Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing

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Gullwing, the popular name for the Mercedes 300 SL coupé, is probably the greatest and most successful supercar of all time. Throughout the model's long life the name 'Gullwing' has highlighted the car's unique feature, the lift-up gull-wing doors necessitated by the 300 SL's elaborate multi-tubular space-frame chassis.

Conceived and developed in 1951, the 300 SL proved a fast and reliable competition sports car. In 1952, the original 300SL (model Mercedes-Benz W194) scored overall wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, in Bern-Bremgarten, in the sportscar race of the Eifelrennen at the Nürburgring, and in Mexico's Carrera Panamericana. It also managed second and fourth places at its first outing, the Mille Miglia in 1952.

The decision to create a road going SL was largely due to Mercedes-Benz's American distributor, the formidable Max Hoffman. While attending a 1954 meeting of the Daimler-Benz Board of Directors, Hoffman argued passionately for a production version of the 300SL racing car. According to legend, despite initial objections the determined Hoffman prevailed and left Germany with a commitment for the construction of 1,000 SLs.

The sleek body design was a classic case of form following function. The attractive bulges over the wheel openings, for instance, actually improved high-speed stability, and the two longitudinal hood bulges and distinctive grillwork on both front wings removed excessive heat from the engine bay while reducing interior noise. In addition, lightweight aluminium was used extensively for the bodywork, particularly for the doors, bonnet, boot lid and interior sheet metal. While the rest of the car utilised steel panels for the bodywork, the entire car, in ready-to-drive form, including the spare wheel, tool kit and fuel, tipped the scales at just 1,295 kilograms. Designed for high-speed, cross-country travel, the 300SL was equipped with a large 130-litre fuel tank.

From these highly successful sports-racing cars Mercedes-Benz developed the production model that was a pioneer of fuel injection. In production form, the Gullwing was built to the highest quality and had a standard of performance - 140mph top speed coupled with exceptional acceleration - that surpassed the offerings of rival manufacturers. (The Gullwing was by far the fastest production car of it's day). The result was that over a period stretching from late 1954 to April 1957 the Mercedes-Benz factory built 1400 of these magnificent cars.

The recent release of the new SLS has sparked renewed interest in the original cars and values, which have been rising steadily, are now beginning to seriously accelerate, furthermore the iconic status of the Gullwing makes them an absolute must for any serious car collection. This 1955 example was delivered new to Mercedes-Benz of New York in the iconic and almost essential "Silver Arrows" combination of Silver paintwork and Red leather. The car's first owner was a Mr A Lipschultz of Pennsylvania. In around 1978 the car was then acquired by John Padover of Morristown of New Jersey. More recently the car has been subject to a full "concours" restoration at the hands of the Gullwing specialists, HK Engineering in Germany. Sold by DK Engineering in 2012 the car has lived in storage with DK Since. In 2013 the car was invited to participate in Mille Miglia. The car was returned to the 300SL specialists, HK Engineering for a pre-event check and unsurprisingly the car completed the 1,000 mile rally without fault. The car returned to HK Engineering following the event to ensure that this Gullwing remains in the finest condition at this stage a full sports exhaust was also fitted. Since the Mille Miglia the car has had limited use. Presented in stunning "show" condition this Gullwing is equally suited to concours events or Tours and Rallies, complete with fitted luggage, spare wheel, tool kit, full history file including details of the full restoration and a current FIVA Passport, this example in its original colour combination must be one of the finest examples available today.

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• Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing
• £POA
• DK Database ID: #412

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