Monthly Archives: September 2013

Mercedes 290 Cabriolet A

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1934 Mercedes-Benz 290 Cabriolet A by Sindelfingen

Offered by RM Auctions | London, U.K. | September 8-9, 2013

1934 Mercedes-Benz 290 Cabriolet A

What I like about this sale is that there are a bunch of Mercedes-Benzes of intermediate prestige. Yes, 500K and 540K Benzes are wonderful but you never see 380s or 290s at these big, fancy auctions.

Thus, why I’m featuring this car instead of the 540K Special Roadster from the same sale. The Mercedes-Benz 290 was known internally as the W18 and it was available in two different wheelbases. This is the shorter one. The engine is a 2.9-liter straight-six making 60 horsepower. The wheel wells on this car seem to ride really high, giving this an almost-SUV-like appearance. It might be good off-road. It looks like a car that some Nazis would use to chase down Indiana Jones.

Only 3,566 short-chassis cars were built (which is a fairly high number compared to other cars of the era). The Cabriolet A (seen here) was the sportiest of the various body styles offered, but it was almost the most expensive. My favorite feature here is the dual rear-mount spares (I’m a sucker for those). This is a rare car with an older restoration that has had some use. It should still bring between $390,000-$465,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of RM’s interesting London auction lineup.

Update: Sold $435,000.

S/N: 109942.

Maserati 250S

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1957 Maserati 250S by Fantuzzi

Offered by RM Auctions | London, U.K. | September 8-9, 2013

1957 Maserati 250S by Fantuzzi

In 1955, Maserati moved to replace its A6GS sports racing cars with a new car called the 200S, later the 200SI. In 1957, they upgraded the 200SI with a bigger engine and re-christened it the 250S. Only four were built. This is one of them.

The engine is a 2.5-liter twin cam straight-four making 253 horsepower. They were enlarged versions of the 2.0-liter from the 200SI and they were very quick cars – faster than the Ferrari V12s they competed against early on. But the program was cancelled when Maserati gave up racing after 1957. The sleek body is by Fantuzzi.

This is the only 250S that was actually born with a 2.5-liter engine (the other three all had 2.0-liter engines that were bored out to 2.5-liters). It went from the factory to the Jim Hall/Carroll Shelby distributorship in Dallas, Texas. Jim Hall raced it in some SCCA events in the South in 1958. Carroll Shelby drove it too.

This car is in almost entirely original condition – which is remarkable because it appears to be exquisite. It’s been used in some historic events and they engine had a massive overhaul in 2010, but the body has never been restored. It is race ready and should sell for between $3,900,000-$4,600,000. Click here for more info and here for more from RM in London.

Update: Sold $3,340,000.

S/N: 2432.

Beautiful 370 S Mercedes

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1932 Mercedes-Benz 15/75HP Mannheim 370 S Sport Roadster

Offered by RM Auctions | London, U.K. | September 8-9, 2013

1932 Mercedes-Benz 1575HP Mannheim 370 S Sport Roadster

I think this is a very attractive car. I actually like it a little more than I do those swoopy 500K roadsters. This, the Typ Mannheim 370 S was a version of the Mercedes-coded W10 that was introduced in 1929. It uses a modified version of an earlier Ferdinand Porsche-designed chassis and a 3.7-liter straight-six making 75 horsepower.

The 370 S was the fourth iteration of the W10, being produced from 1930 through 1933. It used the shortest wheelbase of all the cars in the series and was only available in roadster or sport cabriolet form. This one was born as a Sport Cabriolet but was converted to a roadster when restored between 2004 and 2006.

Only 195 370 S cars were built in total and apparently only seven of them carry roadster bodies like this. This style of elegant and sporty early Mercedes-Benz is quickly becoming my favorite MB style of all time. I want this triple black 370 S roadster. It should sell for between $1,115,000-$1,480,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $1,208,900.

S/N: 87123.

A Late Benz

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1921 Benz 8/20 HP Doctor’s Cabriolet by Forton & Bettens

Offered by RM Auctions | London, U.K. | September 8-9, 2013

1921 Benz 820 HP Doctor's Cabriolet by Forton & Bettens

The Mercedes and Benz merger happened in 1926. Prior to that, Benz had been building road cars for a remarkable 40 years. This was one of their later designs as it was introduced in the 1910s.

The company actually built two different 8/20 HP models. This was the second type and it used a larger 2.0-liter straight-four engine making 20 horsepower (it was basically 70cc larger than the earlier engine). The body is by an almost-unknown British coachbuilder called Forton & Bettens and this car is one of two existing that uses one of their bodies.

It is a convertible, even though the top looks very rigid. It all folds back and looks rather pleasant. I also like the aluminium side panels. This rare example of a late Benz should sell for between $265,000-$310,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $83,500.

S/N: 24782.

500K Cabriolet C

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1936 Mercedes-Benz 500K Cabriolet C by Sindelfingen

Offered by RM Auctions | London, U.K. | September 8-9, 2013

1936 Mercedes-Benz 500K Cabriolet C by Sindelfingen

RM Auctions is offering an incredible collection (all from the same owner) of Mercedes-Benzes. Like 70 or 80 cars – it’s an entire day of the auction. Anyway, there are a lot of old Benzes in the sale that I’ve never seen before. Many are more generic, pedestrian models than this 500K (but sometimes that’s even more interesting).

The 500K was the followup model to the 380K. It was introduced in 1934 and uses a 5.0-liter supercharged straight-eight engine making 100 horsepower and 160 with the supercharger engaged. The body is by Sindelfingen – Mercedes’ then in-house coachbuilder. Between the 500K and the 540K, only 122 Cabriolet C bodies were built.

This car has been beautifully restored and the interior shows signs of use. It would make a great driver – something that is rare among these high-dollar Mercedes cabriolets. The pre-sale estimate on this car is $1,100,000-$1,400,000. You can read more here and see more from this auction here.

Update: Not Sold. High Bid of $1,025,000.

S/N: 215011