Bidding for the car, described as a limited edition, closed on eBay's Swiss site at CHF1,200,050 (£540,000) on Saturday.

According to eBay, there was a fierce bidding war in the final days of the auction and the winning bid was just £22 higher than the second-placed bidder. The car has 400km on the clock as is described as in perfect condition with no scratches and no defects.

Just 399 of the V12 engine, 600 horsepower cars, which a US luxury and sports car hire firm recently named as its most popular car available for rental, have ever been made.

Clare Gilmartin, head of motors at eBay UK, said: "This shows the breadth of items for sale eBay now attracts across Europe. It also demonstrates that eBay sellers are listing with us to attract international buyers for that 'must-have' item."

"Around the world, $10.7 billion worth of cars were sold on eBay in the period between July and September 2004. All of which goes to show that if you are in the market for a car, eBaymotors.co.uk, where a car sells every 4 minutes, is one of the places you should look."

The most expensive sale ever made in the UK was Margaret Thatcher's handbag, which sold for £103,000, while the most expensive item ever sold on eBay globally was a Gulfstream Jet at $4.9m.

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