As the creator and owner of a world-renowned fashion designer, there is no lack of money. And what’s the best thing to do with your money when you’re a world-renowned billionaire, buy the best and most cars, right? Well, that’s exactly what Ralph Lauren did. Mr. Lauren has over 70 cars in his collection including some of the rarest cars in the world.
Being among the 100 richest people in the world justifies a massive and expensive car collection, and Ralph’s car collection is worth an estimated whopping $350 million. The American fashion designer is said to have one of the most impressive and beautiful car collections in the world. As well as his great taste in fashion, his taste in cars is equally great with choices including but not limited to a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO, a Lamborghini Reventon Roadster and a Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic.
How long has Ralph been collecting cars?
In the 1970’s one of America’s wealthiest men started his car collecting hobby, the hobby started with a 1971 Mercedes 280SE 4.5L convertible but now over 50 years later and his collection has grown massively and is worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
Only four Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic coupés were ever made and only three remain in existence today and of course Ralph is one of the lucky three on the planet to own one. Many believe the Bugatti Type 57sc Atlantic was the first ever supercar to reach speeds of 123mph in the late ’30s, which is amazing when you think about it! In 2010, one of these legendary engines was sold at auction for a whopping $40 million.
Another standout part of Ralph Lauren’s collection is the 1930 Mercedes-Benz SSK, specially commissioned by Count Trossi, an Italian automaker and racing driver. The SSK offered an impressive 7.0-litre inline-six supercharged engine, and to this day the blower wakes up with a deafening howl as soon as you put your foot on the accelerator and open the throttle. This, like many of Ralph Lauren’s cars, is another of his rare examples, fewer than 40 of which were ever built.
Staying on the subject of rare and exclusive, Ralph owns one of the five winners of the Le Mans Carrera Panamericana and Silverstone 24 Hours, the Ferrari 375 Plus, capable of producing 325 hp through a Lampredi V-12 engine. $18.3 million was the price set for the Ferrari 375 Plus at auction in 2014.
Are all the cars in Ralph’s collection vintage?
Ralph isn’t all about old, classic cars as he has many newer and more advanced cars in his collection including a McLaren F1, actually two McLaren F1’s which is absolutely insane with only 106 of these cars ever being made from 1992 to 1998. That seems too long ago to be true because of its incredible design and impressive performance stats, and it could quite easily suit today’s modern, high-profile cars. Powered by a 618hp BMW S70/2 V12 engine, the McLaren F1 earned it the Guinness Book of World Records for fastest production car after achieving a top speed of 240.1mph.
Did I hear that right? – Ralph also has hybrids!
Keeping with the McLaren theme, Ralph also owns a McLaren P1, and while many of Ralph’s collections are vintage, his McLaren P1 is a modern plug-in hybrid supercar that was originally purchased by Ralph to drive, not collect . This monstrous engine can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in just 2.8 seconds and has a top speed of 217 mph. You can’t blame Ralph for constantly wanting to drive around in a 900hp McLaren P1, who wouldn’t want that?
Ralph Lauren also added two more plug-in hybrids to his collection, featuring not one, but two Porsche 918 Spyders. This plug-in hybrid is absolutely packed with strong performance, powered by a 4.6-liter V8 engine with 599 hp and two electric motors with 282 hp. Combining all the elements of the Spyder leaves you with a staggering 875 horsepower, with the hypercar hitting 217 mph in just 2.5 seconds and hitting 0-60 mph.
As well as being the proud owner of a current Porsche Spyder, Ralph is also the proud owner of a 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder. Another absolutely unique car in Ralph’s collection, with only 90 of these Spyders built between 1953 and 1956. As early as May 1953, the car took first place in the Nürburgring-Eifel race in the first race it took part in. Under the hood was an aluminum inline 4 naturally aspirated engine known as the Fuhrmann engine. Power was sent to the rear wheels via a 4-speed manual gearbox and this 1950s Porsche was capable of an astounding top speed of 140mph.
Well, it’s pretty obvious that Ralph Lauren doesn’t mess around when it comes to picking iconic, rare, and standout cars for his collection. Although most of his collection is vintage and classic cars, incredible ones, he still enjoys buying and collecting modern and new high performance cars. It’s safe to say that Ralph knows his stuff when it comes to cars and he certainly does it well!
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About the author
Thomas Morgan
(11 published articles)
Tom currently works as a radio host, film producer and also as a writer. A true Mancunier, with a great passion for the media industry, he feels privileged to work in so many different sectors of the industry.
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