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Complete Description
• One of the last 210 300 SL roadsters built
• Extremely rare version with disc brakes and aluminium engine block
• Original engine and colour, clear history
• 600,000 € spent on work at HK-Engineering
• Original upholstery preserved
• No reserve
Like many collectors, Staffan Wittmark set himself a certain number of goals in his quest to bring together his chosen cars. In the case of the Mercedes 300 SL roadster, he wanted to find two examples from opposite ends of the period during which it was built: from the very beginning, when no changes had been made to the car, and from the end, when it was perfectly developed after various improvements had been made.
The 300 SL roadster presented here is thus one of the last 210 cars built and is therefore fitted with disc brakes all-round and a lighter aluminium engine block. Naturally, it has all the other features specific to the roadster, such as its improved rear suspension with a single-joint rear axle and compensating spring, direct fuel injection and its sophisticated tubular chassis, which was altered from the coupé, with lower sills. The 300 SL was originally designed for motorsport, as its technical specification shows, even though Mercedes achieved a combination of sporting performance and comfort which has rarely been matched, since the roadster was finished to the standard of the most luxurious cars in the world.
The car in this auction was delivered new in England and first registered there on 24 May 1963. It was finished in Graphite Grey (DB 190) with red leather upholstery (1079) and a black hood (option 720). According to the Gullwing Group Roadster Register, it had only two owners in England, from 1963-1969. In 1976, it was bought from Friedhelm Merznich, who lived on Majorca, by one of his friends, Dr Alexander Bell, from Cologne in Germany. Bell kept the car for 41 years and used it sparingly: when he sold it, it had just 56,000 miles on the clock, a figure confirmed by a service book and a ‘Lichttest 1985’ windscreen sticker. It should be noted that the numbers of the chassis, engine, body, transmission and of the front and rear axles correspond to those recorded in the factory documents, a fact which emphasizes the unmarred history of this 300 SL.
Between 2021 and 2023, the car underwent a complete restoration in the workshops of the German specialist in the model, HK-Engineering, whose experience enabled them to carry out the work to a very high standard while respecting the car's original integrity. To take one example, the original red leather upholstery was removed, cleaned and refitted, in order not to lose the patina which gave it its charm. The bodywork was stripped down, restored and repainted in its handsome original grey, while the chassis was likewise fully restored. All the mechanical components also received a high level of attention: the engine, transmission, rear axle, injection and fuel system, cooling system and brakes were restored ... Photographs of the restoration testify to the scope of the work and the exceptional care taken over it, amounting to a total of more than 600,000 €; a book written by the well-known historian Jonathan Sierakowski looks at the complete history of the car and its restoration.
The result is one of the loveliest Mercedes 300 SL roadsters on the market, especially as it fitted with the rare hardtop specific to the model. As well as its tools and jack, it comes with a set of fitted luggage for the boot.
With its spotless history, original parts and exemplary restoration, this 300 SL roadster, which benefits from all the refinements made to the model, will surely appeal to enthusiasts who set store by cars of exceptional quality.
