Automobile BRM P25 1959 in vendita

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To Be OFFERED AT AUCTION at RM Sothebys' The Woodcote Park Auction event, 8 July 2026.
£250,000 - £300,000 GBP

Faithfully reconstructed in the 1960s using original BRM P25 chassis drawings, body bucks, and genuine components
Commissioned by Tom Wheatcroft to display in his world-famous Donington Grand Prix Collection
Maintained by leading historic race car specialist Hall & Hall in BRM’s hometown of Bourne
Powered by an original BRM-designed and built 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine; raced three times during 1959, including the Monaco Grand Prix
Winner at the 2015 Goodwood Members’ Meeting; eligible for the Goodwood Revival, Monaco Grand Prix Historic, and races across Europe and the United States

The supercharged 1.5-litre V-16 in the Type 15 sounded truly magnificent but proved notoriously unreliable, leading British Racing Motors to develop a 2.5-litre four-cylinder motor for its second Formula 1 car: the P25. The design debuted in 1956, locked out two of the podium positions in the Dutch Grand Prix in 1958, and returned to the Zandvoort circuit the following year to claim victory in the hands of Joakim Bonnier.

While that car—chassis number 258—was preserved on account of giving BRM its first-ever F1 World Championship race win, the five other examples originally built were dismantled to allow components to be reused on subsequent models. Chassis 2510 was one of two new cars constructed for 1959. It was sold to British Racing Partnership and, wearing a pale green livery, was raced by Sir Stirling Moss in the French and British Grands Prix. For its final outing, Hans Hermman took the wheel for his home event in Germany. However, on lap five, he suffered a terrifying crash. Although the driver fortunately survived, the P25 collided with a hay bale and rolled.

By the end of the 1960s, Tom Wheatcroft had purchased a vast supply of BRM spare parts. Looking to add a P25 to his famed Donington Grand Prix Collection, he commissioned the build of the car offered here. Using the inventory of factory components, original drawings, and body bucks, this car was faithfully constructed and assigned the chassis number 2510. It was fitted with engine number 2592, which remains in the car. Per the research of famed motorsport historian Doug Nye, this motor was used by BRM three times during the 1959 season: Goodwood (Bonnier, 4th place), Aintree (Bonnier, retired with brake failure), and in the Monaco Grand Prix (Ron Flockhart, spun). After completing shakedown laps around Donington Park, the car resided as part of Wheatcroft’s outstanding museum and was occasionally used for demonstrations runs.

As the Donington Grand Prix Collection was disbanded, this P25 was bought by the vendor in 2012. They sent it to Hall & Hall, fittingly based in Bourne—the hometown of 1962 F1 Constructors’ World Champion BRM. Prepared for competitive use and maintained by the world-class historic race car specialist over the next decade, chassis 2510 was issued with an FIA Historic Technical Passport in 2012 and went on to dominate its race at the 73rd Goodwood Members’ Meeting in 2015. It won the Hawthorn Trophy for front-engine Grand Prix cars of a type built between 1950 and 1955 by a staggering 29 seconds.

The car returned to the Chichester circuit in 2016 to snare 6th in the Brooks Trophy—open to front- and mid-engine Grand Prix machinery that competed during the 1950s and early 1960s—and again in 2021 for the BRM 70th anniversary celebration at the Revival. While the P25 will require mechanical preparation prior to being raced (for more information, please speak to an RM Sotheby’s Specialist), it remains eligible for the Goodwood Members’ Meeting and Revival, Monaco Grand Prix Historic, Historic Grand Prix Cars Association races in Europe, and Historic Sportscar Racing contests in the United States.
To view this car and others currently consigned to this auction, please visit the RM website at rmsothebys.com/auctions/wp26/.