One of the most exclusive & renowned names within the realm of high-end classic and exotic cars, Tom Hartley Jnr Ltd has been appointed to broker the sale of Mansour Ojjeh’s extraordinary McLaren road car collection spanning 20 uniquely special examples. They represent more than just McLaren’s evolution as a supercar manufacturer: each of them is nothing less than a personal vision of the man who helped form the company’s history & modern identity itself.
Leading all the way up to his passing in 2021, Mansour’s name remained highly celebrated among the motorsport world for the visionary, instrumental role he played in making McLaren one of the most successful & iconic Formula 1 teams. The son of Saudi businessman Akram Ojjeh, he was born in Paris & studied in California where he earned a master’s degree in business. Upon graduation, he was appointed as the CEO of Techniques d’Avant Garde (TAG), the Luxembourg-based holding company founded by Akram with interests throughout the aviation, motorsport, watchmaking and luxury goods industries.
It was in 1979 when his Formula 1 journey began, after a trip to take in the previous year’s Monaco Grand Prix on the Saudi Arabian royal family’s hospitality inspired him to venture into the racing business, first by having his TAG Group securing principal sponsorship of the Williams team. His 1984 decision to take an ownership stake in McLaren was the one which truly shaped his legacy, however. In a partnership that kicked off one of the sport’s most iconic alliances, TAG’s financing enabled development of the TAG-Porsche turbo engines that drove the Marlboro-liveried McLarens to two Constructors’ Championship and three Drivers’ Championship titles.
His influence would prove vital to McLaren’s success throughout the next four decades, and with Mansour’s stewardship the team went on to clinch seven Constructors’ and ten Drivers’ Championship titles, while furthering its reach beyond the racetrack. He was instrumental in establishing the brand as a pioneering leader in engineering innovation & excellence, by launching the McLaren Automotive and McLaren Applied Technologies divisions.
Kathy Ojjeh, Mansour’s widow said, “McLaren meant so much to Mansour. It was more than business, it was pure passion and it was in that vein that he curated this unique collection of McLaren road cars. The ‘Last of Legends’ car collection is a treasure for our family – a reminder of the hours we witnessed Mansour designing each car to his specifications. He had an unusual talent for detail that stuns and impresses, a talent driven by the very passion he nurtured for so many years with McLaren.”
“Parting with this very personal collection is not easy, but it is time for it to go to its new custodian, one who truly ‘gets it’ and will cherish owning and caring for it the way Mansour did. We are very grateful to Tom Hartley Jnr for providing us with the highly professional framework within to sell this collection, as we know Tom truly understands the collection’s intrinsic value and is also one whose passion for beautiful automobiles surpasses most.”
Just like almost any other petrolhead, Mansour found his passion for cars earlier in life, having already owned such icons as the Lamborghini Countach and Rolls-Royce Corniche while living in North America during his twenties. This enthusiasm would eventually grow into a world-class Ferrari collection, including exceptional examples of the 250 GT California Spyder, 365 GTS/4 Daytona Spider, and 288 GTO.
More than simply owning legendary machines however, Mansour longed to create one of his own; fortunately this was a vision shared by his contemporaries. It was in 1988, during a flight delay at Milan’s Linate Airport after that year’s dramatic Italian Grand Prix, that a conversation between himself, Ron Dennis, Gordon Murray and Creighton Brown sparked the conception of their ambitious new goal to build the world’s greatest super sports road car.
Mansour’s deep-seated refusal to cut corners in any project he undertook was well-matched by Ron Dennis’ famously fanatical attention to detail, and Gordon Murray’s zero compromise approach. This marked the birth of the legendary McLaren F1, a car that many still regard as the finest pure driver’s car ever made.
With F1 production then beginning in earnest, Mansour took the pivotal decision to sell his existing collection including the Ferraris, and turn his efforts towards building the ultimate McLaren road car collection instead.
