Michael Schumacher’s Benetton F1 car is up for auction (Image: Getty)
The Benetton B191 car driven by in 1992 is up for sale, with a listed price of just £800,000. The chassis in question steered the future seven-time world champion to two podiums in the first three races of his rookie campaign.
Schumacher made six Grand Prix starts for Jordan and Benetton in 1991 and stepped up to race in F1 full-time in 1992, driving the Benetton B191, decked out in a now-iconic green, yellow, and blue Camel livery.
With a driver line-up of Schumacher and future Sky Sports F1 pundit Martin Brundle, Benetton finished third in the Constructors’ Championship, with the German racer recording eight podiums and his first race victory at the Belgian Grand Prix.
Schumacher’s Benetton B191 may sell for less than £1million (Image: RM Sotheby’s)
Now, the original B191-08 chassis, used in the first three races of the 1992 season, is heading up for sale. From the Spanish Grand Prix onwards, Benetton used the B192 car, an evolution of its predecessor, which was first used during the 1991 campaign.
Thanks to an auction from experienced luxury car auctioneers RM Sotheby’s, fans now have the rare opportunity to purchase the legendary F1 car. The Benetton machine has been part of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum collection since June 2005 but is now up for sale.
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The Benetton B191 was used for the first three races of the 1992 season (Image: RM Sotheby’s)
Diehard fans may notice something unusual about the car – despite being the 1992-spec chassis, the livery is a version of the one used in 1993 and features Riccardo Patrese’s number six on the nose and rear wing.
The RM Sotheby’s listing explains this unique situation: “Today chassis B191-08 is offered in a livery similar to that of the 1993 Benetton team. The appearance updates were not limited to the livery, as the car’s side pods were also updated to what appears to be the 1993 style.
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“Just below the sideview mirrors are listed the 1993 Benetton team driver’s names, Schumacher and Patrese, and the front nose cone prominently features #6, which was Patrese’s number for the 1993 season. This car was never used in race events for the 1993 season, and it is unknown when these changes were made.
“However, it may have been done for team marketing purposes in period, as prior-year cars were sometimes kept by the team and re-liveried to appear like the current year’s cars for promotion or display.”
The auction for Schumacher’s B191 machine will take place in Miami on February 28, 2025.