12 Most Expensive McLarens Of All Time, Ranked

From its early days as an upstart racing outfit to its current status as one of the world's leading performance car manufacturers, McLaren's history is filled with iconic cars. Its back catalog of road cars, despite being a relatively recent development, is already filled with class-leading models, and its race cars have claimed dozens of the world's most prestigious titles over the decades. Many of those winning cars have since made their way into private collectors, rarely changing hands and commanding huge sums of money when they do.

The F1 is still, for many people, the ultimate road car, and fittingly, several examples feature on the list of the brand's most expensive models. However, there are also a few more surprising appearances, including a classic Can-Am racer and a coachbuilt one-off built on the bones of the MP4-12C. Prices for the McLaren F1 continue to rise at record rates, so it's likely we'll see even more eye-watering price tags being fetched by the most desirable cars in the future. But for now, here are the 12 most expensive McLarens ever sold.

McLaren's reputation as a force to be reckoned with in motorsport dates back to the company's earliest days, when it was still several decades away from even considering making a road car. It's perhaps most famous for its triumphs in Formula 1, but McLaren also dominated Can-Am racing for years, at least until Porsche's all-conquering 917 changed the series forever. The last season McLaren competed as a factory outfit was 1972, and the M20 Can-Am sold at a Mecum auction in 2014 was among the entries fielded that year.

It sold for exactly $2,000,000, commanding a high price because of its remarkably original condition. Unlike many other Can-Am cars from the period, the M20 sported its original bodywork and chassis, which had been restored a few years before the sale took place. It was raced in period by Peter Revson, who managed three podium places in the car despite its persistent reliability issues. It was later driven by many famous faces, including Derek Bell and David Hobbes before its restoration saw it become a Concours-winning show car.

Although the team ultimately couldn't compete with a dominant Ferrari, McLaren was looking strong coming into the 2002 Formula 1 season. The new MP4-17D race car had been developed at the team's freshly completed wind tunnel, leading to aerodynamic improvements over the outgoing car. It also boasted a revised 3.0-liter V10, making 845 horsepower, and behind the wheel sat Kimi Räikkönen and David Coulthard. Out of every McLaren that competed that season, the chassis sold at an RM Sotheby's auction in 2021 was the most successful, winning the Australian Grand Prix and taking five more podium places.

It was driven by both Räikkönen and Coulthard across the 2002 and 2003 seasons, racking up 12 race entries in total. It was also used as a test car at eight further events before being retired and eventually sold into private ownership. Understandably, the car caused plenty of excitement when it debuted at auction — it's not every day that collectors get the chance to purchase an F1 car, let alone a race-winning one. After bidding closed, the MP4-17D achieved a final price of 1,973,750 Swiss Francs, roughly $2.16 million at the time.

The McLaren P1 was already an ultra-rare car — with just 375 units produced, it was the brand's first halo car since the iconic F1, and so demand was extremely high. Of that original production run, only 58 were fitted to track-ready P1 GTR spec at a reported cost of around $3.1 million. The P1 GTR took the P1's already radical design and cranked it up a notch with more extreme aero and a stripped-out, racing-inspired interior. A fixed rear wing was added for extra downforce at high speeds, and racing suspension provided sharper handling at the expense of a less comfortable ride.

The car's extra modifications meant that it wasn't road legal, at least not from the factory, although a handful of owners later converted their cars to qualify for a license plate. Their rarity means that collectors have been understandably keen to hold on to them, and at the time of writing, no P1 GTR has achieved a public sale price higher than the original MSRP. However, private sales with even more eye-watering price tags may have taken place behind closed doors.

The fastest McLaren made to date, the Speedtail "Hyper-GT" boasts a top speed of 250 mph. While many of the most exclusive McLarens opt for a bare-bones approach to interior furnishings in a quest to save weight, the Speedtail is a much more lavish affair, with leather upholstery across the whole cabin and a focus on comfort as much as performance. Not that McLaren would ever compromise on the latter, of course: the car's gas-hybrid system packs 1,035 horsepower and can reach 186 mph from a standstill, nearly four seconds faster than its predecessor, the P1.

