Trust us, Ralph Lauren’s car collection is insane

Ralph Lauren is a known lover of automobiles. He’s also somewhat of an impulse shopper when it comes to their acquisition and many of his cars seem to have been bought simply because he falls in love with them: a labour of love in every sense of the word. He currently holds one of the most impressive collections on the planet, and often uses his collection as a source of inspiration when it comes to his designs.

His collection spans across Europe, with Britain including no fewer than five jaguars and France with another five Bugattis. However, surprisingly there is only one from America and given his status as an American icon of style, you might expect him to have a few more. It also spans sheer decades, the oldest car he owns is from 1929: a 1929 Bentley Blower. Unsurprisingly, Lauren likes to give his cars a unique twist in keeping with his own eclectic style. Case in point: the second car he bought was a Porsche Turbo, all in black, just because it was different from anything else he had seen. Similarly, he has even come up with his own version of British racing green which is somewhat softer than the original and is the colour he decided to paint all of his Jaguars.

This is the very definition of a one of a kind car: it was the last car designed for Mercedes-Benz by Ferdinand Porsche before he went on to create his own eponymous company. Based on the company’s original Mercedes-Benz S model, but with the chassis shortened by nineteen inches to make the car lighter and more agile for racing. The machine is capable of producing 200-300 horse power with a top speed of up to 120 mph. It was the fastest car of its day. Fewer than 40 original SSK’s were built, with many of them crashing during races making original examples incredibly hard to come across and consequently, they are extremely valuable. For example, a 1929 model was actioned off for £4.17 million in 2004. However, because the SSK owned by Lauren has the “Count Trossi” body it might make it even more unique and more valuable.

(Photo: Lime Rock Park)

With its wire wheels, split windscreen and unmistakable sweeping bodywork, the XK120 is a design classic. When it was first unveiled at the 1948 London motor show as a way to showcase Jaguars latest XK engine, it was absolute sensation. The original model was only meant to be as a show car, but the reaction it got persuaded Jaguar owner William Lyons to put it into production. Originally, it was meant to have a limited run of 200 cars, but due to the overwhelming popularity of the car this was increased to 12,000. The XK was produced up until 1961, when it was eventually replaced by the Jaguar E–Type – not a bad replacement.

(Photo: Jaguar)

The 300 SL is one of the most iconic models ever created by Mercedes-Benz. It was based on the company’s successful race car, the W194. Originally proposed to Dailmer Benz by Max Hoffman (the official importer for the brand in America) as a race car for the street, it looked to take advantage of the affluent performance car enthusiast in post-war America. The car was built around a welded aluminium spaceframe chassis, which saved weight but also provided a high level of strength. The only issue this presented was that the frame completely surrounded the passenger compartment, therefore, normal car doors were an impossibility and Rudolph Uhlenhaut, the chief developing engineer for Mercedes-Benz, came up with the iconic gull-wing doors that give the car its signature silhouette.

(Photo: Michael Furman)

Testa Rossa means ‘red head’, in reference to the red painted valve covers on the cylinder heads of the engine. Only 34 Testa Rossas were built between 1958 to 1961, Lauren’s is number 14 of the 34. It won the Le Mans endurance race three times, in 1958, 1960 and 1961. The Testa Rossa is the second most valuable Ferrari ever made after the 250 GTO. It is valued at more than $8 million, and one sold at auction in 2011 for $16,400,000, a new world record for a car at auction – if we ignore inflation.

(Photo: Ferrari)

Lauren has very few modern cars in his collection, the exceptions being a LaFerrari, two Porsche 918s and two McLaren P1s, all 1,000bhp superhybrids. While many of his cars he purchased because he liked the aesthetic elements of them, with the newer cars, it is more about the new technology they have in them. He said to the Telegraph, “I love the technology in those cars. They’re fast and they’re spectacular and I can drive anywhere.” The car itself was unveiled at the 2012 Paris motor show and was part of a limited run of 375 models. It is seen as the successor the the original McLaren F1, two of which Lauren owns, and both of which are capable of reaching up to 218 mph.

(Photo: McLaren)

(Main & featured image: Car and Driver)

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