Tom Cotter continues to sniff out some amazing barn finds, as evidenced by the latest discovery on his show The Barn Find Hunter. This time, it’s a long-stored 1954 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing, the 43rd car built which makes it one of the earliest models still in existence. It’s not for sale at the moment, but the story is still well worth reading. Find it here on Road and Track’s website.
The 300SL belongs to a friend of the founder and chairman of the Amelia Island Concours, who confirmed it was stripped for paint in the 1950s, covered in primer and has sat ever since. There are plenty of clues that the Gullwing will require complete restoration, from rotten and cracked rubber seals (everywhere) to the sagging suspension to all of the trim that has been removed but is stored in the cabin.
Speaking of the interior, it appears reasonably sound. That’s the overall vibe the 300SL emits, as it remains rust-free and shows no evidence of prior accident damage. Cotter was quick to point out that a vintage SCCA sticker still hangs in the windshield, which may indicate the car did some driving events back in the day. With the prices of Gullwings through the proverbial roof, there’s little doubt it’s only appreciated as it sat there in a storage unit for decades.
In addition to the obvious intrigue of a 300SL Gullwing hiding out in storage unit, this car also bears some unique clues as to its place on the production line. Early models had numerous details that didn’t travel to later models, like tacked-on fender flares, handmade emblems, and a grill that bears a different shape than later models. To have a legitimate fortune sitting in storage must be a nice feeling; driving it would be even better.
Must be like finding the Ark. And I don’t mean Noah’s.
nothing is matching in this story, not the (60) years of sitting in a barn, because nobody would do this just ONE year from new, neither the dream amounts stipulated make any sense at all!
I would risk a contract hit by “The Gullwing Purist Mob”…to restomod this puppy.Modern AMG underpinnings.Of course it would’nt make financial sense.Dude probably wants high six for the shell as-is.
The Sultan of Brunei beat you to it – his mechanical munchkins molested many Mercedes.
Sitting since the 1950’s and still won’t sell… (scratch my head)….
Well they don’t make shipping containers like that one anymore. Sitting in one spot in this container for close to 60 yrs. What a shame.
It’s a “storage unit”, not a shipping container. Most likely been moved around some in its 60 years of storage.
To say I’m flabbergasted that a gullwingf still exists like this is a bit of an understatement. A car can sit for a little to long and not in a preservation sense. At some space in time, as happens to all cars, interest and value in it wanes as the age group that held it in reverence dies off and new generations find their own touchstones. My father, a few decades dead, loved the gullwing. Me, sure it’s cool but not to degree that he held it. If it was me and I had the da-nar-oh, I’d be getting it restored like now. And if the price was to much for my means, I’d let someone else have the privilege. This old girl needs a new dress so she can see sunlight again before the sun sets on her.
I wonder if that is one of the luxury cars that was brought out of Cuba, back in the 90’s!
Another car of stratospheric value that will be snapped up by a collector/investor with exceptionally deep pockets. I suspect it will be restored and displayed, rather than driven, as Jeff suggests…
…AND to think that one of these used to be parked, curbside, on my street in L.A. back in 1959/60 (along with the street-parked, daily-driven Fiat 8V Supersonic that my brother’s buddy’s dad owned, then, and which I thought was way cooler than the 300SL).
I used to worship these cars. Then, one time, I had a chance to drive one. Very underwhelming.
These have been selling at major auctions in excellent condition for a median price of about $1,265,000 lately, so unless the early build differences of this car actually add significant value in the mind of collectors, I don’t think it’s worth the $900K that’s quoted, as it sits.
I can remember when these were for sale years ago in fair – good condition for around $8K – $10K, but I guess many of us can remember things like that, from a time when we didn’t have that kind of money to throw at old sports cars.
But I agree that it would take about $500K and 2 years to do a restoration correctly to release the car’s full value. Either Rudy & Co in Victoria, Canada or RM in Southern Ontario could do the job perfectly. Those guys will not cut corners for a cheaper resto, and their cars come out perfect, and in high demand among serious 300SL fans.
These cars look terrific, but don’t drive quite as good as they look. Contemporary road tests had the 0-60 time at around 8 seconds, and there’s no power steering, so steering is heavy. They had 215 HP, so they were impressive for their day but outclassed by many cars on the road today in performance. The lightweights with aluminum body panels did better but fewer than 30 of those were made and they go for $3 million.
Good for Tom Cotter for finding this one and bringing it to light. His books on barn finds are great reads.
In the early 70s before the big round of post-Opec inflation kicked in, I don’t recall seeing any $10K Gull Wings for sale, but in 1970 there was a 3 yr old 289 Cobra for sale for $10K (and going begging) at the 76 station in downtown Kirkland, Washington (a Seattle suburb). Anyhow, at the time a new Corvette was $5500, which according to the CPI is over $35K in today’s dollars, so at the time it wasn’t cheap by any measure. In those days entry level houses in the Kirkland area could still be bought for $10K; those same homes today now go for $650-700K (and they aren’t on the market for long either)
Your right Dolphin and Rick, in fact In the mid 1980’s while driving to Salisbury Maryland, I remember seeing a driver quality 54-57 300SL coupe parked outside a rundown lived in farmhouse along Route 13 on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, it was dark blue. I was so stunned to see it in this location, I have never forgotten it.
Looking at the paint left on the wheels, the original color was DB 608 Elfenbein/Ivory, only 8 cars in 1954 were produced with this color.
A barn find 1955 White 300 SL was shown at the 2012 Canadian International Autoshow. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5DgdGKxuIc).
In 2008 Peter Klutt restored a 1957 300SL as part of that season on Dream Car Garage, but it seemed more like 2 years.
Also, Jay Leno owns a nice one and best of all he drives it like it should be diven: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4uEk3AcY84
Reference:
http://300sl.org/datenbank/farben-colors/
http://300sl.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/farben_w198_coupe.pdf
When I was a in middle school, we would visit my uncles farm in Lancaster county PA. He had a brand-new silver MB 300SL Gull Wing with a red leather interior. I was familiar with the car because I followed motor sports as a young kid and my heroes were Formula 1 drivers, Juan Fangio, Jack Brabham, Stirling Moss and Alberto Ascari. I would sit in the driver’s seat, hold the wheel, shift gears and imagine myself racing with those great drivers. My dad liked to go there to hunt and when we got done shooting pheasant, he would always take me for a wild ride on the quiet winding PA country roads. The only traffic we encountered was an occasional horse and buggy driven by an Amish farmer. Great memories of a great car and I can still remember the smell of those new red leather seats.
Hardly a “Barn Find” – it was never “lost” and it’s location was basically always known.
I would send this directly to MB’s historical restoration dept in germany. Yeah they are gonna charge you a lot for that service. However it will be factory rebuilt. I think that would put it past 1.5 Million given it’s early production number. But hey it is just gonna sit there and rot a while longer I’ll bet.