The right formula: buying an F1 car

Every Formula One car produces a unique timbre as it dances through corners and accelerates along straights — its engine generating hums, crackles, and roars fine-tuned to captivate the souls of motor racing enthusiasts.

That soundtrack was part of an experience that resonated with the young Nick Mason when he first visited the Silverstone circuit in the 1950s, with the F1 world championship still in its infancy in the aftermath of the second world war.

Decades later, the drummer from rock band Pink Floyd would return to the track behind the wheel of an F1 car — his own. Mason had purchased a 1983 Tyrrell 011, which he took to a test day at the circuit.

“I thought they’d yellow flag the day because the car was so fast compared with anything else,” he says. “I thought the traffic was slowing down!”

Speaking on his way to Stoke in the West Midlands to start a two-month European tour — Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets — he recalls decades of collecting and racing cars, including several from the pinnacle of motorsport.

Days before he spoke to the FT, fans had gathered for a charity event at Mason’s home in Wiltshire, south-west England, to view his collection. His cars include a 1963 Ferrari GTO sports car — the world’s most valuable model, estimated to be worth at least £50mn — that he purchased for £37,000 in 1977 (roughly £277,000 in 2024 prices).

Also parked on the lawn was Mason’s first F1 car: a 2.5 litre 250F Maserati from 1957 with a top speed of about 180mph, and one of only 26 examples ever produced.

“Most of my buying was done quite a long time ago — when the cars weren’t treated as they are now,” the musician says. “The problem now is it’s all about investment.”

His collection was born from childhood enthusiasm but the growth of F1 in the past decade, following its acquisition by the US group Liberty Media in 2017, has introduced a new clientele with an appetite beyond trackside experiences.

Retired F1 cars are valuable and, while they remain largely the preserve of car enthusiasts, they are now also deemed an investible asset, says Peter Haynes of auctioneers Sotheby’s.

“F1 cars are a very rare thing and, by their nature, have been driven by famous racers and have incredible provenance,” he explains.

Sotheby’s sold the dominant Ferrari F2003-GA, driven by seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher to his sixth title in 2003, for £12.8mn in 2022 — well surpassing an estimate of £8mn in a record sale.

Several months later, the auctioneer sold Lewis Hamilton’s race-winning 2013 Mercedes F1 WO4 for £15.1mn in a sign of buyers’ whetted appetites.

I really like getting the cars out and I’m not mad about keeping them in museum condition

For those aiming — and able — to enter the market, Haynes says it is first vital to determine the era of F1 car they desire, and whether it would need to run. Racing cars built before the 1980s are generally easier to run, while modern Grand Prix cars are dependent on software to fire up and require a dedicated team of engineers to hit the track.

“You really need to have a clear idea of what you’re buying and how you’re going to run a car,” Mason agrees.

Buyers need to decide whether they will maintain and garage their F1 car or have it cared for and stored by a third party. Ferrari, for example, operates Corse Clienti, helping maintain and run younger race cars at circuits around the world for particularly wealthy clients.

Although auctions have grown in prominence in recent years, many deals for prized examples still take place behind closed doors using brokers or informal networks.

“At auction, the opportunities for analysis are lower. You can’t put them on a ramp [for close inspection],” says Simon Kidston, a dealer based in Geneva. “When they reach a certain value and historic significance, you start to see them more frequently at auction.”

Kidston specialises in examples from the 1930s and 1950s and sold the only Mercedes-Benz W125 in private hands. The car was produced by the German manufacturer for the 1937 Grand Prix season and won the pre-F1 European championship.

His personal favourites are racing models that can still be run on public roads. “I drive a Grand Prix Bugatti regularly on the road for events like the Mille Miglia [a recreation of the 1,000 mile round-trip race between Brescia and Rome] or just to get the croissants on a Sunday,” he says.

Mason, like other collectors, has been ambivalent about running his cars given their provenance. But, while some display theirs on plinths, his can often be seen on road or track. “I always hated the idea of being a car collector,” he says. “I really like getting the cars out and I’m not mad about keeping them all in museum condition.”

Cars from the musician’s collection are seen speeding up the hill at Goodwood Festival of Speed in West Sussex most years — this year, the event takes place a week after the British Grand Prix. Other collectors will race their historic cars around Silverstone during a festival in August.

“Racing is not for everyone, especially an F1 car,” Haynes says, noting the technical demands. “It requires a lot of skill and intuition. This is for a relatively small group of people who have the ability and passion to do that.”

But, for almost all racers and collectors who grew up watching Grands Prix on the track or television, the appeal is captured by Mason: “It’s living out a boyhood dream,” he says.