As well as being incredibly powerful, the Speedtail also boasts plenty of aero tricks to help it achieve its lofty top speed. The front wheels are hidden by aero covers, while the rear of the car's sloping carbon fiber bodywork is flexible and can be adjusted for optimal airflow at high speeds. It's safe to say that the Speedtail is one of the most technologically advanced road cars out there, and as a result, it's a highly sought-after collector's grail. It cost around $2.29 million plus taxes when unveiled in 2018 but has since sold for even more at auction. A 2021 RM Sotheby's auction saw one example with just 30 miles on the clock fetching $3,277,500.

Johnny Rutherford's win at the 1974 Indy 500 was a very memorable one, with the driver starting in 25th and weaving through the pack to gain 12 places in just the first three laps. He continued to push and eventually fought his way to the front, extending his lead to 22 seconds by the time he crossed the finish line. In the process, he'd lapped every single car on the track apart from second place.

The McLaren M16C in which he achieved this historic victory, chassis M16C-5, was eventually sold off to a privateer team and later a noted collector, who restored the car to its race-winning spec. It was reunited with its most successful driver twice at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2009 and 2011 before appearing at an RM Sotheby's auction in 2013. A huge amount of buyer interest surrounded the car, with the hammer price eventually reaching $3.52 million, making it one of the most expensive Indy race cars ever sold.

McLaren's latest ultra-exclusive hypercar is also one of its most expensive, with a reported £3 million price tag (roughly $3.63 million). The Solus GT was first designed for the racing game "Gran Turismo Sport," but McLaren decided to make a real-world version of the virtual concept limited to just 25 units. It's powered by a 5.2-liter naturally-aspirated V10, putting out roughly 829 horsepower, with its futuristic design helping to generate enough downforce to efficiently transfer all those horses to the tarmac.

It also helps reduce drag, with McLaren drawing on its F1 expertise to create a shape that's as slippery as possible. Its extreme design means it's set to be mind-bogglingly fast, but the tradeoff is that it's not road-legal. There's no room to take friends along for the ride either — it's strictly a single seater, with an F1-inspired cabin designed to protect the driver in the event of a high-speed crash. Unfortunately for anyone with deep enough pockets to consider buying one, there's no point making inquiries at the nearest McLaren dealer, as every example of the car was sold before it was even officially unveiled in 2022.

Aryton Senna is one of the most iconic Formula 1 drivers of all time, and his final victory at the Monaco Grand Prix in 1993 is one of his most iconic achievements. The car in which he claimed that record-breaking sixth Monaco win was sold at a Bonhams auction in 2018. Fittingly, the auction was held in Monaco itself, within walking distance of the roads that make up the circuit.

The McLaren team were underdogs going into the 1993 season, being forced to strike a last-minute deal with Cosworth Ford after its previous engine supplier, Honda, pulled out of competition. Senna was reportedly reluctant to stay with McLaren given the car's inherent disadvantage but was eventually convinced to continue racing. It would turn out to be his last season with the team. Senna crashed the car in practice at Monaco, with team engineers forced to make hasty repairs to get it ready for the main race. However, thanks to Senna's driving talent and the retirement of former race leader Michael Schumacher due to mechanical failure, the MP4/8A took the checkered flag.

The car was also driven by Senna at seven further races throughout the 1993 season, although without any further podiums. It was eventually sold to a private collector who personally knew McLaren boss Ron Dennis before appearing at auction again in Monaco. The sale fetched €4,197,500, roughly $4.96 million at the time.

It's difficult to argue that paying over $5 million for any car constitutes a bargain, but considering how much prices for the rarest examples of the McLaren F1 have increased in recent years, the buyer of this F1 GTR Longtail will have certainly made a healthy return on their investment. It was listed for sale by Gooding & Co. in 2014, with the hammer falling at $5.28 million. For that, the unidentified buyer got the most successful example of McLaren's legendary race car, with two wins and FIA GT Championship four podium finishes over its racing career.

