From the most expensive car ever sold to the quickest 0 to 100 km/h sprint and the longest car on record, here are six standout car milestones from the past year that captured attention around the world.
These six remarkable achievements highlight the extraordinary ends of automotive engineering, where rarity, speed, and sheer size collide to create history that car enthusiasts still discuss months later.
most expensive car
A price record reshaped the secondary market when a legend from the mid 20th century reclaimed its place at the top. The Ferrari 250 GTO had long been cited as the pinnacle of collectible value, with each resale climbing higher than the last. In May of 2022, a rare 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé, a machine that never competed in a race but carried unmatched historical prestige, went to RM Sotheby’s in a private auction. The sale price soared to a staggering 135 million euros, setting a new benchmark for automotive value and reigniting debates about the drivers behind such valuations and the responsibilities that come with owning a car steeped in racing heritage.
The fastest car
For decades, people assumed sub two second zero to 100 km/h acceleration would remain science fiction. New materials and tire technologies changed that belief, paving the way for even more extraordinary performance. The Rimac Nevera, a high powered electric hypercar delivering nearly two thousand horsepower, reached 100 km/h in 1.97 seconds. It eclipsed the pace of most Formula 1 machines while staying a few hundredths behind the fastest FIA rallycross performers. This achievement underscored how electric powertrains can redefine speed benchmarks while simultaneously pushing tire technology to its limits.
On September 23, 2022, a different kind of speed record emerged when a student project from the University of Stuttgart in Germany rolled onto the scene. The prototype car shown in the accompanying photo achieved 0 to 100 km/h in 1.461 seconds, breaking the long held psychological barrier around a 1.5 second sprint. The vehicle, named E0711–11 Evo, packs a total engine output of 245 horsepower and weighs a mere 145 kilograms thanks to a compact battery and lightweight construction. This record demonstrates how lightweight design and clever engineering can push performance into realms once thought impossible.
longest car
The quest for length has a long and sometimes controversial history. In 1986, American filmmaker Jay Orberg crafted the American Dream, an extraordinary 18.28 meter long limousine based on a 1976 Cadillac Eldorado. By 1992, the project expanded dramatically to 30.51 meters. The vehicle eventually fell into disrepair as time passed. A dedicated restoration began in 2015, and by March 2022 the limousine stood once more as the world’s longest car, a testament to resilience and the enduring fascination with record breaking sizes. Its revival sparked renewed conversation about the practicality and spectacle of extreme automotive dimensions, and what it takes to preserve such unique builds for future generations.
These six milestones illustrate how the auto world continually pushes boundaries. They remind enthusiasts that records, whether about price, speed, or length, are more than numbers. They reflect culture, technology, and the dreams of engineers who dream big and sometimes beyond conventional limits. The ongoing fascination with these extraordinary machines shows that the story of automobiles remains a living, evolving narrative with new chapters still unwritten in the years ahead. Acknowledging the lessons from these feats helps explain why collectors, researchers, and fans keep watching the horizon for the next breakthrough, whether it comes from a boutique automaker, a university lab, or a seasoned brand revisiting its own historical legends.
Attribution notes: The price record related to the Uhlenhaut Coupé is documented by the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart and subsequent auction reports from RM Sotheby’s. The acceleration milestone for the Rimac Nevera reflects official performance figures issued by the manufacturer, while the Stuttgart project is documented through university records and independent automotive media coverage. The longest car history references the American Dream by Jay Orberg and subsequent restoration timelines reported by automotive historians and enthusiasts.