One of the cars involved in motor racing history’s worst accident, the Le Mans disaster of 1955, in which more than 80 people died, has sold for £843,000 ($1.3 million) at the Bonhams auction held at Mercedes-Benz World in Weybridge, southern England. The Austin-Healey 100S had been in storage for the past 42 years.
The car’s driver, Lance Macklin, escaped injury, but the accident had an enormous impact on the sport and its safety precautions. The car was impounded after the crash and did not return to England until 1956. It then passed through several owners until 1969 when it was acquired by the seller for £155 in its current condition.
The 1955 season was a particularly brutal one for the sport, as in addition to the tragedy at Le Mans former World Champion Alberto Ascari was killed in a testing accident at Monza and American racing suffered a number of fatalities including double Indy 500 winner Bill Vukovich and leading contender Jack McGrath. Further, that September Hollywood star James Dean died in a road accident while on his way to compete in a race at Laguna Seca.
