The world's oldest surviving Rolls-Royce revved up two new records on Monday when a private British collector paid 3.5 million pounds ($7.22 million) for it at auction.

The price makes the veteran vehicle not only the most ever paid for a pre-1905 car but also the most for a Rolls-Royce.

"They opened the bidding at one million and it soared from there. In the end it came down to a battle between two telephone bidders," a spokeswoman for auction house Bonhams said.