Own a Piece of Racing History: John Surtees' Magnificent BMW 507 Up for Grabs at £2 Million!

Owned from new by the legendary John Surtees, this absolutely gorgeous 3.2-litre V8-powered BMW 507 could be yours, and you'll only need to find about £2 million

All images: Bonhams

A stunning BMW 507 Roadster owned from new by the late John Surtees is going up for auction this summer – and it’s expected to fetch around £2 million.

This utterly gorgeous piece of classic car design, for which Surtees paid about £1500 in a 50/50 deal with his then race team boss, has covered 40,000 miles from new and looks to be in absolutely smashing condition. The other 50 per cent was a gift from Count Domenico Agusta for winning the 1956 motorcycle world championship on an MV Agusta.

The 507 was designed as a halfway house between the exclusive Mercedes 300 SL and the cheaper but common Britsport models like the Triumph TR2 and MGA. It had a 3.2-litre V8 with a four-speed manual gearbox and could crack 120mph if you were committed.

This one is factory-standard except for the addition of a genuine, original, detachable hard-top roof. According to legend, or at least driving.co.uk, Surtees had taken a test drive in one and fallen for it, but wasn’t happy with the way this one felt. BMW was said to have taken it back, retuned the engine and fitted disc brake upgrades.

Surtees died in March last year, still as the only person to win world championships on both two and four wheels. Only 200 or so of these BMW beauties are thought to still be in existence, and the presence of his name on the documents is expected to raise demand sky high.

It will be sold at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, at Bonhams’ auction on 13 July.