Autoblog

Raikkonen's Sauber C20: click to view in high resolution

Considering that modern Formula One race cars share as much in common with aircraft as they do with actual road-going automobiles, selling retired F1 cars at the airport suddenly seems to make sense. Last month we brought you initial news about the auction of former Sauber racers at the Zurich airport that include seven Sauber single-seaters ranging from the 1993 Sauber-Mercedes C12 (the team's first F1 car, driven by JJ Lehto) to the 2004 Sauber-Petronas C23 (driven by Giancarlo Fisichella under Ferrari power). All are being auctioned off – without their engines – each with a starting bid of Є200k.

On our way back from Switzerland following the recently-concluded Geneva Motor Show, we had a chance to see and photograph the four cars on display at the Airside Center in Zurich's Terminal A where they'll reside until the auction ends on March 25. What we saw includes the first and penultimate Saubers mentioned above, along with Jean Alesi's 1998 C17, Kimi Raikkonen's 2001 C20 (pictured above) and several individual components that would make awesome paperweights. The rare opportunity to see these technically-advanced racing machines up close and parked was a nice break from the overpriced boutiques and duty-free shops while transferring flights, and the experience in person illustrated just how intricately crafted these cars really are. See for yourself in our high-resolution image gallery by clicking the thumbnails below; more details are available at saubercars.ch.

Gallery: Sauber F1 auction at Zurich Airport

Kimi Rakkonen drives the Ferrari-powered 2001 Sauber-Petronas C20

While children ask their parents where people go after they die, gearheads ask what happens to racing cars after they're retired. With a dozen teams on the F1 grid, each building several new cars each season, the retired ones add up quickly. The answer, for all the wide-eyed and curious little racing fans out there, is that most of them remain in the team's possession, either sitting in storage or on display in museums. But once in a while, teams will sell their retired chassis to other teams or to the public. Each one can fetch millions apiece, which can help a constructor generate extra income to help offset its nine-figure annual budget.

They don't come around that often, but for any jetsetters with an extra couple of million burning a hole, try and book next week's puddle-jumper to Zurich, where Sauber will be auctioning off several of its old racing cars – drawn from the team's era as an independent constructor before BMW snatched them up – at the Kloten airport starting February 19. F1 cars with pedigree command serious premiums, and while Sauber never actually won a race, much less a championship, some big names – including Alesi, Salo, Villeneuve, Raikkonen and Massa – drove for the team between 1993 and 2006. The first F1 car which reigning world champion Kiki Raikkonen raced in 2001 is reportedly among those up for grabs, so get your checkbook and call Swiss Air.

[Source: F1-Live]