1958 Mercedes-Benz 300 d 'Adenauer' Saloon

Registration No: 641 XVT
Chassis No: 1890108501131
MOT: Exempt

• Finished in gleaming Schwartz paintwork with Bordeaux leather interior
• A matching numbers example accompanied by its original book-pack with service book and driver's manuals
• Supplied new to Australia in right-hand drive

PLEASE NOTE: The lot is now UK registered

Synonymous with (and nicknamed after) Konrad Adenauer - the first Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany - who ran no less than six during his tenure, the Mercedes-Benz Type 300 (or W186) was launched at the 1951 Frankfurt Motor Show. Derived from pre-WW2 practice, its cruciform-braced ovoid tubular chassis frame was nonetheless equipped with all-round independent suspension, hydraulic drum brakes, worm and sector steering and an innovative rear load-levelling control. All new, the model's 2996cc SOHC straight-six engine featured such niceties as a hardened crankshaft, alloy cylinder head, deep water jackets, thermostatically controlled oil cooling, twin Solex carburettors and copper-lead bearings. Designed to withstand the rigours of high-speed autobahn cruising, it was allied to a four-speed all-synchromesh manual transmission. Able to accommodate up to six people, the Type 300 was available in Saloon or Cabriolet guises. Elegant, powerful, exclusive and expensive, the big Mercedes-Benz was targeted at plutocrats and politicians (though, more than a few found favour in Hollywood too). The 300c was succeeded by a limousine-length 300d in 1957. It featured sweeping changes that included revised bodywork, fuel injection, and unique hardtop configuration transforming it into a pillarless phaeton.

The right-hand drive 300 d offered here, was originally exported new to Australia and is finished in gleaming Schwartz paintwork with Bordeaux leather interior and is powered by a fuel-injected, 3.0-litre straight-six engine making 180bhp coupled to a 3-speed automatic transmission. A matching chassis and body number example it's pleasingly accompanied by its original book pack with service book and driver's manuals, copy of its factory data card and a letter from the Mercedes-Benz Club confirming originality. Understood to have had a full lubrication service in 2020 and previously benefitting from some cosmetic attention to the bodywork, it is currently going through the process of being registered with the DVLA.

For more information, please contact:
James McWilliam
james.mcwilliam@handh.co.uk
07943 584760