The Monte Carlo Automobiles (MCA) Centenaire was a low-volume Monaco supercar unveiled in 1990, combining a Lamborghini-derived V12 with an ambitious carbon-fibre construction claim. Broad Arrow Auctions says five were produced from 1990 to 1992. Its name commemorated the centenary of the Automobile Club de Monaco—not the later Lamborghini Centenario, a separate car.
What was the MCA Centenaire?
The Centenaire was the flagship project of Monte Carlo Automobiles, a company founded in 1985 by racing driver Fulvio-Maria Ballabio, according to Broad Arrow Auctions’ September 2026 announcement. MCA unveiled the car in 1990 and named it for the centenary of the Automobile Club de Monaco. Broad Arrow says it was presented to Prince Albert II.
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The project brought together Italian motorsport figures, with technical director Carlo Chiti among those identified by Broad Arrow. The auction-house account presents the Centenaire as an ambitious effort to apply specialist racing expertise to a road-going supercar; it is not, however, an independent history of the project.
Design and the carbon-fibre claim
MCA’s official site describes the 1990 Montecarlo GTB Centenaire as the first car with a body made entirely from the then-new material, carbon fibre. Broad Arrow uses a different formulation, calling it the first road-going supercar with a carbon-fibre chassis. Those are not interchangeable claims: a carbon-fibre body and a carbon-fibre chassis refer to different parts of a car’s construction.
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Both priority statements should be treated as attributed claims rather than settled engineering history. The available accounts do not include an independent technical assessment establishing which vehicle was first under either definition. The careful description is that MCA and Broad Arrow have each advanced a carbon-fibre first claim, using different construction terms.
MCA Centenaire specifications
Published figures vary by source and may describe different configurations. Broad Arrow’s figures apply to the featured 1990 example, while Traumautoarchiv lists general Centenaire GTB specifications without establishing that every car shared them.
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| Specification | Featured 1990 example | Traumautoarchiv Centenaire GTB entry |
|---|---|---|
| Engine | Lamborghini Countach 5000 QV-derived V12; Broad Arrow says only the original three examples used this 5.2-litre engine | 5,167 cc; engine configuration not stated in the cited archive result |
| Power | 455 horsepower, according to Broad Arrow | Not stated in the cited archive result |
| Transmission | ZF six-speed manual, according to Broad Arrow | Not stated in the cited archive result |
| 0–100 km/h | Not stated in the cited auction announcement | 4.9 seconds, according to Traumautoarchiv; applicability to every configuration is not established |
| Dimensions | Not stated in the cited auction announcement | 4,026 mm long × 2,019 mm wide × 1,120 mm high, according to Traumautoarchiv |
The difference between the auction release’s rounded 5.2-litre description and the archive’s 5,167 cc figure is a reason to keep the numbers tied to their sources and vehicle descriptions, not combine them into a single definitive specification sheet. Broad Arrow also says two cars were further developed for Le Mans trials and reportedly reached 354 km/h on the Mulsanne Straight. That is a reported trial figure in the auction announcement, not an independently verified road-car top speed.
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Broad Arrow says five Centenaires were produced between 1990 and 1992; Traumautoarchiv also lists a production total of five. That is a remarkably small run, but the surviving sources do not provide a complete, independently documented breakdown of each car’s specification and subsequent history.
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The history of the featured 1990 car
Broad Arrow’s consignment history identifies its car as the first Centenaire produced. The auction announcement says it was initially used for development, testing and presentation, then remained at Lamborghini’s Sant’Agata Bolognese factory for approximately ten years before being gifted to Ballabio in the early 2000s.
The same account says the car was refinished blue around 2007 and later restored to Ivory White, retaining its red leather interior. These details describe the particular auctioned example and are based on the consignment history, rather than an independently published vehicle-by-vehicle registry.
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Auction estimate and result
Broad Arrow announced an estimate of €900,000–€1,200,000 for the featured car at its Zoute Concours Auction in Knokke-Heist, Belgium, scheduled for 9 October 2026. That was an estimate, not a realized price. A Classic Driver listing displays a zero result but does not explain whether the car sold, was withdrawn or remains available, so neither a sale price nor current availability is established by that listing.
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Centenaire, not Centenario
The MCA Centenaire is sometimes easy to confuse with the Lamborghini Centenario because of the similar name. They are distinct cars from different manufacturers and eras. Lamborghini’s official Centenario page concerns the later Lamborghini model, not the MCA car, and its specifications should not be applied to the Centenaire.
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