The pandemic has done very little to quell the demand for classic cars in the last couple of year, with auction sales continuing to hit record levels despite the global impact of Covid-19 on economies and wealth.
The emergence of new dedicated websites for a raft of collectible models, such as Collecting Cars and The Market, means petrol heads have increased opportunity to buy and sell vehicles of all generations and value, while data show that appetite remains high at the premium end of the market where motors sell for millions.
We asked classic car insurer and value tracker, Hagerty, to tell us which were the priciest of last year.
Here, we exclusively list the 10 cars that went under the hammer across the globe in 2021 and sold for the highest figures...
10. 1958 Ferrari 250 GT LWB Berlinetta 'Tour de France'
Price paid: $6million (£4.3million)
Sold at: RM Sotheby's Monterey sale, California, USA (14 August 2021)
This is 52nd of just 72 Ferrari 250 GT LWB Berlinetta TdFs produced in the fifties.
The paint is an Alfa Romeo colour called Giulietta blue, which makes this particular car stand out
There were just 72 250 GT LWB Berlinetta Tour de France built in total, with chassis number 1031 GT the 52th to come off the production line.
Sold at RM Sotheby's highlight event of the classic car calendar at Monterey Car Week in California, the stunning Ferrari went to the highest bidder for a fee of $6million - around £4.3million.
This is a particularly unique example, being that it originally was - and still is - finished not in an official Ferrari paint colour but an Alfa Romeo palette called 'Giulietta Blue' and complemented by a red stripe and Havana brown leather interior.
The unconventional paint choice was among a number of requests submitted by its first keeper, French industrialist and accomplished racing driver Jacques Peron, when ordering the Ferrari from the factory.
The original owner ordered the Ferrari with a very specific specification that the factory failed to meet.
Such was his anger that he quickly sold the motor the same year - and sent bosses a strongly worded letter expressing his disappointment
He wanted the Italian stallion to race in the Tour de France event that year, with specific demands put to Maranello concerning the specification. Among the requests was for a 250 TR-specification engine, hinged engine cover to enable easy roadside repairs, transmission tunnel-mounted handbrake for standing starts on hill climbs and room for two spare wheels.
Yet Ferrari delivered the 250 GT without most of these requested features installed, much to Peron's anger.
In fact, soon after competing in the race - in which he finished a respectable fourth - he immediately sold the car, notifying bosses at the Italian marque via a strongly worded letter.
Having been through the ownership of a number of collectors, the car was bought in 1972 by married racing duo David and Mary Love and remained in the American family's collection until David's passing in 2014.
The last owner commissioned a full restoration, including a rebuild of the original 3.0-litre V12 engine and gearbox that produced 26bhp when new, and the car was presented at the 2016 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in its back-to-factory best.
Having only been driven 'selectively' since refurbished, the winning bid at last year's auction was $6million.
9. 1955 Jaguar D-Type Roadster
Price paid: $6million (£4.4million)
Sold at: RM Sotheby's Arizona sale, Scottsdale, USA (22 January 2021)
This 1955 example of the legendary D-Type Jaguar is one of just 71 examples produced.
The D-Type famously won Le Mans in 1955, 1956 and 1957
Widely recognised as one of Britain's greatest endurance race cars of all time, a genuine Jaguar D-Type that goes under the hammer today is always going to demand a stellar sum.
This model - chassis number XKD 518 - is no different, changing hands just over a year ago at RM Sotheby's Arizona sale at the OTTO Car Club for a figure of $6million.
This car - one of only 71 made - was delivered on 29 December 1955 to Henlys of Manchester and, like the Ferrari 250 GT above, was painted in an unfamiliar colour for the brand - one of a couple of examples believed to have left the Coventry assembly line finished red.
RM Sotheby's says it was painted British Racing Green at some point in its lifetime but has since been returned to its factory scarlet tone.
This example - chassis XKD 518 - was owned by collectors in the UK until 1982 when it was shipped to the US.
It sold at RM Sotheby's Arizona sale in January last year for $6million
Racer Peter Blond became its first private owner in 1956, having purchased the car for £3,500 from F1 mogul Bernie Ecclestone, who had taken the car on after Henlys had - unfathomably - failed to find a buyer for it.
Blond soon put it to good use in club racing, winning a number of competitions during the summer of 1956.
The car continued to compete on the UK scene in the hands of other racing owners until it was shipped across the Atlantic in 1982, where it has remained under various ownership since.
When it went to the block in January 2021, it still had its original, numbers-matching, 3.4-litre dry-sump XK engine and triple Weber carburetors, breathing through passenger-side-mounted exhaust and mated to four-speed transmission that - when new - was claimed to put out 245 horsepower.
8.
2010 McLaren-Mercedes MP4-25 F1
Price paid: £4.7million
Sold at: RM Sotheby's British Grand Prix 2021 auction, Silverstone, UK (17 July 2021)
The first Lewis Hamilton Formula 1 race winning car to be made available at a public auction sold for a monumental £4.7million in July