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1956 Mercedes-Benz 300SL in original condition

Published February 24, 2015 by Paul

We all dream about finding that holy grail in the barn, but it usually takes a lot of luck, years of tracking a rumor or lobbying a sometimes reluctant owner to sell off a vehicle that has been in the family for ages. Sometimes, though, you stumble across one, like I did with this 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing in original condition. This one is on sale from a German dealer but the car is currently located in the US. It’s not every day you’d shell out $1.4 million for a fixer upper, but they’re only original once. Will this car make a trek back to the homeland or will someone here on these shores snap it up before it shoves off to the port?

Click for details: 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300SL on Mobile.de

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1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL v. “1956” HMDE 300SL Replica

Published September 25, 2014 by Carter

There are a lot of famous cars that I dream about owning but just aren’t realistic. I’d love a Lancia Stratos, for example. And a Porsche 917K. But since my bank account doesn’t currently contain quite enough commas in the balance statement to make that occur, they’re going to remain dreams. Of course, for reasonable amounts you can buy quite convincing replicas of these cars; Hawk makes a very good Stratos copy, and RCR makes one killer-looking 917K knockoff. While purists decry these fakes as degradation of the brand, when well executed I find these replicas really intriguing. They offer an opportunity for not only mere mortals to own them, but more importantly they offer people who would never get to see them driven a chance to experience the shape in the wild. Another such car that gets traded for the same amount as the GDP of some small African nations is the Mercedes-Benz 300SL “Gullwing”. Considered by many to be the first “supercar”, the 300SL’s performance and design was otherworldly in the 1950s and though it’s not the most expensive Mercedes-Benz model they remain firmly out of the grasp of any but the most well-heeled enthusiasts. Like many Ferrari models, Mercedes-Benz has carefully sought out and squashed any attempts at building replicas, and few that remain floating around look close to the original. But today I have both a stunning original example and a reasonably accurate replica that you could actually buy and drive. Is the replica worth spending money on, though?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL on Hemmings

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1956 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia

Published May 20, 2014 by Carter

It seems these days the blueprint to own a classic car in good condition is to go to a big-headline auction and pay ever-increasing amounts to get the best and most unique example of a particularly popular run of car possible. Look at the 911 and E30 M3, though they’re not alone; the frenzy over prices has created its own “Hemi” moment as prices double on a year over year basis. Where does that leave enthusiasts? With plenty of options, thank you very much. If you want a classic Porsche like the 356 or early 911s but just can’t stomach the incredible bills associated with those cars, why not consider the early Karmann Ghia? Seriously, to someone who was uninitiated, if you took the badges off of each and swapped them around, it would be easy to believe that the 356 was a Volkswagen product and the Karmann Ghia was the Porsche – its sleek lines look, if anything, more sporty than the 356. Classicly styled, long and low and with that trademark flat-four soundtrack that drove several generations, the Karmann Ghia is one of the few classic German cars that is still quite affordable but will make you feel like a million dollars wherever you pull up – especially when presented in the condition of today’s 1956 example: