LONDON.- RM Auctions, the world’s largest collector car auction house for investment-quality automobiles, concluded its 2011 sales calendar on a high note in London on Wednesday (26th October), posting over £13.3 million* ($21,413,000) in total sales with a solid 79% of all lots sold.

Attracting an international clientele – bidders represented 22 countries from around the world - the single-day auction catered to collectors of both automobiles and motorcycles, presenting an exceptional roster of some 100 motor cars and 25 classic two-wheelers.

The star performer at this year’s sale was a rare, matching-numbers 1958 Ferrari 250 GT LWB Tour de France Berlinetta, chassis number 1039 GT (pictured), one of the most desirable competition-bred Ferraris in existence. Glistening under the auction lights, the beautiful red and white 250 GT LWB Tour de France garnered spirited bidding in the room and on the phones, achieving an outstanding final sales price of £2,240,000 ($3,606,400).

“The London sale is always a highlight of our auction calendar, and as ever, this year’s event has brought our 2011 auction season to a spectacular close,” says Max Girardo, Managing Director, RM Europe.

“Battersea always attracts a large international audience and the sale consistently brings together a fantastic collection of very desirable cars. The addition of 25 beautiful motorcycles to this year’s event brought a valuable new element to the auction, further enhancing RM’s reputation in the collectible motorcycle market,” Girardo adds.

Additional top-sellers included: a beautifully-presented, matching-numbers 1965 Ferrari 500 Superfast, one of only eight right-hand-drive examples for £644,000; a competition 1972 Autodelta Alfa Romeo 33/TT/3, a very rare car with Le Mans and Targo Florio history, for £588,000; and, a timeless, sporting 1935 Avions Voisin C25 Cimier Coupé for £380,800.

A further highlight was the sale of a bespoke 2008 Force India Formula One Racing Car. Hand painted by motorsport artist, Dexter Brown, and signed by over 40 Formula One racing drivers and other dignitaries, the unique ‘Art Car’ gave a new meaning to ‘rolling work of art’, realizing a final sales price of £168,000. Proceeds from its sale, including RM’s auction commissions, will benefit the Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital, which provides world-class care for its young patients, and the newly-established Force India Formula One Team Academy, an initiative aimed at providing youth in Indian the chance to get involved in motorsport.

RM London Top Five Motor Car Sales:

1. Lot 293 – 1958 Ferrari 250 GT LWB ‘Tour De France’ Berlinetta - £2,240,000
2. Lot 226 – 1965 Ferrari 500 Superfast - £644,000
3. Lot 280 – 1972 Alfa Romeo Tipo 33/TT/3 - £588,000
4. Lot 283 – 1954 Mercedes 300SL Coupé - £560,000
5. Lot 214 – 1964 Ferrari 250 GT Lusso Berlinetta - £487,200

Beyond the automobiles, the sale also featured a significant series of 25 classic motorcycles from the noted ‘La Collezione due Ruote’ (pictured). Generating over £247,455 in total sales, the collection was headlined by an excellent 1973 MV Agusta F4 1000 which achieved £49,140.

RM Auctions will kick off its 2012 auction calendar with speed, style and grace in Phoenix, Arizona, 19th -20th January, 2012. From important sports and racing cars through to the best of American and European classics and Detroit muscle, the offering will present over 150 automobiles spanning the full spectrum of the collector car market.

RM’s 2012 European event calendar will get underway 10th – 12th May, with a return to the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. Held during the famed Grand Prix de Monaco Historique, the highly-anticipated Monaco sale will be extended to two days, featuring an entire day’s sale devoted to the acclaimed Saltarelli Ducati Collection, one of the world’s most significant private Ducati collections. The motorcycles will be followed by the presentation of an elite group of 80 handpicked automobiles.

RM’s subsidiary company, Auctions America by RM, will wrap up its 2011 auction calendar next week (3 – 5 November, 2011) with the presentation of ‘The Lee Roy Hartung Collection’, a multi-day, single-vendor sale in Glenview, Illinois, USA. Regarded as one of the world’s most eclectic automobile and memorabilia collections, the Hartung collection sale will present some 2,000 lots all ‘without reserve’, including a 1950 Edwards R-26 Roadster, believed to be the 1950 inaugural Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance winning example, and an unique 1950 BMW Veritas