THE car which started Lewis Hamilton’s Formula 1 dynasty with Mercedes has been purchased for a remarkable price.
The 2013-specification Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 W04-04 (i.e. Chassis 4 of the W04) was auctioned via RM Sotheby’s during the glitzy Las Vegas Grand Prix at the weekend.
The car was raced by Hamilton in 14 of the 2013 season’s 19 races, including in Australia where he opened his maiden Mercedes campaign after spending his first six seasons at McLaren.
It was also in Chassis 4 that Hamilton won that year’s Hungarian Grand Prix – the first success in a partnership which is still enduring and has netted six world drivers’ championships.
The car had been tipped to fetch in the vicinity of US$10-15 million, but the bidding ended up going well past that ballpark.
The hammer ultimately dropped at US$18,815,000, which is equivalent to roughly AU$28,750,000.
The auction was hosted by British celebrity James Corden.
