A RARE 1929 Mercedes-Benz bought second-hand from a York motorist for a few hundred pounds was sold for millions at auction.

The 7.1 litre SSK sports car, bought for £400 in 1941, was sold for £4.18 million to a European phone bidder during the auction by Bonhams last night at the Goodwood Revival car festival in West Sussex.

The car was ownedfrom 1937 by Christopher Dalton Beaumont, of York.

The Mercedes, in near-original condition, was one of 38 cars discovered in barns belonging to collector George Milligen, who died in May, aged 94.

The total day's sales at the festival reached £7.7 million, beating the previous record of £7.2 million to become the most successful one-day car sale ever held in Europe, according to Bonhams.

Mr Milligen's collection, including fire and steam engines, raised more than £6 million.

The Mercedes was auctioned by Mr Milligen's friend and Bonhams chairman Robert Brooks who, in 1987, while working for Christie's, sold the most expensive car ever at auction, a 1931 Bugatti Royale, which fetched £5.5 million.

Mr Milligen bought the two-seater Mercedes, originally advertised as "the fastest sports car in the world", for £400 in 1941 when German-made cars where very unfashionable.

According to Bonhams, the car would have cost £2,500 new in 1929, the equivalent of £1million today.

Over 63 years Mr Milligen amassed an impressive collection of vehicles, which included steam locomotives and fire engines, at his farm in East Ruston, near Stalham, Norfolk.

However, Mr Milligen was protective of his fleet of cars, allowing only a few fellow enthusiasts to view them.

Bonhams spokesman Julian Roup described Mr Milligen as "one of the great connoisseurs of car collecting".

Updated: 09:31 Saturday, September 04, 2004