The GTR Longtail is extremely rare even by F1 standards, as only 10 examples were built out of 106 total F1 cars. The example in question had been maintained by one of the world's leading McLaren specialists and featured a version of BMW's naturally-aspirated V12 engine tuned to 704 horsepower. It is, according to the auction listing, the most successful BMW Team car known to be in private ownership, as well as being the most advanced iteration of the F1 race car. It hasn't been listed for sale since the record-setting auction, but when it appears again, it's likely to fetch significantly more than the current buyer paid nearly a decade ago.

Now the most decorated Formula 1 driver of all time, Lewis Hamilton is a living legend of the sport. However, unlike many other racing greats, his Grand Prix-winning cars had never been sold to any private collector — that is, until a single-lot RM Sotheby's auction conducted in front of 140,000 fans at the British Grand Prix in 2021. The McLaren-Mercedes MP4-25 up for grabs claimed victory at the 2010 Turkish Grand Prix with Hamilton at the wheel, as well as racking up two other race entries with Hamilton and five with his teammate Jensen Button.

Among those other Hamilton entries was the 2010 Malaysian Grand Prix, where the famed driver climbed a remarkable 14 places throughout the race to finish sixth overall. The car also claimed a second-place finish with Hamilton in China that year and a final podium place with Button in Dubai. With so much winning history and the status of its drivers, it's unsurprising that the car ended up being one of the most expensive F1 cars ever sold. It fetched £4.73 million at the high-profile auction, roughly $6.51 million at the time.

After the F1, SLR, and MP4-12C, McLaren's next road car was a very odd one. Throughout its history, both as a road car manufacturer and a racing outfit, McLaren has always focused on performance, improving its cars methodically and rationally. The X-1 was a complete U-turn on those principles: it was a one-off, specially commissioned car based on an MP4-12C, but with unique bodywork that took design inspiration from a selection of American and French classics.

Mechanically, it was identical to the MP4-12C, making its construction even more puzzling. If it wasn't built to be faster, handle better, or be technically superior to the brand's series-production supercar, then why build it? The answer is likely down to the status of its commissioner, who was reportedly close to McLaren boss Ron Dennis, and the size of said commissioner's bank account — at a reported cost of $7 million, this was by far the most expensive factory car McLaren had built up to that point.

Sold at RM Sotheby's Monterey auction in 2019, the McLaren F1 LM-Specification became the most expensive example of the car ever publicly sold, setting new standards for the model. Its hammer price of $19.805 million was achieved thanks to its unique history, with the car being maintained directly by McLaren's MSO division from new. It's worth noting that the car in question is an "F1 LM-Specification" and not an F1 LM — although the LM is a five-car special edition built to commemorate McLaren's Le Mans victory, two further F1 cars were later sent back to the McLaren factory for conversion to LM spec.

These two cars retain the more comfortable interior of the standard F1 but boast a de-restricted version of the racing engine that powered the GTR to victory at Le Mans. The bodywork modifications made to the LM-Specification were deemed by MSO to produce more downforce than the race-spec GTR, making it essentially the ultimate version of the road-going F1. Clearly, that unrivaled status was reflected in its sky-high sale price.

The most expensive McLaren sold to date is a nearly-new F1 that was auctioned by Gooding & Co. in 2021. Described by the auctioneer as a "time capsule," the car only had around 240 miles on the clock. It was originally delivered to a Japanese collector but later brought to the U.S., where it was federalized for road use. Not that it saw much road use, with an odometer reading that low. That seems like a shame since much of the appeal of the McLaren F1 is how unbelievably fast it is, both on the road and the track.

Still, its owner chose to preserve it as a private museum piece instead, along with the original tool chest, luggage, and watch it originally came with. Hopefully, after paying a record-breaking sum of money for the privilege of owning it, its new owner will do something other than keep it tucked away in a climate-controlled garage somewhere. But given the F1 continues to rise in value year after year, it's, unfortunately, most likely to stay as an investment item until the next deep-pocketed collector pays even more to get their hands on it.