Sort of a long shot but has anyone ever drive one of these?

[Redlyne_mr2]

Family member has been hunting for one of these for a while and they're tough to track down. Does anyone on here know anything about these? Are parts available? Who could service this? I wouldn't offer the buy it now price but I can see this guy having issues trying to sell a car like this in Americas economy.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Mercedes-Benz-SL-Class-300SL-1955-Mercedes-Benz-300SL-Gullwing-Silver-Red-s-Match_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ6338QQihZ011QQitemZ320275882431QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW

[soloracer]

There is one in Calgary. I've seen it at the European Car Show in Stanley Park a couple years in a row. It wasn't there this year though. I don't think it gets driven much so I can't imagine that he worries too much about replacement parts.

[Team_Mclaren]

rage2 saw one driving around and talked to the owner YEARS ago. ask him lol

[Redlyne_mr2]

Originally posted by soloracer
There is one in Calgary. I've seen it at the European Car Show in Stanley Park a couple years in a row. It wasn't there this year though. I don't think it gets driven much so I can't imagine that he worries too much about replacement parts.
Yah it's black isn't it? I've been trying to find out who the owner is to ask him some questions but he's off the grid.

[Team_Mclaren]

silver:

http://forums.beyond.ca/st/16853/mercedes-benz-sl300-gullwing/

[Redlyne_mr2]

I wonder if rage2 got his number? lol

[adam c]

750k?

buy a couple ferraris for that coin

[cocoabrova]

The silver one here was owned years ago by a guy named Heinz, he used to own Alberta Chrome and Grind. Last I heard the wife had taken it over since he passed away.....

[Redlyne_mr2]

Originally posted by cocoabrova
The silver one here was owned years ago by a guy named Heinz, he used to own Alberta Chrome and Grind. Last I heard the wife had taken it over since he passed away.....
Oh that's too bad, I can't imagine the wife knows much about the car. I would feel sort of stalker to contact her out of the blue and ask her to sell it.

[JAYMEZ]

I remember seeing this car a few years back , very nice!! Have you guys tried searching for forums with classic cars? Im sure this car would be popular amoung british classic car guys..?

[sneek]

My parent's financial adviser has one. It is silver as well, I think his name is Steven Ross.

[max_boost]

That's one balling family member you have!! :eek: :bigpimp:

[Redlyne_mr2]

Steven Ross? Any idea if he wants to sell?

Ever since dad turned 60 he has been spending money like crazy, i think he finally realises he cant take it with him. I just wish he could send some my way :rofl:

From what I've read on the car I think he would actually hate it if he drove it, it doesnt look comfortable or refined at all.

[MoDo27]

There's one sitting in the lobby of Mercedes Benz Canada (Toronto)..as well as a roadster (both silver).

Saw them when I was there a few weeks ago..

[milesmcewing]

Steven owns the one Heinz from Alberta chrome used to own.

Car is not for sale, you should see the rest of the collection. The Talbot-Lago will be arriving in the next week or so!
bb512, Dino, 365GTB, Alfa Guilia, etc.

For the record, Steven put 9000 miles on the gullwing two summers ago.

And yes they are still trading for that kind of money!

[Neil4Speed]

Now don't quote me on this but Mercedes makes spares for most of the cars they have made in the last 60 or so years. This is through their classics program, I know for sure the late 60's benz's you can still buy engines etc from the dealer if you so desired.

Good choice on the car though, absolutely stunning - the world real first supercar. I wouldn't imagine it to be mind boggling fast, but who cares! Tell your friend that he is making a very good choice!

[ColoDano]

A client of the shop I worked for back in Denver has a roadster, nice cars, not too quick, very heavy, ride and steering etc is defenitely 50's technology. Parts are a pain in the ass, you mainly find reproduction parts, and with a car in that condition and value, there shouldn't be a repro part on it. With the value where it is for these, expect a hubcap to run 5-10K dollars, if you scratch the chrome on the bumper, its gonna cost 4-5 k to fix it right. The vacuum pumps are a pain, and if they don't function right, the car won't run properly, and they cost 15k to rebuild.

