1952 MERCEDES 170VA PICKUP TRUCK
EXTREMELY RARE!!! Believed to be perhaps only three of these (or maybe even less in the U.S. ) No way that I know of to verify for sure.
I've owned this little truck since 2006. Prior to that I looked for about twenty (plus) years to find one and I had to go all the way to New Zealand to buy this one. Unquestionably one of the rarest & most unique early post-war Mercedes collector vehicles.
My experience has been that the truck gets far more attention at a show than a Mercedes Gullwing because people just haven’t seen anything like this in person. Pictures yes but, in person no. At the time this was built, Mercedes usually sold their commercial style vehicles in the form of a running & driving chassis. Along with the complete drive line any person who’s familiar with vintage Mercedes vehicles like the 1951 to 1955 model 187 220’s will recognize many parts on the truck such as (but not limited to) the firewall, the wheels, the front and rear fenders, the running boards, the hood, the grill, the windshield frame, the dashboard & instruments, the steering wheel, the headlights, etc.
Then, using these parts when they could a custom body builder completed the construction. This method of a custom body builder completing a factory chassis was similar to how a lot of the greatest classic cars in history such as Duesenberg's & MB 540K's were built during the 1930's classic era.
I have quite a bit of documentation regarding its history including a copy of the factory build sheet, the factory chassis card and a framed 500,000 kilometer award from the factory as well. The truck has never actually been restored, just lovingly maintained. Amazingly solid truck with only very light surface rust in just a couple of places on the chassis. I've seen nothing that a little sandpaper and a little elbow grease wouldn't take care of. I haven't seen anything where it's a structural concern.
I think it’s fair to call this one in driver condition. It’s definitely NOT a truck to take to a concours and compete with fully restored vehicles because you don’t have a chance of winning. There’s paint chips and scratches and a small tear in the seat and a wood bed that need re-finishing. But, that being said you just “might” win an award for the most unique vehicle there.
This fantastic little truck is in reality pretty small at only approx. fourteen and a half feet long. RUNS GREAT but, it’s been in storage for quite a few years so it might take a little while to wake it up. Ran perfectly fine when it was placed in inside storage so I’m not anticipating too much difficulty.
You shouldn’t let the right hand drive concern you as it’s very easy to get used to. Could be very handy if you ever decide to be a mailman. If you’d like to convert it back to left hand drive, over the years I’ve seen quite a few early 1950’s 187 four door sedan parts cars that should give you everything you need to complete the conversion. Even the instruments in the dash are centered so that they can stay where they are no matter what position the steering wheel and column are.
This could be a once in a lifetime opportunity for someone. Just think how cool it would be for a Mercedes dealership to purchase this and use it as a parts runner or just for display.
For me it’s always been fun to take something different to a car show that people don’t normally see and that’s definitely the case with this little truck. However, be prepared that you’ll be answering an awful lot of questions all day long.
Kind of hard to put a price on something as rare as this when there's nothing to compare it to.
Asking $75,000 as a place to begin. We have to start somewhere!
