McQueen's LeMans drivers suit - I knew I shoulda bid a million

[Jim Garfield]

From the Vintage Motorsport newsletter:



"Beverly Hills, CA -- First a Ferrari Lusso; then a Porsche 911, and now a driver's suit - all owned and used by the late actor Steve McQueen - have set new records at auctions over the past few years. The latest item from the Hollywood icon and acknowledged king of cool car buffs, the driver's suit worn by his character "Michael Delaney" in the 1971 film "Le Mans," sold last weekend for a whopping $984,000, well over the $200-$300,000 pre-sale estimate. You could likely duplicate the suit with patches and embroidery for less than $2,000.

But that's not the point, of course; in this case, McQueen actually wore and appeared in this driver's suit. Sold at the Profiles in History auction last weekend here, the suit was donated by McQueen's Solar Productions to the U.K.'s The Observor newspaper for a Le Mans-themed contest won by 12-year-old Timothy Davies. It was presented to Davies by 1970 Le Mans winner Richard Attwood (also driver of the Porsche 917K in the filmed sequences). The identity of the winning bidder was not disclosed.

McQueen's touch is apparently worth big bucks. In 2007, his 1963 Ferrari 250 GT Lusso sold for $2.3 million at Christie's Monterey auction, when well-restored Lusso's like his were selling for around $600,000. In August, at RM's Monterey auction, the 1970 Porsche 911S featured in the opening sequence of "Le Mans" and subsequently owned by McQueen set a world record for a Porsche 911 of $1.375 million. You can buy a perfect one today for about $70,000.

We'll see if McQueen's magic touch translates to two wheels next month, when his 1971 Husqvarna 400 Cross motorcycle goes up for bid at the MidAmerica antique motorcycle auction in Las Vegas, Jan. 12-14.
- Mike Silverman"

[CurtEgerer]

$1.4 mil for the car seems like chump change compared to $1.0 mil for the driving suit!