed into a wall during the Shell Ferrari-Maserati Historic Challenge in 2003 at the infamous Lime Rock race track in, Connecticut, United States.

4. Ferrari Enzo: $1.3 million

Swedish businessman Bo Stefan "Fat Steven" Eriksson was involved in the spectacular accident in 2006, when he lost control of his $1.3 million Ferrari at 196 mph on the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu and crashed into a pole. He later pleaded no contest to a drunken driving charge in connection with the crash and embezzling two other fancy cars and illegally possessing a gun.

5. Bugatti Veyron: $1.25 million

Away Soni, 39, was driving his millionaire older brother's brand new rare car at 100 mph in the pouring rain along a 40 mph stretch of the B375 near Chertsey, Surrey, UK in March 2007 when he collided with a Vauxhall Astra.

6. Jaguar XJ220: $1 million

The unnamed owner crashed this car at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the world's biggest historic motorsport event. The front bonnet crumpled in the crash.

7. Pagani Zonda: $1 million

The car's owner crashed his vehicle in Hong Kong in December last year when an out of control truck forced him into a row of parked cars. He had been driving back from racing track event.

8. McLaren F1: $960,000

Rowan Atkinson, the actor, in October 1999 crashed his 240 mph machine, one of the fastest production cars in the world at the time.The former star of Blackadder and Mr Bean collided with the rear of a Metro driven by Margaret Greenhalgh, 62, as he was driving north on the A6 near Lancaster, UK.

9. Pagani Zonda S: $790,000

The unnamed driver crashed the supercar after spinning out of control on a test run down a country lane near Aberdeen. The final insurance bill could be more than £300,000 once all the repairs are completed, Aviva said, making it one of the highest ever payouts in the UK.

10. Mercedes-Benz 300 SL "Gullwing": $700,000

An unnamed owner of the beautiful classic car was involved in a crash with a Seattle council landscape truck, which appropriately enough had the name "impact landscaping" on the side.

Tags: Bugatti, Bugatti Veyron, car crash, Ferrari, Ferrari 250 GTO, Ferrari Enzo, McLaren F1, Pagani, supercars

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, Wealth, Crimes and Misdemeanors

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 6)

mrogers Apr 1st 2010 11:29AM

2. 1961 Ferrari 250 GT Spyder: $10 million.

The 1961 car was bought at auction in 2008 for $10 million. But the unfortunate owner, who has not been named, stored the car near a beach in California and it was wrecked in a hurricane and literally buried in the sand.

So, when did Cali start experiencing hurricanes?

meat eater Apr 4th 2010 8:17PM

LOL i was wondering the same thing...

Ray Perry Apr 4th 2010 9:44PM

I too wondered about hurricanes in Cowlyforny. (that's what I call it)

Amber Apr 5th 2010 5:28PM

California has always had 'hurricanes' but they call them Typhoons.

holidaysin Apr 4th 2010 10:17PM

California gets hurricanes. Go do your research.

JIM STUTSMAN Apr 4th 2010 10:12PM

IT WAS ACTUALLY WATER SPOUTS IN SOUTHERN CA. BACK IN JANUARY.....WHO'D PARK A $10 MILLION DOLLAR OUTSIDE MUST HAVE MORE MONEY THAN SENSE......LOL

paul Apr 4th 2010 10:24PM

I was wondering the same thing

Thomas Apr 4th 2010 10:59PM

Better yet, why did he leave a 10 million dollar car parked at da beach with a hurricane coming.............hhmmmmm. I can't imagine an insurance co. insuring this car or paying on this one.

Angela Apr 4th 2010 11:08PM

LMAO....I saw this and thought what???? Lived here almost my entire life. Had a scary earthquake today. However, have yet to experience a hurricane in my 40 years hear in Cali....

JMartin Apr 4th 2010 11:07PM

I too, call bull$hit about the hurricane story in CA. I live in a S. CA beach city and we don't have those kinds of weather conditions here. And if we did, no one would be stupid enough to store their $1M+ automobile close enough to get in THAT kind of mess shown in the picture. Something just doesn't ring true in that story.

bevo Apr 4th 2010 11:54PM

Now you know why they should build the fence around California instead of putting it between Mex. and the U.S.

smile99forme Apr 4th 2010 11:53PM

Some Num Nuts must have got the story wrong. It obviously looks like Florida, if you have been there. I am from California and that isn't Cali.

D Fisk Apr 5th 2010 12:00AM

That 250 gt Spyder IS A REPLICA! It was not a real ferrari. Also the car was found after KATRINA.

casssiedawn Apr 5th 2010 12:27AM

I've lived in CA beach communities my entire life and we do not have hurricanes! That looks like Mexico.

Fishman Apr 5th 2010 1:08AM

A California hurricane is a tropical cyclone that affects the state of California. Usually, only the remnants of tropical cyclones affect California. Since 1900, two tropical storms have hit California, one by direct landfall from offshore, another after making landfall in Mexico.

Since 1900, only four tropical cyclones have brought gale-force winds to the Southwestern United States. They are an unnamed tropical storm that made landfall near San Pedro in 1939, the remnants of Hurricane Joanne in 1972, the remnants of Hurricane Kathleen in 1976, and Hurricane Nora in 1997 which entered California as a tropical storm. In addition, a recently-discovered and reconstructed hurricane just missed making landfall in 1858.