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1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster VIN: 1980427500652 31,530 original miles One Owner Highly Optioned Numbers Matching In 1954 Leopold Poldi Bentley was the visionary importer of Mercedes-Benz cars into Western Canada. Akin to Max Hoffman in New York he saw the value of bringing these extraordinary cars to North America. An Austrian by birth, he fled Vienna with his family in 1938 and settled in British Columbia. He changed his name from Leopold Bloch-Bauer and founded a furniture and paneling veneer company called Pacific Veneer, that later became Canfor Corporation, the worlds largest exporter of softwood lumber. Having grown up with the Silver Arrows and legendary prewar Mercedes cars, he saw a market for these extraordinary cars in the growing metropolis of Vancouver. Using his escalating lumber fortune he put his money where his mouth was and ordered a fully loaded silver on red, 1954 300SL Gullwing. He set about using the car to convert the people of Western Canada into Mercedes enthusiasts. Poldis new company, Mercedes-Benz Distributor West Ltd., opened on West Georgia Street in Vancouver in 1956. He ordered this Roadster in 1957 as his next demonstrator. Once the car had accomplish the task of showing his clients the stunning Roadster body Poldi put the car up for sale in 1959. The silver on red Roadster was fully loaded, coming with factory luggage, hardtop, a Nardi steering wheel, and the very rare Rudge wheels. This addition makes it one of only 28 Roadsters ever fitting with them from the factory. The first and only owner of this car purchased the Roadster from Poldi in 1959, having purchased the demonstrator Gullwing years earlier. The service manual for the Roadster shows limited use through the 60s with mileage only reaching 23108 by 1969. In the next 20 years the car would only cover another 7000 miles. Service records show 30165 miles as of August of 1989. In the early 90s the care of this car was entrusted to noted 300 SL restorer Rudi Koniczek and his team at Rudi and Company in Vancouver BC. From that day to this they have maintained the car in excellent, original running condition. This 300SL is numbers matching and highly optioned. It is believed the Roadster was repainted some time in the 60s. The original single stage Mercedes paint was notorious for going flat after only a few years. Other than preservation work the car is almost exactly as it left the factory back in 1957. The Roadster comes with its original factory luggage, hardtop, tools, books, Rudge wheels, and optional Nardi steering wheel. Also offered by Canepa is the owners other 300SL, Poldis 1954 Gullwing. The two silver 300SLs have remained in the original owners stewardship until now. Their availability is an unparalleled opportunity in the classic car world. Two 300SLs sharing the same one owner with unbroken histories, matching numbers, low original mileage, and highly optioned are unlikely to ever surface again. SCROLL DOWN FOR MORE PHOTOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We thank you for your interest in Canepa. To request further information or submit offers, please call or email: Bruce Canepa 831.430.9940 bruce@canepa.com Please visit www.canepa.com to view our complete inventory of automobiles. - 
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STOCK/INV. NUMBER:
4573
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