An All-Electric Rolls-Royce Spectre Just Sold for More Than Double Its Retail Price at Auction
Going once. Going twice. Sold, for $1.4 million. That’s the amount an all-electric Rolls-Royce Spectre went for on Saturday at the 2024 Naples Winter Wine Festival charity auction in Florida. And it was snapped-up by a newcomer to the British marque, though a longtime Ferrari enthusiast.
For this year’s live auction, Robb Report joined the more than 650 attendees inside the glamorous tent at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples. Guests, who paid $17,000 per couple to get a seat at the proceedings, were able to bid while quaffing some of the world’s finest wines.
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The Spectre was one of 50 lots in total that helped raise more than $33 million, a record sum for the annual auction. The money is earmarked to benefit underprivileged and at-risk kids in the state’s Collier County through the Naples Children and Education Foundation. This year’s tally pushes the total to over $302 million brought in since the philanthropic event’s inception in 2001. Other lots over the weekend included a new Aston Martin DB12 Volante, a too-cute 1972 Fiat Jolly convertible, and a Barbie-pink 1965 Ford Bronco.
“The Spectre is one of the most incredible machines in the world and it really is an honor to be able to now call one my own,” said Onur Haytac after the hammer fell on his winning bid, adding, “but the real honor here is contributing to help the kids.”
For the 45-year-old tech entrepreneur and Naples resident, this is his first Rolls-Royce. A devotee of the Prancing Horse, Haytac has a stable that includes a Ferrari 488 Pista Spider, and he’s a regular competitor in the North American Ferrari Challenge series. As an added bonus, he was able to take immediate delivery of the two-tone Rolls dressed in Arctic White with contrasting Tempest Grey. Currently, the waiting list for the model (the retail price of this particular example totaled $559,200) stretches well into 2025.
The car itself was provided by local dealer Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Naples, after general manager Jason Reidel persuaded a valued customer to give up his slot for the auction. Regarding the result, Martin Fritsches, president and CEO of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars America, told Robb Report, “It really is extremely satisfying for Rolls-Royce to see that the enthusiasm for Spectre was able to support such a wonderful and effective charity.” The Spectre joins a list of the automaker’s examples that have been offered to benefit the Naples Children and Education Foundation over the years, including a Phantom Drophead Coupe that sold for $2 million in 2007, and a Phantom VIII that fetched $780,000 in 2018.
The latest example from another British marque also had a moment to shine, when local philanthropist Betsy Ryan waived her paddle at $650,000 for a 2024 Aston Martin DB12 Volante in Caribbean Blue Pearl. “I saw it in the catalog and fell in love with that amazing blue color,” said Ryan. “No, I didn’t realize how powerful it was, but I know it’s going to be a lot of fun to drive.” In addition to the DB12, she and a plus-one will get to join the Aston Martin Formula 1 team for a three-day, all-access experience as VIP guests at this year’s Miami Grand Prix.
A surprise hit was a 1972 Fiat 500 Jolly convertible, in Tiffany Blue, which garnered $600,000. While the owner was able to drive away in the piccolo Fiat, they’ll have to wait another 12 months to enjoy the second part of the lot—a three-night stay for two couples at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort in Naples, along with admission to the 2025 edition of the auction and a $25,000 credit to spend at the local International Diamond Center.
For one couple, driving home in a fully restored 1966 Ford Bronco, painted in custom Barbie pink, was well worth the $320,000 they paid. Powered by a new Ford Coyote 5.0-liter V-8 packing 460 hp, it came with a hand-stitched white leather interior. The final price also included 39 magnums of fine wine, including a rare 2018 Clos des Mouches Blanc from the Maison Joseph Drouhin winery in Burgundy.
The highest money-raiser at this year’s auction, though, was a week-long Mediterranean cruise for six couples aboard the 312-foot superyacht Whisper. Formerly known as Kismet, the yacht was built in 2014 for Shahid Khan, owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars NFL football team. Khan sold the yacht last year to former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, but kept his promise for it to be used as a headline auction lot. Fittingly, the travel package set a festival record when the event’s chair, Ralph Stayer, bid $2.7 million.
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