World famous comic actor as ‘Mr. Bean', Rowan Atkinson is also an ardent automobile collector, whose private collection includes, among other exceptional examples, the one that will be the McLaren F1 with the most kilometers in the world — and probably also the most rebuilt, twice, due to accidents.
However, and because, of course, it is already having difficulties in being able to accommodate an increasing number of cars, the popular “Mr. Bean “decided to get rid of two of his jewels: a Mercedes 500E, once a true “autobahn missile” (in Portuguese, highway), and an even rarer Lancia Thema 8.32 by Ferrari!
The “missile from Zuffenhausen”
About these two models, which will be auctioned by the hand of Silverstone Auctions, during an event called Race Retro Classic Car Sale, which will take place at the end of February, it is important to remember that the Mercedes 500E was a high-performance version, based on the E-Class W124 — an answer to the BMW M5.It was produced between 1990 and 1995, not by Mercedes-Benz, but by Porsche in Zuffenhausen. Installed under the bonnet, a 5.0 atmospheric V8 delivering 326 hp of power . The model could accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in just 6.1 seconds and maintain cruising speeds above 200 km/h.
“Ferrari” with Lancia emblem
As for the Lancia Thema 8.32 by Ferrari, it's been in Atkinson's garage for at least seven years, and he's done everything to keep it spotless — he never failed to do the necessary maintenance, in this case, at most, every 40,000 km, and which even require the removal of the engine. Interventions that, moreover, involved a total investment of around 20 thousand pounds sterling, in other words, around 22 500 euros.
The engine, remember, is the same block that equips the Ferrari 308, albeit with a different crankshaft and modified electronics, with a view to a more docile performance. This, despite the 215 hp it announced in 1986, based on the same platform as the Alfa Romeo 164 and the Saab 9000.
modern classics
Both European versions, that is, left-hand drive, and in excellent condition — despite the 80 500 km that Mercedes displays on the odometer, considerably more than the 20 488 km of the Lancia — either car promises to reach values high. Not just because they're modern classics, what's also known among the youngtimers, but even more because they've been in the employ of Mr. Bean — sorry, actor Rowan Atkinson.