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Hennessey Blackbird: Has Real Driving Finally Beaten Horsepower?
A new car has arrived from Texas powerhouse Hennessey. But for the first time, headlines aren't about how fast it can go, but how it makes you feel.
August 5, 2026
Every RM Sotheby’s auction is a spectacle, but there’s something truly special about the Monterey auction each year...
Taking place during Monterey car week amongst the world’s most high-end concours event, it’s unsurprising that the list of cars going under the hammer is nothing short of otherworldly.
Narrowing it down was not an easy task, and we’ve had to leave out quite a few real legends, but here are our ones to watch this weekend.
$700,000 - $900,000 USD
To some, this is peak modern 911, offering the purest driving experience of any 991 thanks to the four-litre flat six from the GT3 RS with a redline near 9,000rpm paired with a six-speed manual gearbox, specially tuned suspension and a single-mass flywheel.
If you could get one when they were new, list price was £136,901, which seems hardly believable 10 years later. Given just 991 were produced, it’s unsurprising that values are nowhere near that original figure. This example, with just 168 miles on the clock, has a top end estimate not far off a million dollars!
$750,000 - $1,000,000 USD
The Saleen S7 was America’s rugged answer to Europe’s early-2000s hypercar elite, and the Twin Turbo delivers a suckerpunch to their face in terms of outright performance. The Twin Turbo takes the standard car’s 7.0-litre V8 and straps on two Garrett turbochargers, increasing power to 750hp — a frankly bananas figure in 2005, when the Ferrari Enzo, Porsche Carrera GT and Mercedes SLR McLaren all had in the region of 600hp. 0-60 came up in an estimated 2.7 seconds and top speed was said to be 248mph — right up there with all-time hypercar royalty.
This is one of just 30 Twin Turbo models ever built by Saleen in a stunning shade of Lizstick Red, and this rare slice of American history is estimated at anything up to a million dollars.
$850,000 - $1,200,000 USD
With a Murcielago SV going under the hammer at the same auction with an estimate range upwards of $2 million, it seems strange to focus on a more ‘normal’ Murci, but this 40th Anniversary model might just be the sweet spot for me.
One of 50 examples built to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Lamborghini, it’s finished in a special shade of Verde Artemis and darker wheels to set it apart, and in this case, its 6.2-litre V12 is paired with a manual gearbox — a formula for soaring values if ever I heard one.
Showing just how wild values have gone recently, in early 2024, one of these was for sale in the UK with just over 20,000 miles for £225k. Now, with 6,700 miles, this one is estimated at anything up to $1.2 million.
$800,000 - $1,100,000 USD
One of our favourite cars goes under the hammer once more, and every single time it’s like the estimate takes a sizeable jump. The Scud is one of the sweet spots of Ferrari, combining enough modern tech and performance to not feel outdated, with all the rawness and excitement you could ever want.
This one is finished in a unique spec with tan leather interior and matching gold racing stripes, and has just 6,200 miles on the clock. Even so, you’d have thought an estimate of over a million dollars was a typo just a few months ago. I’ll remind you that our founder, Adam, paid £160,000 for one of these just a couple of years ago. Will it reach its estimate? Will the bubble burst? Time will tell.
$1,000,000 - $1,400,000 USD
Here’s something you don’t see up for sale every day, and given it is a car that was built with racing in mind, it’s even rarer to see one that has essentially never been driven. This is one of just 50 production examples of the XJR-15, and one of just 27 in roadgoing specification.
Many don’t quite appreciate the significance of the XJR-15, but it was the first production car with a body constructed entirely of carbon fibre and Kevlar. Underneath that bodywork is a version of the same V12 engine that brought Jaguar so much success at Le Mans, making for a power-to-weight ratio that beat all supercars of its era.
Many of these cars were raced in period in model-specific championships. This one, showing just 191 miles, lived in a climate-controlled facility slongisde several other XJR-15s, and remains unregistered to this day.
$1,400,000 - $1,800,000 USD
No, it’s not a Lamborghini Diablo. The dreamchild of ex-Lamborghini test driver Claudio Zampolli, the Cizeta-Moroder V16T was designed by Marcelo Gandini, known for designing the Miura and Countach as well as some other iconic cars. Whilst the front end bares an uncanny resemblence to Lamborghini’s ‘90s hero at first glance, this was actually launched first, with this exact prototype, chassis 001, being shown to the world at the 1989 LA and Geneva Motor Shows.