That being said, the car is priced high unless it has won quite a few shows, and I am not talking best in class wins, but best in show. The car should be inspected by knowledgeable experts for correctness and detail, and that the restoration was done properly. Bob Smith of Bob Smith Coachworks in Texas is very knowledgable on these, although he generally does Ferraris.

Ok, looked through the pictures and they show the car pretty well from a show aspect, hopefully it looks as good underneath. Only obvious flaw I found is that the hood is a bit off on the pass side in front, it sits a bit high on that side, and is a tad off center, towards the drivers side. Finish looks good everywhere in their pics, chrome looks good, interior looks proper and well done.

Also, from what I remember, there is a "Gullwing Registry" they may be able to provide more info on the car, or be able to point the direction towards more of the same thing. This car and the dealer look high class though, so if the family friend is really into owning one of these, and with this example, probably just showing it and storing it, maybe a drive or 2 to local shows in the summer, probably worth looking into in person.

[boxer23]

what's funny is this car was selling for 30-50K 20 years ago:eek:

[Redlyne_mr2]

Originally posted by ColoDano
A client of the shop I worked for back in Denver has a roadster, nice cars, not too quick, very heavy, ride and steering etc is defenitely 50's technology. Parts are a pain in the ass, you mainly find reproduction parts, and with a car in that condition and value, there shouldn't be a repro part on it. With the value where it is for these, expect a hubcap to run 5-10K dollars, if you scratch the chrome on the bumper, its gonna cost 4-5 k to fix it right. The vacuum pumps are a pain, and if they don't function right, the car won't run properly, and they cost 15k to rebuild.

That being said, the car is priced high unless it has won quite a few shows, and I am not talking best in class wins, but best in show. The car should be inspected by knowledgeable experts for correctness and detail, and that the restoration was done properly. Bob Smith of Bob Smith Coachworks in Texas is very knowledgable on these, although he generally does Ferraris.

Ok, looked through the pictures and they show the car pretty well from a show aspect, hopefully it looks as good underneath. Only obvious flaw I found is that the hood is a bit off on the pass side in front, it sits a bit high on that side, and is a tad off center, towards the drivers side. Finish looks good everywhere in their pics, chrome looks good, interior looks proper and well done.

Also, from what I remember, there is a "Gullwing Registry" they may be able to provide more info on the car, or be able to point the direction towards more of the same thing. This car and the dealer look high class though, so if the family friend is really into owning one of these, and with this example, probably just showing it and storing it, maybe a drive or 2 to local shows in the summer, probably worth looking into in person.
Wow , thanks for your insight on this, this is the first time I've ever looked into a car this old before. Alot can happen in 50 years and for a car of this price you want to make sure every year in the car's history can be accounted for. What worries me about a car like this are things like engine seals, bushings etc, this is/was a high performance car in it's day so even if the miles are low I'm sure it was still run through the gears and corners a few times in it's life. Any accidents that the car may have been in would be almost impossible to retrace. I've joined a few classic forums now but there are so few owners out there that it's tough to find real world advice.

[rage2]

Originally posted by Redlyne_mr2
I wonder if rage2 got his number? lol
According to that thread, a private investigator thinks I'm the dude's girlfriend? :dunno:

Also according to that thread, you were supposed to buy the car for your dad!

[Masked Bandit]

The collection in that guy's "garage" is pretty amazing. Looks like Jay Leno style.

[nd54]

$750,000 is extremely overpriced, convertibles tend to go for more than coupes anyway even though the coupe has the iconic gullwing doors. I'd suggest calling a Mercedes Benz Classic Centre - there's one in Irvine, California that is excellent. Talk to them and perhaps see if they can source a car for you. These are getting harder to find every day.

Also, don't think that the economic situation has devalued highly sought after cars like this at all, these aren't lease returns.

[Redlyne_mr2]

Originally posted by rage2

According to that thread, a private investigator thinks I'm the dude's girlfriend? :dunno:

Also according to that thread, you were supposed to buy the car for your dad!
hahah yah.. just read my ridiculous italics response, I'm a long way away from being able to write a cheque for a car like that, I think he got tired of waiting lol.