Ferrari 499P Modificata, for those who want Le Mans in the garage

Two auctions, eight days apart, and the collector car market has changed its mood. I followed both closely, and I want to start with the car that made me smile.

Geneva, 8 November

Gooding Christie's held its first ever Geneva sale on Sunday, at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues, during Christie's Luxury Week. It was the house's Swiss debut.

The headline lot was a 2024 Ferrari 499P Modificata, the first of its kind ever offered at public auction. Estimated "in excess of CHF 7,500,000", it sold for CHF 8,217,500.

The 499P is the car that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans outright in 2023, 2024 and 2025. In 2023 it gave Ferrari its first overall Le Mans victory since 1965. The Modificata is the track only version, freed from the racing regulations: a twin turbo 3.0 litre V6 with a 272 PS electric motor on the front axle, about 707 PS combined, and 870 PS when you press the "Push to Pass" button.

This one, in its original red livery, had not been driven beyond its factory shakedown. The new owner gets access to Ferrari's Sport Prototipi Clienti programme, with factory support at circuits around the world.

The sale totalled CHF 21,073,825, as reported after the auction. Other results included an F12tdf at CHF 1,805,000, an SF90 XX Spider at CHF 1,580,000, an 812 Competizione at CHF 1,326,875 and a Dino 246 GT at CHF 308,750. Several Ferraris did not sell, which is healthy. Not every car deserves a record.

London, 31 October

A week earlier, RM Sotheby's London sale at The Peninsula, held with the Royal Automobile Club and the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run, made £36,550,950. It is the highest grossing collector car auction ever held in the UK, beating the Bonhams Goodwood Festival of Speed sale of 2013.

The top lot was a 2022 Ferrari Daytona SP3 at £8,161,250, a development car later used by Ferrari for the press, including an episode of BBC's Top Gear. An Aston Martin Valkyrie Coupé with 186 miles set a model record at £2,761,250. A 1988 Ferrari F40 made £2,592,500, a 1965 275 GTB Alloy £2,041,250 and a 2015 458 Speciale Aperta £1,861,250.

The sell through rate was 87.5 percent and all ten top lots passed one million pounds.

The Portugal angle

The lot that touched me most was not the most expensive. It was a 1991 Honda NSX that Honda supplied to Ayrton Senna for his personal use in Portugal. It sold for £871,250, a world record for the model.

Senna spent long periods in the Algarve, where he had a house near Quinta do Lago, and the Estoril circuit gave him his first Formula 1 victory in 1985, in the rain. This NSX was part of that life. It is a piece of Portuguese motoring memory, even if it now lives in another country.

Curious facts

• The 499P Modificata is not homologated for the road or for racing. It exists only for private track days with Ferrari. It is the purest kind of luxury: useless, and perfect.
• The Valkyrie's previous record was US$3,070,625, set in Dubai in 2024.
• A 1959 Land Rover Series II "Art Car" by the designer Sean Wotherspoon also set a record at £132,250.

My take

These two sales tell me the market has split. Modern hypercars from the factory, with almost no miles, are now treated as collectibles from day one. Classic icons with history, like the F40 and the 275 GTB, hold their value. And the middle, the merely nice cars, is where buyers say no.

For Portuguese collectors, the Senna NSX is a reminder: history adds value that no factory option can match.

For those who want Le Mans in the garage, CHF 8.2 million was the price this weekend. I would rather have the Senna car, and drive it in the Algarve.