Paul Walker, the late Hollywood actor, was an avid automobile aficionado and racer himself — a passion shared with his father and grandfather, who once raced factory cars for Ford Motor. The actor co-owned the now-shuttered race car shop Always Evolving located in Valencia, California, and it inspired a new generation of gearheads before his untimely death at the age of 40 in a car accident in 2013. Walker was best known for his role as Brian O’Conner in The Fast and the Furious franchise.
From Wednesday through Saturday of last week, the actor’s personal collection of 21 cars, trucks and motorcycles hit the auction block as part of a Barrett-Jackson sale in Scottsdale, Arizona. And the sales ultimately added up to $2,333,450, according to Craig Jackson, chairman, and CEO of Barrett-Jackson.
The big draw came on Saturday, when a range of five white BMW M3 Lightweight Editions hit the block, a rarity as they were produced in a limited quantity of only 126. The 1995 E36, with just 4,600 miles, brought in the highest dollar amount of the lot: $385,000. The other four drew costs from $220,000 to $258,500.
On Saturday, a 1991 BMW M3 E30 (with 7,644 miles) also went for $220,000, whereas a 1988 version of the car (with 32,269 miles) got $165,000. Only 5,115 M3s were sold in the country between 1988 and 1991, according to auction notes, and even those with high mileage have gone for upwards of $60,000.
Though Walker never drove the zero-mileage 2013 Ford Mustang Boss 302S, it was gifted to him by a fellow car enthusiast before being placed into storage, according to auction notes, the car nonetheless brought in $95,700.
Before Saturday, the car that brought in the highest dollar amount, on Thursday, was a 2009 Nissan 370Z used as an “extra” in Fast Five that Walker did not use in the film, with 3,092 miles on the odometer — it sold for $105,600. Other than that, on Thursday, a 1989 Nissan Skyline R32 (with a stripped interior, racing seat, full roll cage, and fire extinguisher) went for $100,100, and a custom 1967 Chevy Nova with an engine update went for $60,500.
All of these earnings from the auction will go to a trust for Walker’s 21-year-old daughter, Meadow Rain Walker, who handles the Paul Walker Foundation, dedicated to providing grants and scholarships dedicated to marine science.
