Rowan Atkinson’s McLaren F1 sells for $15m

English car dealer Taylor and Crawley has confirmed the McLaren F1 owned from new by Rowan Atkinson has been sold to a British buyer for £8m (AUD $15m.)

The F1, bought by the actor famous for playing Mr Bean, had covered 64,000km and was originally bought new by Atkinson for £640,000 (AUD $1.2m) back in 1997.

To describe the burgundy red F1 as having a ‘chequered past’ would be an understatement. While owned by Atkinson it was involved in not one but two serious road accidents. The first occurred back in 1999 when the F1 (that came without ABS brakes and even a brake servo) ploughed into the back of an Austin Metro. The second, in 2011, involved a crash on a slippery bend in Peterborough that ended with Atkinson suffering a broken shoulder and the BMW-derived 461kW 6.1-litre V12 parting company with the car and being found some 20 metres away from the McLaren.

Despite the damage the car was repaired for AUD $1.7m – one of the biggest single-claim insurance pay-outs in British history.

Car dealer David Clark from Taylor and Crawley, who sold the F1 on behalf of Atkinson told British newspaper, the Daily Mail: “Everyone is very pleased with the sale. There was interest from around the world and it has gone to a British buyer who will drive it like Rowan did.

“It is one of the biggest ever deals in the UK. Rowan is pleased, but also maybe a bit sad as he did 40,000 miles in it.”