Vehicle Description
1935 Mercedes-Benz 500K with a genuine 500K Chassis restored and
rebodied by Franz Prahl! Now sporting the highest quality Special
Roadster coachwork! Absolutely stunning in every way with Concours
provenance! A must see for both Mercedes-Benz and classic car
collectors! In the eyes of many, the Mercedes-Benz 500/540K
embodies the true forward-thinking prowess of pre-war Germany! A
successor to the almost instantly famous S/SS/SSK/SSKL models of
the late 20s, the 500K (internal codename W29) bowed its head in
1934 in both chassis-only and one of thirteen different factory
bespoke bodystyles. Assembled in Sindelfingen, the factory Mercedes
cars were built on one of two wheelbases with three configurations.
Featuring a 5.0L Inline 8 with a Roots supercharger and standard
four speed manual (five speed optional!), the 500K was a truly
ferocious car. The chassis consisted of a fully independent double
wishbone front end and double-joint swing axle in the back,
allowing a sporting but very comfortable ride! Aesthetically
perfect, decades ahead mechanically and ultra rare, the 500K
represents one of the finest motorcars to ever come out of Germany!
We couldnt be more excited to offer this 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500K
Special Roadster! The car comes finished in a beautiful and period
shade of Ivory White over sumptuous Tan leather interior with
matching Tan soft top! Under the hood is the original 500K 5.0L
Inline 8 (dated March 5th, 1935) and supercharger that are mated to
a standard four-speed manual transmission. The car has exquisite
details and many standard features that include rear rumble-seat,
auxiliary soft top, fully enclosed rear-mount spare tire, fully
back-lit gauges, dual cowl vents, front fog light, safety glass,
vacuum-assist hydraulic brakes and 12V charging to power the power
locks, windshield wipers and side indicators! The car rides on
chromed wire wheels with Ivory Mercedes-Benz knock-offs wrapped in
Dunlop Fort 7.00-17 blackwall tires! The previous owner of the car,
Mr. Fred Kemp, found this Mercedes-Benz 500K in 1993. Having
already owned a 540K, he had spent 30 years looking for a
Mercedes-Benz 500K Special Roadster, which he considered to be one
of, if not the prettiest, Mercedes-Benz in their history. After
some researching and scouring of enthusiast communities, he was
pointed to the Carrosserie Kong restoration shop in Basel,
Switzerland, where they had started on the restoration of a
Mercedes-Benz 500K Cabriolet B. Chassis number 123686 was delivered
new to a Mr. Brenninkmeyer of England in 1935 as a black
right-hand-drive model. Its whereabouts are scattered until 1974,
when Bud Cohn helps Kalle Karlstrm of Los Angeles purchase the car.
It was returned to Europe when Kalle sold the car to Peter Haverton
of Sweden. Not long after, the car was sold to another Swede, who
placed it in the Drottningholm Collection, where the restoration
first began at Rohdins Automobilservice in Trollhttan. Fast forward
to 1992, the car had disappeared to Germany and started a
restoration at Kong. The new owner, a Dr. Harald Alfers, had
disassembled the car and was just starting to put it back together
when Mr. Kemp found him. After admitting that he was searching for
an authentic chassis, negotiations started. They would continue
until 1995 when Mr. Kemp was finally able to secure the unfinished
project for himself, while also establishing a relationship with a
new carrosseie to finish the custom Special Roadster body. Franz
Prahl Klassische Automobile GmbH & Co. KG was responsible for the
completion of engine, chassis, body and interior and documented
this process in great detail and with many pictures. The final
receipt of purchase was dated January 13th, 1999 and the car was to
be finished before the beginning of the new millennium but as with
many projects of this magnitude, there were delays in the
completion of certain tasks. The car was finally finished in June
of 2000, where it was test driven and any post-restoration bugs
were worked out. It was appraised at 2,000,000 deutsche marks
before Mr. Kemp briefly toured Germany in it and then sent it
stateside. It cleared customs on September 1st and arrived in St.
Louis two weeks later. Since restoration, it has been proudly
displayed at many prominent shows and concours events that include
but are not limited to: 2001 Pebble Beach Concours dElegance, 2008
Amelia Island Concours dElegance, 2009 Ault Park COncours dElegance
(Awarded Jack OConner trophy for Best Style & Elegance) 2009 Hilton
Head Concours dElegance (awarded for Automotive Design Excellence),
2010 Meadow Brook Concours dElegance and the 2012 Amelia Island
Concours dElegance (awarded the John North Trophy for Best New
Coachwork or Recreation/First in Class). For over ten years, this
500 K Special Roadster has been the "crown jewel" display at the
Kemp Auto Museum until the museum closed in June of 2015. Along
with several other dozen collectible antique Benzes, this was
perhaps one of the most interesting looks into the marques
history,receiving positive reviews from both well-studied purveyors
as well as the average old car enthusiasts. Today, the
Mercedes-Benz 500K presents just as it was restored. It will show
only the most minor wear from occasional use and is nothing short
of Concours-ready! All Mercedes-Benz markings and stamps are
visible and in line with production dates in the first part of
1935. The engine and chassis numbers match and enough of the cars
history is known to paint a picture of the ownership timeline .
Included with the car is a box of labeled folders with receipts,
history, documentation, correspondence, concours invites and
photographs documenting the car in graphic detail from 1992. Each
of the photos below of documentation is from a different year from
1992-2000. Even the most discerning enthusiasts will find it hard
to fault the amounts of records, from the earliest restoration
receipts that are now well over 20 years old, to the 100 photos
taken by Prahl of the most minute restoration details. It becomes
immediately clear that the craftsmanship was at least as finite as
that of the original fabricators in Sindelfingen. The painstaking
attention to detail resulted in a ground-up refurbishment and
restoration that cost upward of $1.5 million. Showing only 1369
kilometers (~851 miles) since restoration, this Mercedes-Benz 500K
has been driven enough to get all post-restoration bugs worked out.
Today, the vehiclewill need mild tuning to beready for any driving
or concours event as it has been on display for several years with
limited exercise. This car presents a very unique opportunity to
own not only one of the most beautiful Mercedes-Benz models but
also one of the most stunning pre-war cars, and one that has made
many most beautiful cars of all time lists. The car is eligible for
almost any prestigious car collecting event and is among the most
top-notch CCCA full classics that money will buy. With prices of
the remaining 500Kspushing overeight figures in price, it is our
opinion that this is a fantastic entry into the automobile
collecting elite. In addition to the 200 pictures, we would be
thrilled to answer any additional questions you may have on this
exquisite automobile and would encourage interested parties to call
with additional questions! Thank you for taking the time to look!