Ten stunners from RM’s Paris auction

Classic car auctions are big business nowadays. Ferraris, McLarens, Bugattis and more all regularly fetch prices of seven - or even eight - figures.

And for those of us who don't have a stockpile of cash to throw at lovely old supercars, high-end auctions are simply a blooming good chance to gawp at some of the finest bodywork ever strapped around an engine. The Ferrari F40 above, for example.

Allow us to talk you through the pricey highlights of this week's RM Auction in Paris. Scroll through the pictures above, and tell us which one you'd buy in the comments below...

1990 Ferrari F40
£880,000

Our first star from this week's RM Auction in Paris is one of its most expensive lots, and it's arguably the supercar. Can you name a sports car with a more instantly recognisable shape than the F40? And while the 488 GTB may be attracting attention for its turbocharged engine, here's the definitive blown Prancing Horse.

Just shy of £900,000 is a fair chunk of money for a 25-year-old supercar, but with one name on its log book and less than 1000 miles on its clock, this is as close to a new F40 as you're likely to find.

1964 Porsche 904 Carrera GTS
£1.07million

The auction star, this Carrera GTS topped the million-pound mark. In the same week the new Cayman GT4 has landed, here's an example of a mid-engined Porsche sports car from the old school.

Its 180bhp 2-litre flat-six unit produces half the power of its modern-day relative, but that Cayman can't claim to be eligible for multitudinous historic motorsport events, nor boast victories at Spa, Sebring, the Nürburgring or Le Mans, among many others. Cooler than sub-zero.

1963 Mercedes 300SL Roadster
£920,000

Another of the auction's huge-ticket items. Is a 300SL without gullwing doors really worth nearly a million quid? Well, it's hardly offensive to the eyes in drop-top form, is it? Of 1963 vintage, few Mercs have looked as good since.

It's also one of the last-of-the-line 300SLs, possessing disc brakes and an alloy engine block. With around 225bhp, it would have its proverbial posterior kicked by most modern hot hatches. But who needs speed when you've got this much grace?

£780,000

Award yourself ten points if you've heard of the Iso Grifo. Double that if you recognised it above as you clicked through. Times what you've got by ten if you're reading these words as opposed to just staring slack-jawed at the screen.

Its Italian bodywork brings beauty, while one heck of a lot of brawn is served up by a 5.4-litre Corvette V8 engine, with upwards of 350bhp. With disc brakes and complex independent suspension, the Iso Grifo ought to be able to handle it too.

A melting pot of desirable ingredients, small wonder it sold for over £750,000.

1969 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona
£530,000

If you like your Italian supercars a little more traditional, though, here's one of the absolute icons. The Daytona isn't low and lithe like some Ferraris, and it won't serve up the most agile of driving experiences. But boy, is it belting to look at. 

It's special enough as standard, but this one received some competition-biased upgrades at the dealer, namely a motorsport differential, a new nose, bigger brakes, wheels and tyres and racing carburettors. It sold this week for over half a million pounds.

1958 Abarth 750 GT Zagato
£56,000 euros

And now for a red Italian sports car of the littlest variety. A 48bhp, 767cc engine may not even be fit for purpose in a city car nowadays, but back in 1958 it was more than ample for making a mean little Mille Miglia racer.

This 750 GT ‘Double Bubble' is the work of divisive coachbuilder Zagato, and to our eyes it looks utterly brilliant. At around £55,000, though, would you have spent BMW M4 money on a car 12bhp shy of a Seat Mii?

1977 Lancia Stratos
£288,000

We're aware there's a picture of a bright yellow Stratos up there, so you probably aren't wasting your eyesight reading down here. Nonetheless, we'll soldier on. Here's a mid-engined supercar with potentially the most cohesive design in performance car history and a Ferrari-sourced V6 giving it plenty of pace.

It also sounds unfathomably fantastically brilliant. Despite its knife-edge rear-drive balance, the Stratos was a rallying hero, bagging three WRC titles. Fewer than 25,000 miles have been covered by this one-owner example.

The best part of £300,000 ain't cheap, but a better blend of performance, proportions and provenance can't be bought for any less, we reckon...

1982 Lancia 037 Stradale
£273,000

Another lovely Lancia, and another one that appears to have been styled solely with ruler and pencil. It's also another Lancia we want so badly it makes us ache in many places. Don't forget, this is one of the tiny handful of manufacturers the telly boys class as truly great. And the 037, unconventionally good looking as it may be, is another rallying legend.

Keen Italian-ists will know that ‘Stradale' translates as street, so this here is a car shorn of period livery and massive mudflaps. Beneath its kevlar and fibreglass body is a mid-mounted 2-litre engine with a supercharger, and this example is free of any modifications.

It's exactly as an 037 should be, and comes with its original tools and spares set. It sold for over a quarter of a million quid.

1964 Aston Martin DB5
£627,000 euros

The DB5 isn't in desperate need of an introduction. It's James Bond's most famous company car, inspiration for one of the greatest toys in history, and the car that introduced Aston to the masses. You could argue it's the Aston Martin.

You don't get an ejector seat or concealed missiles here, but you do get a set of glorious wire wheels, white wall tyres and a rather luxurious interior: here is one of just 35 DB5s with factory-fitted air conditioning. With a full restoration under its belt, it's all in glorious condition, too. Good job, really, at £627,000.

1973 Porsche 911 Carrera RS
£372,000

A Porsche pumped out of the company's motorsport division can go on to be a valuable, sought-after thing. Take note, Cayman GT4 deposit dawdlers. Here is one of the ultimates of the breed, the 2.7 RS, in its less scarce and more liveable Touring form.

It's still mightily exotic and desirable though, and is seen here looking sweet (sorry) in special order ‘Strawberry' paint. A full restoration in 2007 ensures it's gloriously lovely. Its £372,000 price tag could buy you a base Boxster, Cayman, 911, Macan, Cayenne and Panamera, each of them gleaming and new, with £66,000 spare to fuel them with.

But you'd rather have that pretty little 'ducktail' spoiler in your life, wouldn't you?