Mercedes Benz 300SL Roadster for Sale

Highlights of this particular Motorcar:

Full matching numbers with original factory data card
Expertly restored in the 90's supervised by John Olson
Has since been maintained regardless of expense
Just having had a complete engine rebuild
Today presents in stunning condition with desirable options
Comes from a major collector - Lord Irvine Laidlaw

Exact Description of this Specific Motorcar

The data card supplied with this car confirms it was delivered new to the US in 1960 in US specification in blue/grey (166) and with a grey/white hard top (158) with a 1/3.89 rear axle ratio with the speedo to read in miles.

Engine no 198980 -10-002710
Gearbox 002883
Axle 002822
Steering box 002628
Left king pin 002765
Right king pin 002713

Originally supplied new to the USA, between 1990/1993 the car was subject to a total body off restoration regardless of cost by a well known US restorer under the supervision of John Olson. This renowned 300 SL expert was author of the "The SL Experience". John was perhaps best known as the publisher for 35 years (from 1982 through 2017) of the SL Market Letter, the go-to source of insight and information about collectible Mercedes-Benz from this era.

During this 3 year restoration every detail was completed correctly and upon completion of the project the car's recorded mileage was then 67,000 and the current mileage is now shows only 75398 - meaning in the past 32 years the car has covered a mere 8400 miles.

The car was repainted in a stunning silver blue metallic and interior finished in a stylish light tan hide which remains in fabulous condition, as is the cream soft top, resulting to many in the most elegant and subtle colour scheme possible.

This 300 SL Roadster has the original Becker Mexico radio with automatic electric aerial, chrome road wheels, 2 fitted suitcases, inertia reel seatbelts and European specification headlamps. The car has been serviced by HK Engineering and other marque experts recently and was acquired by the previous titled owner in 2005, from the 300 SL specialist Ivan Page-Ratcliff.

Expertly restored with fantastic patina and presented in a superb colour combination, our car fresh from a major collection, is ready to offer it's next custodian the enjoyment of owning and driving a reference example of this iconic model, in addition to access to prestigious events all over the world, that is conferred upon the owner of a correct 300 SL Roadster.

The car has European taxes paid and is registered in the UK.

General description of Make and/or Model of this Motorcar:

The arrival of the Mercedes Benz 300SL gullwing in 1954 heralded the launch of what in modern parlance would the first "supercar". Built to target an affluent US clientele post-war, the car featured lightweight construction, gullwing doors and direct fuel injection with 150 + mph potential, resulting in an instant sales success. After a few years, sales declined and as a response in 1957 at the Geneva Motor Show, the roadster model was launched. The roadster was introduced not just to target the lucrative California market, but also apply some lessons from the gullwing production to produce a more rounded and refined car.

The roadster incorporated a re-engineered version of the coupe’s tubular space frame, incorporating lower sill trusses to allow for conventional front-hinged doors and a revised rear structure that provided boot space. As with the preceeding coupe, the roadster utilised steel bodywork, with aluminum panels used for the bonnet, boot lid, door skins, sills, floors, and main bulkhead.

The introduction of a roadster with a commensurate weight penalty - in this case 125 kilos - was more or less negated by an updated and more powerful engine with the competition camshaft used in the NSL racing coupes, worth an extra 20 hp alone. A slightly smaller fuel tank provided room for custom fitted luggage. More importantly the swing axle's propensity for oversteer fitted in the original gullwing was addressed by the updated rear axle design. Effectively the axle incorporated a single-joint arrangement with a pivot point 87 mm below the differential centre-line. The lead engineer, the legendary Rudolf Uhlenhaut, initially wanted to introduce this low-pivot axle design on the coupe, but the Mercedes Benz board rejected the proposal due to the remaining inventory of approximately 3,000 axle units and the vehicle's already high production costs. In practical terms the more refined handling of the roadster makes for a more predictable dynamic driving experience and arguably a better car to drive over the coupe.

Obviously the 300 SL had an impressive competition track record but the roadster was not aimed at that arena. However, in 1957 when the car was ineligible for the production class as a standard model for the 1957 season, this meant it had to be entered in the class D sports-racing car class with other 3 litre pure competition cars such as the Maserati 300S, Ferrari Monza, and Aston Martin DB3S. The US O'Shea-Tilp team used a lightened 300 SL roadster with drilled front coil-spring mounts, no fan, a welded sheet-aluminum inlet manifold, and twin exhaust-pipe outlets. This modified 300 SL roadster (aka "SLS") won the 1957 Class D Sports championship with triple the points of its nearest competitor, Carroll Shelby's Maserati 300s - which for a still heavily road car-based production model, was testament to the fundamental engineering integrity of the 300 Sl roadster.

A total of 1458 roadsters were known to exist in 1994, after a total production of 1858 were made between 1957 and 1963, with 70% of production sold to the US. These sales figures show how groundbreaking the car must have been in period, especially when you consider a 300 SL roadster cost more than a Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder.

Today the 300 SL roadster offers the collector a versatile car which is eligible for numerous events, either driving or on the show field. Perhaps the roadster's real strength today is that the car performs superbly for it's time and even in modern day traffic provides a really engaging strong performing driving experience, without the "temperamental" behaviour associated with some of it's highly strung latin competitors from the same era...