Presented is a breathtaking 190SL that has undergone a meticulous
and highly documented restoration. Completed in 2010, it had been
subject to a body off complete physical and mechanical restoration
with an emphasis on correctness.
Chassis, Engine and Transmission display matching numbers and this
190SL was awarded Best In Class at the San Marino Concourse
D'Elegance beating out 11 other 190SL's. It was also awarded a 2nd
place finish for best European at the Palos Verdes Concourse
D'Elegance.
An original California Car that has recently been freshened up and
serviced and shows and drives extremely well and will make any
owner extremely proud as it turns heads everywhere it goes!!!
About the 190SL:
The Mercedes-Benz 190 SL (W121) is a two-door luxury roadster
produced between May 1955 and February 1963. Internally referred to
as W121 (BII or B2), it was first shown in prototype at the 1954
New York Auto Show, and was available with an optional removable
hardtop.
The 190 SL presented an attractive, more affordable alternative to
the exclusive Mercedes-Benz 300 SL, sharing its basic styling,
engineering, detailing, and fully independent suspension. Both cars
had double wishbones in front and swing axles at the rear. Instead
of the 300 SL's expensive purpose-built W198 tubular spaceframe,
the 190 SL's R121 structure used a shortened unitary floorpan
modified from the W121 base saloon.
The 190 SL was powered by a new, Type M121 BII 1.9 L straight-four
SOHC engine. Based on the 300 SL's straight six, it had an
unchanged 85 mm bore and 4.3 mm reduced 83.6 mm stroke, was fitted
with twin-choke dual Solex carburetors, and produced gross 120HP.
In detuned form, it was later used in the W120 180 and W121 190
models.
The car was available either as a soft-top convertible (initially
priced at DM 16,500/US$3,998) or with removable hardtop (DM
17,650/$4,295). A small third-passenger transverse seat was
optional. During its first years the 190 SL was available as a
sports-racing model with small perspex windscreen and spartan
one-piece leather covered bucket seats and aluminum doors. In 1959,
the hardtop's rear window was enlarged.
In 1956, a few six-cylinder prototypes were built for testing. A
190SL with a unique engine, using the 300SL block, squeezed into
the engine bay with a one-off mix of Benz-bin parts was entered in
the 1956 Alpine Rally, but the costs of production would be
prohibitive. Two other prototypes, fitted with fuel injected M180
220SE engines were baptized the W127 / 220SL. In June 1956, Rudi
Uhlenhaut and Karl Kling lapped the N�rburgring Nordschleife
circuit in the two W127s 25 seconds faster than a regular 190SL. On
12 April 1957, MB's board decided to build the W127, six-cylinder
220SL alongside the 190SL, but production challenges postponed
manufacturing until it was overtaken by the 230SL 'Pagoda'.
Both the 190 SL and the 300 SL were replaced by the Mercedes-Benz
230SL in 1963.
Mercedes-Benz did not announce what the abbreviation "SL" meant
when the car was introduced.
Leicht means either "easy" as an adverb or "light" as an adjective
in German. Defining a car it has to mean "Light".
It is often assumed that the letters stand for Sport Leicht. One
car magazine in 2012 declared that the abbreviation "SL" -
"securitized and personally signed by Rudolf Uhlenhaut" meant Super
Leicht. This contradicts "Mercedes-Benz 300 SL" of Engelen /
Riedner / Seufert, which was produced in close cooperation with
Rudolf Uhlenhaut showing that the abbreviation meant Sport
Leicht.
Mercedes-Benz used both forms until 2017. It was even called Super
Super. On the company website it was called Sport Leicht until 2017
and than changed to Super Leicht.
For a long time it was unclear what intention the company had at
the time when assigning the letter combination. It was not until
the beginning of 2017 that a chance finding in the corporate
archive, from the early part of 1952, clarified that at least in
the case of the 300 SL the abbreviation SL stood for
Super-Leicht.
Whilst Fusion Motor Company make a sincere effort to supply
information that is accurate and complete, we are aware that errors
and omissions may occur. Therefore, we are not able to guarantee
the accuracy of the information and we cannot accept liability for
loss or damage arising from misleading information or for any
reliance on which you may place on the information contained on
this website or our advertisements. We highly recommend that you
examine the vehicle to check the accuracy of the information
supplied. If you have any questions, please contact us at
[email protected] or by calling 818-773-8181
