1959 Mercedes-Benz 300SL 2 Door Roadster
The Mercedes-Benz 300 SL (chassis code W 198) is a two-seat sports car which was produced by Mercedes-Benz as a gullwinged coupe (1954–1957) and roadster (1957–1963). It was based on the company’s 1952 racer, the W194, with mechanical direct fuel injection which boosted power almost 50 percent in its three-liter overhead camshaft straight-six engine. Capable of reaching a top speed of up to 263 km/h (163 mph), it was a sports car racing champion and the fastest production car of its time.
Max Hoffman, Mercedes-Benz’s United States importer at the time, inspired the 300 SL and saw an American market for such a car. The company introduced the 300 SL in February 1954 at the International Motor Sports Show in New York City (instead of Europe) to get it into U.S. buyers’ hands sooner.
SL is the short form for “super-light” in German (super-leicht) – Mercedes’ first use of the designation, referring to the car’s racing-bred light tubular-frame construction. The 300 SL was voted the “sports car of the century” in 1999.
This 1959 Mercedes-Benz 300SL is one of 1,858 roadsters built during a six-year production run and is one of 211 examples manufactured in 1959. Chassis was dispatched on March 25, 1959, for delivery through Italian dealer Saporiti in Milan with options including Fire Engine Red paint, sealed-beam headlights. Under the hood of this car is an exquisite Mercedes engine. The 300 SL has a 3.0-liter M198 inline-six engine that came from the fixed-roof 300 SL to the Roadster version. The engine shares the canted orientation, Bosch mechanical direct fuel injection and more from the standard 300 SL. The car is rear-wheel drive and that inline-six power goes to the rear wheels through an all-synchromesh four-speed manual transmission, as well as a 3:89.1 differential.
Chrome-finished steel wheels wear matching trim rings and hubcaps with body-color centers and are wrapped in 215/70VR15 Michelin XWX tires. A matching tire is mounted on a spare secured beneath the trunk floor. Servo-assisted braking is handled by finned aluminum drums at each corner, with duplex actuation from single-piston cylinders up front.
The cabin is trimmed in dark gray leather over the bucket seats, door panels, dash, center tunnel, and aluminum tonneau panel in place of the cream upholstery listed on the car’s factory delivery note. Charcoal square-weave carpeting covers the floors, outer seatbacks, and rear shelf, while black and red Coco Mats line the footwells. Interior features include roll-up windows, a locking glovebox, a dash-mounted ashtray, and a Becker Mexico TR radio with a Reims adapter.
The ivory-color steering wheel is accented by a chrome horn ring and frames VDO instrumentation including a 160-mph speedometer, a 7k-rpm tachometer, and a rectangular combination gauge with English lettering.
The rare Mercedes-Benz convertible sports car is a ‘must-have’ for any classic car fan.
The Mercedes-Benz 300 SL is one of the most outstanding motor cars of all time- a car that would look equally fitting driven by the likes of Gregory Peck or Lauren Bacall. And if parked amongst a group of Ferraris and Rolls Royces, it would be the car that would attract a crowd. It was and is a car that epitomises design excellence, flawless engineering, and a style that puts it in the top echelons of cars with that elusive “coolness” factor; something it has a rather generous portion of.