Being a prototype, this car has many subtle differences from the production models (of which there were only nine), but shares their 6.0-litre V16 engine. Owned by Cizeta-Moroder’s investor and music producer Giorgio Moroder right up until 2022, this is the most famous example of the V16T, and the only one to wear his name, before it was changed to just Cizeta V16T. Estimated at anything up to $1.8 million, it’s a huge sum for a car you may never have heard of, but this really is a unicorn.
$1,500,000 - $2,000,000 USD
The hypercar that redefined the game in the mid 2000s spent quite a few years relatively unloved on the second-hand market, perhaps at least partially down to fear of running costs, but now, as collector’s chase cars that defined their eras, the Veyron fits that bill better than almost anything else, and values have rocketed accordingly.
One of 450 Veyrons produced, this car is showing just 8,641 miles and has invoices on file totalling $540,000 between 2021 and 2025, so perhaps those running cost fears are warranted. Sitting for so long at under a million, this example is now estimated at anything up to $2 million.
$2,000,000 - $2,500,000 USD
We could have done an entire article focusing solely on the 911s going under the hammer at Monterey, but this one stood out to me. It’s one of only 55 964 Carrera RS 3.8s built, and represents one of the most hardcore air-cooled 911s you can buy, finished in iconic Speed Yellow with those iconic split rims and equally iconic whale-tail spoiler.
Showing just over 5,000 miles on the clock, RM hail this as the ultimate air-cooled RS, and its estimate fits that bill at anything up to $2.5 million.
$2,200,000 - $2,600,000 USD
Another model that has gone crazy in recent years is one of the all-time great poster cars, the Lamborghini Countach. This claims to be arguably the best-preserved Series I example of the LP400 S in the world, and is one of only 50 examples of that first series. Having driven just over 1,000 miles since 1979, it retaines its original paint, interior and tyres.
Values vary wildly with so many different Countach models produced between 1974 and 1990, but examples as original and special as this are in true blue-chip territory now, with an estimate of up to $2.6 million.
$3,000,000 - $3,500,000 USD
Time for a bit of love for the modern hypercar, but not just an off-the-shelf one. Building on the already bonkers P1, British engineering outfit Lanzante, known for running the winning F1 GTR at Le Mans in 1995, turned things up to 11 conversion, turning the P1 into what they call the P1 GT, inspired by the 1997 F1 GT Longtail.
Just four were produced, with track-focused bodywork and race-spec suspension, while retaining road car amenities and the P1’s combined 903hp from a 3.8 twin-turbo V8 and electric motor. Having covered just over 5,000 miles from new, Lanzante’s creation is estimated north of $3 million.
$5,000,000 - $6,000,000 USD
It’s already rare enough to see a Porsche 959 with just 337 ever built, but did you know there’s an even rarer version? Usually the word sport is tagged onto the end of something like a Peugeot 308 when they throw on some bigger wheels and a badge to make people think it contains a modicum of excitement. It’s not typically needed on a world-beating, game-changing hypercar, and yet Porsche did it anyway, creating just 29 959 Sports, 11 of which were finished in Grand Prix White over a Grey cloth interior, and just two of which were fitted with air conditioning.
The Sport is lighter and faster than the Komfort model, with larger turbos freeing up 508hp, fixed coilover suspension, a factory roll cage and the removal of amenities like rear seats and air conditioning (apart from the two cars that added it back). Around 100kg was saved and top speed was up from 197 to 211mph.
The 959 Sport is one of the most revered hypercars in history, and this car, previously owned by F1 driver Nick Heidfeld, is estimated at anything up to $6 million.
$5,000,000 - $7,000,000 USD
Any Pagani causes a stir when it goes under the hammer, even more so when it’s a bespoke commission like this one. More than just a one-off model with some carbon fibre elements and special pinstriping, the ‘Executor’ is one of an extremely limited number of Huayras built with a manual gearbox.
As well as the manual, you have an 846hp, twin-turbo AMG V12, exposed tinted carbon fibre bodywork and a bespoke interior. Any Huayra could be called a unicorn; this is something else entirely, and shows just 53 miles from its single owner. Such a rarity is tough to price, but demand is sure to be high and its estimate ranges from $5 to 7 million.
Value In Excess Of $35,000,000 USD
And all the previous cars lead us to this — the holy grail of everything. Add up the upper estimates of all the cars we’ve just listed, and you still don’t reach the bottom end of what this McLaren F1 GTR is expected to fetch.
An incredibly famous car, 10R was initially retained by the McLaren factory before being acquired by Pink Floyd drummer Nick mason in 1999, marking the start of a 25 year ownership. Iconic thanks to its bold factory pop art livery, 10R was converted by the McLaren factory for road use.
Few cars come to auction with such rarity, history and provenance, and it’s safe to say all eyes are on this lot to see what figure it can reach.
