Ayrton Senna’s Personal Honda NSX Heads to Auction, Expected to Fetch Up to $1.1 Million

Auction house RM Sotheby’s is putting up for public auction a red 1991 Honda NSX once owned by three-time Formula 1 champion Ayrton Senna. According to the RM Sotheby’s auction catalog, the rare car has an estimated value of £500,000 to £800,000 (approximately $700,000 to $1.1 million).

Honda provided the car to the driver for his personal use while he was staying in Europe.

An Iconic Red NSX Featured in Documentary Footage

Chassis number JHMNA11500T000233 is finished in signature Formula Red with a contrasting black roof and a black leather interior. The sports car was officially delivered to the driver and registered in Portugal on March 22, 1991, under license plate SX-25-59.

According to Motor1, the Brazilian driver drove this exact car to the 1991 Portuguese Grand Prix in Estoril, where he finished second. The car also appeared in the 1992 documentary Ayrton Senna: Racing Is in My Blood and in famous archival photos showing the driver washing the sports car with a garden hose at his villa in the Algarve.

Senna’s Input on Chassis Tuning and the Aluminum Monocoque

Senna’s involvement with the NSX went far beyond promotional work: in 1989, during prototype testing at the Suzuka Circuit, he pointed out to engineers that the chassis lacked rigidity. The factory team revised the design and conducted extensive testing at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, increasing the body structure’s rigidity by roughly 50%.

As noted in the Honda Heritage archives, the mid-engine sports car introduced in 1990 represented a major technological breakthrough for its era, featuring the world’s first mass-produced all-aluminum monocoque, which significantly reduced the vehicle’s curb weight.

Provenance and Auction Date

Following Senna’s death in 1994, the car remained in Portugal before passing through several private owners. It was imported to the UK in 2013 and temporarily exhibited in Japan in 2024. The car’s authenticity is fully verified by original Portuguese registration documents and Honda paperwork.

The auction will take place on October 31, 2026, in London at The Peninsula hotel. If sold at the upper end of its estimate, the car will set a new price record for road-going Honda models.