This was built around a particularly unique McLaren F1 as its ‘jewel in the crown’. The 64th & final F1 ever produced, chassis #075 was originally ordered by Mansour’s brother Aziz Ojjeh, and delivered in May 1998 as the last of six F1s completed that year. It is finished in a unique golden orange shade of Yquem, commissioned by Aziz to reflect the rare southern Bordeaux desert wine’s varying visual characters in different light conditions. Its black leather interior was highlighted with orange driver’s seat & steering wheel inserts, while other bespoke touches included wooden finishes for its gear knob & handbrake lever.
F1 #075 was retained by Aziz until 2006, when he sold it to Mansour who had in turn sold his own F1 chassis #036 in Pale Blue Metallic to an American collector. To mark the Yquem colour’s significance to his family, McLaren subsequently renamed it Mansour Orange and reserved it for exclusive usage on his cars. Continuing the example set by F1 #075, Mansour further requested the final production chassis number of each McLaren model he acquired, ensuring the incorporation of all technical & software updates made over every car’s production cycle.
His personal efforts have thus resulted in a curation of McLarens that is quite simply without equal. Apart from the F1 with just 1,810 km on its odometer (including the McLaren F1 Owners Club 25th Anniversary Tour), and the P1 GTR that has seen occasional action in McLaren track days, every other McLaren in this line-up remains preserved in unused factory-delivered condition. They are even maintained under direct instruction from McLaren themselves, a service bestowed upon no other McLaren owner apart from Mansour himself.
Tom Hartley Jnr added, “I’m truly humbled that the Ojjeh family has entrusted my business with the sale of their incredible collection. I had the privilege of meeting Mansour on a few occasions, and his attention to detail and appreciation for the finer things in life are clearly reflected in the collection that remains today. Offering this collection for sale would be extraordinary in its own right, but the fact that it comes from the home of one of McLaren Automotive’s founding figures, a man so instrumental in McLaren’s Formula 1 success, makes it truly unrepeatable.”
“Being entrusted with the sale of Mansour Ojjeh’s McLaren collection is akin to handling Enzo Ferrari’s Ferraris or Ferdinand Porsche’s Porsches. We’re talking about one of the founding figures behind McLaren Automotive, a man who, together with Ron Dennis, helped build McLaren into one of the most respected and successful teams in Formula 1 history. For me, the highlight of the collection is, of course, the F1. It’s widely regarded as the greatest road car ever built, and this particular example is the very last one produced. It has only just over 1,800 km from new and comes directly from Mansour Ojjeh, who, alongside Bruce McLaren and Ron Dennis, was instrumental in shaping the history of the marque. I have no doubt this will fetch a world record price for the model when it’s sold.”
“There are so many other remarkable cars in the collection, each one completely unique and the final example of its model ever built. One especially poignant example is the Elva, delivered after Mansour’s passing. In an extraordinary gesture of respect, McLaren replaced the manufacturer’s badges on the front and rear with Mansour’s own emblem — a tribute to one of their founders. This is the most significant McLaren road car collection ever assembled, and I sincerely hope it is acquired by a single buyer, just as the Ecclestone Grand Prix collection was which we sold earlier this year.”
Almost in spite of his huge success, Mansour was respected for his genuine warmth, humility, and generosity just as much as his business prowess. Upon his passing in June 2021, tributes poured in not just from the motorsport community, but even from every corner of the world across the industries & lives he had touched.
More than merely a supercar collection, this is an enduring vision realized by the very man whose legacy has shaped McLaren’s past, present, and future. Through his groundbreaking innovation, perfectionism, and steadfast passion for excellence, Mansour Ojjeh built the iconic British supercar marque into something truly timeless, just like the collection that bears his name.
Zak Brown, McLaren Racing’s Chief Executive Officer concluded, “Mansour was a founding father of McLaren as we know it today. A massively passionate racer and automotive enthusiast and no bigger fan of McLaren. His collection is very special, I’m not aware of anything else that compares with it.”
