1956 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing Coupe Review and Buyer's Guide

This car sold for $214,500, including buyer's premium, at RM's March Amelia Island sale. The car would have likely brought a higher bid (perhaps as much as $240,000) if its provenance had been accessible at the sale, and if its mechanical condition had been made known.

The Gullwing arose from early postwar Germany to become the iconic supercar of its time. Like current supercars, it was unattainable to most. That it was exotic, expensive and fast is not the whole story. The lightweight multi-tubular spaceframe, labor-intensive to build, was a first on a production car and provided exceptional rigidity without having much bulk. The signature Gullwing doors were the result of the spaceframe, which would have lost integrity if door openings had been cut into it. Rather than reach down to the rockers, the doors had to intrude into the roofline.

Combined with some of Daimler-Benz's production independent suspension pieces and large, finned aluminum drum brakes, the car was a capable high-performance GT car in production trim.

Over the years, 300SLs have proven to be more than an enduring fashion statement. They are also durable cars. It is not unusual to see 300SLs with original, unrebuilt engines. A properly tuned 300SL will need no tinkering from season to season, will always start, and will never overheat. The cars can be lugged around town in top gear and have a range of about 500 miles on one tank of unleaded.

In 1977 I bought this car from its first owner for $15,587. It was then completely original, showing normal wear and still wearing its original silver-green paint. My notes remind me that it was smoking a bit, but driveable. I sold it to Dr. Philip Lutfy of Arizona. It changed hands again before being restored by a Porsche-Audi dealer in New Jersey in 1989. Later it lived comfortably in the collection of a catalog publisher in New Hampshire.

In its appearance at RM's sale, the car seemed to have survived the decade since its restoration admirably. The paint, chrome, glass and interior were done well, and showed no significant wear. The repaint had been done in period-correct DB534 fire red, with tan leather. The standard wheels had been chromed. It didn't have the now-de rigeur fitted luggage or bellypans. The '70s-era performance tires of choice, Michelin XWX size 205/70X15, were fitted. There was some white-blue smoke from the exhaust.

Sadly, 300SLs, like other '50s sports cars, are often tucked away in collections and rarely used. Consequently, Gullwings that appear at auction are often judged solely on appearance. If the mechanical condition of this car turns out to be on par with the cosmetics, something that isn't always true, the new owner should be very pleased with his purchase. As a counterpoint, a Gullwing recently restored by a 300SL specialist and having all the options, including Rudge knock-off wheels, can bring more than $300,000 today.-Alex Dearborn