Plenty of celebrities and rich people drive nice, expensive cars, but a rare few own truly magnificent car collections valued in the tens of millions or more.
For most enthusiasts, an attainable car collection remains in the single digits, perhaps consisting of a daily driver, an SUV, and a weekend car, if you’re lucky. Travel to the nicer part of town and someone’s car collection might be a little more ambitious. Perhaps now there are two daily drivers, and a track car to supplement the weekend car. Anything beyond that is the stuff of dreams. Double, or even triple digit car collections usually only exist behind the red ropes of a museum exhibit, while you fiddle with a paper wristband and read facts you already knew from a plaque.
But for a very lucky few, these museum-like collections constitute personal fleets. Staffed garages, battery cords, rooms full of keys, and supercars packed with a tightness to rival canned sardines are a reality for a select few car collectors. This club comes from all sorts of different backgrounds, from chefs, CEOs, bankers, boxers, and comedians, but all share a passion for cars. Here are 15 of the biggest private car collections in the world.Rowan Atkinson’s car collection
Rowan Atkinson is most recognized for his role as the ever-bumbling and hilarious Mr. Bean, but off the silver screen, Atkinson is a very serious and deliberate car collector. His collection is estimated to be valued around $15 million, has a unique spread of cars, and many that come from British automakers. He also owns cars like a 1989 Lancia Delta HF Intergrale, and a 1993 Mercedes 500e, cars that seem restrained when compared to others that live in his garage.
One such car is his Rolls Royce Phantom Drophead, a roofless two door coupe inspired by racing yachts, and fitted with an experimental V16 engine. The star of his collection though, is his McLaren F1. Although he sold it in 2015, he famously bought it in 1997 after the success of the first Mr. Bean movie. He also famously crashed it twice, and received Britain’s largest ever insurance payout to repair it, about £910,000 (around $1.2 million).Gerard Lopez’s car collection
Becoming rich enough to own a triple-digit car collection isn’t an easy task. Most paths to that kind of money involve copious amounts of white collar pomp and words like mergers and acquisitions. In the case of Gerard Lopez however, it involved words like Renault, and names like Kimi Räikkönen. The co-founder of international investment management firm Genii Capital, Lopez commandeered the purchase of the Renault F1 team in 2009.
Unlike many of the suits behind F1 teams though, Lopez is a car enthusiast through and through. In 2012, Lopez had about 85 cars in his collection, and one can only guess he has acquired a few more since then. Lancias, BMWs, Ferraris, Lamborghinis (including the Urus’s predecessor, the LM002), Lopez has them all and the best part is his refusal to allow any to become garage queens. In an interview with Top Gear, he expressed how he actually enjoys the cars he buys, rather than just considering them for their monetary value. As if any further evidence was needed for Lopez’s authenticity, at the time of the interview his holy grail car was a 1983 Golf GTI, although it’s hard not to wonder if that’s only because he already owns every other dream car.Gordon Ramsay’s car collection
If you picture a person with a multimillion dollar car collection, you might think of a hedge fund manager, a racing team owner, a monarch, a popstar, or a dictator. A chef is not typically what comes to mind, but Gordon Ramsay’s private collection would say otherwise. Ramsay’s abilities in the kitchen led him to head chef positions, which tumbled into restaurant ownership, and spiraled into becoming a globally recognized culinary TV personality.
This incredible success no doubt came with incredible paychecks, as Ramsay is now the proud owner of a 94-car portfolio estimated to be worth around $16 million. Ramsay’s collection is heavily focused on supercars and hypercars ranging from entry level cars like a 2001 Aston Martin DB7, to hyper-exclusive status symbols like the windshield-lacking Ferrari SP2 from the brand’s Icona series. Ramsay sometimes includes his cars in his cooking too with cheeky stunts like heating a grilled cheese on the hot V12 of his Aston Martin Valkyrie.Floyd Mayweather’s car collection
Not many are willing to participate in a sport where you’re expect to bleed. For those that make it to the upper echelons of boxing, fame and money become substantial compensation for the blood and sweat left in the ring. Floyd „Money“ Mayweather is part of the exclusive club of boxers with a perfect record of 50 wins and no losses. This incredible feat has brought Mayweather and his team, which he calls „The Money Team“, lots and lots of cash.
Leaving the sport with zero losses is valid cause for gloating, and Mayweather’s 100-car collection manages that task perfectly, with most of his models being the cream of the crop of performance and luxury. Some highlights include the Aston Martin One-77, a limited edition halo car with a 7.3 liter V12 and a 220 mph top speed. The king of his collection though, is the Koenigsegg CCXR Trevita. Mayweather owns half of the world’s supply of CCXR Trevitas, given only two were made, making this 1,018 hp silver carbon adorned Swedish superstar the top dog of his $40 million fleet.Jay Leno’s garage
Where some collectors wish to keep their treasure chests behind lock and key, Jay Leno decides to share his with the world. The comedian and former late-night TV host traded his suit and desk for a steering wheel and jeans with his 3.9 million subscriber YouTube channel, Jay Leno’s garage where he shares the always interesting, and often expensive pieces of his automotive collection.
