If you’ve always dreamed of acquiring a Formula 1, you will have the chance to try your (slim) luck at the Peugeot Adventure Museum (Sochaux) on Sunday, October 23rd. A McLaren MP4\/9, the car driven by Mika H\u00e4kkinen and Martin Brundle during the 1994 World Championship, will be auctioned off by Aguttes auction house. However, you would need to dip into your own pocket, and possibly sell a kidney, to hope to win the bid: the race car is estimated to be worth between 1.2 and 1.5 million euros.<\/p>\n
The MP4\/9 was equipped with a Peugeot engine (hence its presence at the auction), the first McLaren… and the last one to feature this configuration. The year 1994 was not a great one for the team from Woking, which finished in 4th place in the constructors’ championship, its worst result since 1983. McLaren ended the season without even a single victory, a first since 1980. Orphaned of Ayrton Senna, who had left for Williams at the end of 1993, McLaren suffered from numerous reliability issues throughout the season. After the conclusion of this disastrous year, the team eventually turned to Mercedes-Benz, which made its big comeback in F1, and definitively closed the door to Peugeot.<\/p>\n
This unfortunate season doesn’t prevent the MP4\/9 from being a true gem for any self-respecting car enthusiast who dreams of owning a piece of Formula 1 history. Chassis number 7 has participated in five out of the 16 Grand Prix races of the 1994 season. Under the hood (well, figuratively speaking, for an F1), you’ll find a 760 horsepower 3.5-liter V10 engine<\/b>, which replaced the original 700 horsepower engine due to the reliability issues mentioned above.<\/p>\n100 vehicles offered for sale at auction.<\/h2>\n
Another racing car, the Citro\u00ebn ZX Rallye Raid Evo 5 from 1995, will also attract attention at the auction in Sochaux. This racing machine is equipped with a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine with a power output of 330 horsepower. The ZX Rallye Raid has won the Paris-Dakar rally four times, in 1991, 1994, 1995, and 1996, as well as five consecutive titles in the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies between 1993 and 1997. Only five units of the Evo 5 model were ever produced. This particular one is estimated to be worth between 200,000 and 300,000 euros by Aguttes.<\/p>\n