Rare collectibles

Most car enthusiasts regardless of age or means have a car collection. Be that toy collectibles from their youth, through to detailed models, right up to the real things parked in the garage or in special storage facilities.

Last year, Audi Sport set up its racing legends program to offer some of its exclusive factory race cars from its former DTM and sports prototype programs for sale to those enthusiasts looking for the most collectible of collectibles.

Such has been the success of the program to date that this year will see the Audi Sport racing legends program expanded to four international events across three countries as it prepares more of its rare ex-race vehicles for sale.

“Demand for our racing cars is exceeding our expectations and is currently even leading to delivery delays,” says Rolf Michl, Managing Director of Audi Sport GmbH. “This proves that we have struck a chord with the spirit of the times and that our brand has a strong appeal. In our very first year, we have already succeeded in selling three rare DTM Class 1 racing cars and an LMP prototype to selected car enthusiasts.”

For those fortunate few with the means, the appeal of owning these living pieces of automotive history and the growth of the new CLASS ONE Revival racing series in Europe is also feeling demand for former DTM models for competition in its Class 1 category for touring cars from 1993 to 2020, says Florian Mair, project manager at Audi Sport racing legends.

“The new CLASS ONE Revival racing series has given the classic racing scene a real boost this year,” Mair says. “Customer interest is directed straight at us. That is why we have included three CLASS ONE Revival events in our calendar. At the same time, our Le Mans prototypes are also attracting great admiration from collectors.”

To date, an Audi R18 e-tron quattro from the LMP1 era, built in 2013, and three Audi RS 5 DTMs from Class 1 have been bought by collectors, and the ongoing demand for these rare race cars will see the Audi Sport racing legends attend these specialised events throughout Europe over the coming months.

For those visiting Europe throughout the year and interested in seeing some of these collectible vehicles from the Audi Sports racing legend series, the events are the ADAC Hockenheim Historic at Hockenheim (May 8 - 10), followed by the Le Mans Classic Legend in France (July 2 - 5). Then it is back to Germany for the Belmot Oldtimer Grand Prix in Germany at the Nürburgring (August 7 - 9) and then the Red Buck Ring Classic in Austria (August 29 - 30). All of these events with the exception of of Le Mans Classic Legends are CLASS ONE Revival  historic racing events featuring Class 1 DTM cars.

For those with a thirst to get behind the wheel of their own DTM race car or one of the legendary LMP1 vehicles that were part of the brand’s WEC dominance, the Audi Sport racing legends program is a dream come true. This is car collecting at the ‘pointy end’ but the global demand for these rare models has proved to be so high that Audi Sport racing legends’ plans to rebuild and sell further racing cars already extend well beyond the 2026 season. For the majority of us car collectors though, the next best thing to owning real thing are the detailed models that faithfully reproduce these exciting machines in miniature.