Vehicle Description
Happy Holidays! 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing: Life-Long
Black-Plate California Car out of 5 Decade OwnershipMake your
holiday dreams come true with this 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300SL
Gullwing. A life-long black-plate California car with matching
numbers that's been under the same ownership since the early
1970's. Silver with a gorgeous plaid interior. This beautiful
example retains its original engine and it runs and drives
excellent. Offered publicly for the first time in 5 decades. A
beautiful driver quality Gullwing that's in excellent condition
throughout. Originally born in rare and desirable DB 50 white with
red leather interior. You don't often find a car that hasn't been
publicly offered in 50 years. Mercedes-Benz returned to post-war
competition in 1952, fielding two of its new 300SL (W194) sports
cars in the Mille Miglia. The pair finished a creditable second and
fourth overall in this most difficult of events and this promising
start was followed up by a win in the challenging Carrera
Panamericana. The works first raced the 300SL (Sport Leicht) in
open form, but for the Le Mans 24-Hour Race in June a trio of
gullwing?-doored coup?s was entered. High sills were a feature of
the multi-tubular spaceframe chassis, and while access was not a
problem of the open car, the coup? bodywork required innovative
thinking - hence the gullwing doors. Karl Kling and Hans Klenk duly
brought their Silver Arrow? home in first place and the 300SL was
on its way to becoming part of motor sporting legend.Launched in
1954, the production 300SL retained the spaceframe chassis and
lightweight aluminium-alloy bodywork of the W194 racer while its
mechanical underpinnings, like the latter?s, owed much to the
contemporary Mercedes-Benz 300 luxury saloon. A 2,996cc
overhead-camshaft inline six, the 300SL?s engine was canted at 45
degrees to achieve a low bonnet line, and produced 215bhp using
Bosch mechanical fuel injection. A four-speed, all-synchromesh
manual gearbox transmitted power to the hypoid bevel rear axle. Its
racing parentage notwithstanding, the 300SL remains a thoroughly
practical car, as civilised in city traffic as it is exhilarating
on the autostrada. By the time 300SL Coup? production ceased in
1957, some 1,400 examples had found customers. Rare and most
sought-after, the 300SL Gullwing is one of the best automotive
investments one can make and this particular example is not to be
overlooked. Life-Long Black-Plate California Car Out of 50 Year
Ownership Retaining its Matching Numbers Engine Originally Born in
Rare and Desirable DB 50 White Gorgeous Plaid Red Interior Offered
publicly for the first time in 5 decades Beautiful Example and
Excellent Driver Iconic Gullwing and a Superb Investment Price:
$1,750,000
