David Bowie was a man of class and style. He had an awesome collection of art and furniture and at least one mirror-finished Mini Cooper. But in the early 1980s, his daily driver was as timelessly rad as he was: this 1981 Volvo 262 C Bertone. And it just sold for supercar money at auction.
Motoring Research reports that Bowie’s sexy Volvo coupe went for £160,735 (about $216,000) at Swiss auction house The Oldtimer Galerie Toffen. That’s more than three times its initial top estimate.
Here’s what the auctioneers said about the car:
This car was delivered on June 18th 1981 to the musician David Robert Jones (David Bowie) and registered in his name on June 22nd 1981 with the license plate VD 122 922. In 1985 the 262 C was registered to the Bewlay Bros. S.A.R.L - the record label of David Bowie and Iggy Pop - and continued to be used by Bowie during his stays in Switzerland with the plates VD 267 584. In 1998 the car was finally taken over by the current owner. The original service booklet and a copy of the first vehicle registration are available. Fully equipped with automatic transmission, leather, aircondition, power windows and Volvo Hi-Fi System with Blaupunkt speakers. 53‘000 km, very good and well maintained original condition.
This car eschewed the vinyl top on other Bertone-designed Volvo coupes for a hardtop, but packed the typical 2.8-liter PRV V6 and a three-speed automatic. I would’ve figured Bowie for a manual guy, but I’m not disappointed. It’s too cool not to love. Good to know he had the hi-fi stereo too, and fitting,
Bowie, who died last January, was one of the top-selling recording artists of the 20th century and a cultural icon known for how he mixed art into his often-experimental pop music. I for one am delighted to know he had such great taste in cars as well, and my hat’s off to the new owner of one of the coolest Volvos ever.