RM Sotheby's To Sell 140-Strong 'Youngtimer' Collection

RM Sotheby’s has acquired a stunning collection of more than 140 ‘Youngtimer’ cars from a single owner, and is selling them at some of the biggest auctions next year, including Paris, Amelia Island and its inaugural Essen sale. This truly is a dream garage for its era, with a huge variety of European and Japanese cars from the 1980s, ‘90s and early ‘00s, cars that shaped the youth of many, including the collector himself.

The most prolific marque in this collection is Mercedes-Benz, with 34 classics from Stuttgart present. There are also 27 BMWs, 12 Rolls-Royces from a shining era for the brand, 11 Bentleys, and 27 sports cars from the likes of Ferrari, Porsche, Jaguar and Aston Martin. Some of Europe’s leading marques are lesser represented, but still present, with one car each from Audi, Lotus and Lamborghini.Japan is represented by Nissan, Acura, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Toyota, and there are some American stars from Cadillac and Chevrolet.

"From nearly every iteration of the BMW Alpina to the Mercedes-Benz 500 SEC AMG 6.0 Wide Body, Porsche 928 GTS, and the Renault R5 Turbo, the private collection we’ve added to our 2019 calendar has nearly every car youth of the '80s and '90s dreamed of,’ said Gord Duff, RM Sotheby’s global head of auctions.

"The 80s and 90s ‘youngtimers’ are back and here to stay in the world of car collecting, and we’re thrilled to offer this extensive collection on behalf of its enthusiastic owner. Truly a young man’s garage, the consignor is ready to distill his collection and share these exciting cars with other like-minded enthusiasts."

The Paris sale is the first to take place, on February 6, and includes a 1982 BMW Alpina B7 Turbo, 1989 a Mercedes-Benz 500 SEC AMG 6.0 Wide Body, a 1994 BMW 850CSi with flipping headlights and some more modern classics.

Held during the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, the 21st Amelia Island will take place on March 9, and will focus on the Japanese members of the collection. A low mileage Toyota Supra, Nissan 300ZX Twin Turbo and Acura NSX city speedsters will be sold, along with a six-speed 2004 Ferrari 575 Maranello, expected to attract over $250,000 (£196,282, €220,513). Most of the British contingent will be flogged at the Fort Lauderdale sale in Florida later that month, as well as several Nissan 300 ZXs, which are one of the classic car market’s high appreciators.

The final sale, where more than 80 of the 140 plus cars is being sold at, is the first ever Essen auction, taking place on April 11 in Essen, Germany. This will be all about high performance, with Porsche sports cars, including a 911 Turbo 3.6 from 1994, a huge array of BMW Alpina and BMW M performance cars, a history of Mercedes-Benz AMG cars from the late 1970s through to the ‘90s, Rolls-Royces and Bentleys, a 29,000km Renault R5 Turbo from 1985 and a rare Wiesmann GT.