10 Most Expensive Cars To Sell At 2025 Monterey Car Week Auctions

If you want to understand the state of the collector-car market today, you don’t just look at classifieds or dealer lots anymore; you look at events like Monterey Car Week. Alongside Villa d’Este and Goodwood, Monterey remains one of the highlights of the annual automotive calendar. With traditional auto shows losing steam, several automakers are now turning to places like the Quail to unveil their most-anticipated models and evocative concept cars.

But coming to auctions specifically, we knew this year’s showing was going to be spectacular. As early as April, we highlighted some of the biggest players heading to the West Coast including RM Sotheby’s, Gooding & Company, Bonhams, and Mecum; all already part our list of the top 10 auctions to watch in 2025.

Each arrived with a docket made up of several multimillion-dollar consignments, and between August 13 through 17, Northern California’s Monterey Peninsula once again became the world’s most concentrated showcase of collector-car wealth, breaking multiple records along the way. If you’ve been following along, we’ve already broken down each auction house’s top results in detail, where we witnessed fierce bidding both online and on site.

Bonhams Cars staged one of its strongest Monterey outings in years, bringing in $44.7 million at The Quail Auction with a 96 percent sell-through rate. Mostly made up of no-reserve modern hypercars, the top sale came from a 2020 Bugatti Divo that went for $8.6 million. Mecum contributed $39.5 million in sales with strong results for classics and American muscle, while Broad Arrow impressed, bringing a Maserati MC12 Stradale to $5.2 million and a Koenigsegg CCXR to $3.2 million at the Jet Center auction.

Gooding Christie’s Pebble Beach sale reached $128 million, led by a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider Competizione at $25.3 million. But by far, RM Sotheby’s was the highlight of the weekend, wrapping up two action- packed evenings at $165.3 million, an 87 percent sell through rate, moving 47 cars past the $1 million mark, with seven exceeding $5 million and the top two breaking $10 million including a one-off Ferrari Daytona SP3 “Tailor Made” that stunned bidders at $26 million.

In total, Monterey 2025 achieved a staggering $432.8 million in sales according to Hagerty across five major houses and four days, the second-highest Car Week total ever, narrowly behind the $471.2 million of 2022. Ferrari continues to dominate, claiming eight of the top 10 lots, but the era spread of automobiles is broader than ever. While the top 10 most expensive cars ever sold at auction are dominated by vintage and classic cars, it appears that buyers aren’t just chasing prewar exotica or 1960s icons anymore.

Folks are now writing eight-figure checks for cars that defined the 1980s, 1990s, and even modern supercars. This indicates a generational handoff in car collecting tastes. Yes, cars with racing history, matching numbers, or unique editions command premium bids. But Monterey this year has proven that there’s a growing interest for newer metal amongst a younger demographic of buyers and collectors. With that, here are the 10 most expensive cars that crossed the block from Monterey Car Week 2025.