For Sale at Auction: 1987 Mercedes-Benz AMG in Amelia Island, Florida

Chassis No. WDBEA30D5HA542559

Modern AMGs are throaty, fast, sporting cars with powerful engines with the performance to blow their regular production brethren away. Walk into any Mercedes dealer, and they will kindly show you a whole range of exciting AMG models, but this wasn't always the case. AMG wasn't always part of Mercedes-Benz. Back in the 1980s, AMG was the Mercedes-Benz tuner, a company staffed by ex-Mercedes engineers who were able to build the cars of their dreams without interference from Mercedes management. The 300 hp ECE version of the 560 SE was the most powerful, out-of-the-box sedan Mercedes offered at the time. If something additional was desired - and who doesn't want more? - AMG had an extensive catalog of options to choose from. Wheels, wood trim, spoilers, and rocker panels were available all the way up to a fully re-engineered car with a 6.0-liter V8 with custom cylinder heads on offer. In the 1980s, AMG was nimble enough to create whatever the customer wanted, often building vehicles costlier than a new Ferrari Testarossa, but more importantly, it was faster.

Mr. Don Byerly was one such customer who decided the best Mercedes could offer could use some improvements. Mr. Byerly ordered the car new directly with Richard Buxbaum, CEO of AMG North America at the time, as documented in a letter between them, a copy of which accompanies the car. The build sheet on file confirms the car was ordered with a "6.0L 32V engine, 2.47:1 gearbox; differential, sport exhaust - high performance, sport suspension, 17" chrome plated - painted wheels, interior wood kit, wood shift knob, Hammer aero body package, the large battery in the trunk, and AMG floor mats and car cover." AMG aficionados and observers alike will be amused to see AMG North America itself say "build into a hammer" as step one!

Beginning as a standard $39,500 1987 W124 chassis 300 E that was destined for the US market, it was sent to Westmont, Illinois, the headquarters of AMG North America, for conversion. It was there, in AMG's hands, where the car was transformed from a stock luxury sedan to a potent Autobahn stormer for an additional $97,988.29. All of AMG's work was done by hand, and incredibly copies of the mechanics' hourly time cards, including Hartmut Feyhl, are on file and available for review.

Early ownership and any subsequent ownership are unknown after Don Byerly. The history would pick up in the early 2000s when the car was acquired by Jonathan Hodgeman of Blue Ridge Mercedes. Jonathan would remain the custodian until being purchased by the current owner, who decided the car should be restored and brought back to life. Who better to revive the car than the man who built it new, Hartmut Feyhl?

Hartmut Feyhl is not simply a knowledgeable AMG mechanic - he is the AMG mechanic. His career spanned 12 years at AMG Germany before serving as the North American division's Technical Director. Prior to AMG's merger with Mercedes-Benz in 1989, at the request of AMG Germany, Feyhl branched out on his own to start RENNtech and service the existing North American AMG customers. As such, it was only fitting that this Hammer would receive a proper service from RENNtech.

Today this Hammer shows just over 32,600 miles on the odometer at the time of cataloging. Recent restorative work completed by RENNtech and Ai design was completed in December 2022 at 32,586 miles with a total in excess of $79,000. RENNtech would remove the engine to reseal it, and the transmission would receive the latest performance upgrades. Following its time at RENNtech, the car would head to Ai design, where a new stereo system was fitted to the car while maintaining a period look.

Pre-merger AMGs have risen in value of late, and it is unsurprising to see several come to market. Of those, however, very few, if any, have been documented by AMG itself. No questions exist around this car for those looking for the real thing. With factory correspondence, original build sheet, and documentation, along with recent RENNtech service, one would be hard-pressed to find a better-documented example. In total, it would cost approximately $1460,000 to build this Hammer when it was new, and as a result of the extreme amount of work and cost, it is believed to be one of only thirteen built in North America and one of less than 30 produced worldwide.