Description
Offered for sale is an absolutely beautiful, extremely original, entirely honest 1960 Mercedes-Benz 190SL finished in rare, era-specific and factory correct Grey Blue (DB 166) over a factory correct red leather interior. Retaining its original matching numbers engine (with original Solex carburetors), its solid original undercarriage, its original factory spot-welded front fenders and stamped original hood and its original books, manuals, steering wheel, Becker radio, factory toolkit and tire changing tools, this is undoubtedly one of the finest original examples available on the market today, a true classic worthy of any collector’s warehouse or enthusiast’s garage.
The car’s correct and desirable Grey Blue finish is striking, a timeless and elegant livery that beautifully cloaks the 190SL’s flowing lines. Believed to be partially original, upon close inspection it appears that the paint received some cosmetic freshening what is likely more than two decades ago. Still in very original condition, the finish exhibits an expectedly light patina and is therefore not without its flaws, but it is consistently deep and lustrous, its minor blemishes telling the story of the car rather than detracting from its considerable appeal, something that is certainly substantiated by the pictures.
In addition to the factory spot-welded front fenders and original stamped hood, the body is entirely straight with excellent and consistent panel fits and gaps throughout. The car’s brightwork is also in beautiful original condition, exhibiting only minimal wear, which is also true of the original glass, rubber and color matched hubcaps and beauty rings, both adorning original wheels wrapped in Pirelli tires with plenty of remaining tread. A testament to the well cared for, 45 year, dry California existence that this beautiful example has been afforded, the car’s undercarriage and trunk are both original and entirely solid.
The car’s interior is also in beautiful condition, the red leather seats and carpets having been professionally reupholstered using the correct materials and patterns and exhibiting only nominal wear. The interior panels and dash are original to the car, maintaining a charmingly patinated condition consistent with the car’s well-maintained original history. The dash still houses all of its fully functional original gauges, original Becker Mexico radio, original speaker assembly, original clock and uncommonly unblemished original ivory steering wheel. The car’s tan canvas soft top shows only negligible wear, retaining a clear rear window, and the car comes with a rarely used hardtop that has accumulated a few storage scars over the year but is still entirely functional and presentable. Although the existing hardtop has perceptibly been with the car for decades, it is not original from the factory, however we do have an impeccable and correct large window hardtop available to the car’s next lucky owner.
The 190SL is also mechanically excellent, its original numbers matching engine firing up effortlessly, idling consistently and pulling strongly and smoothly through each of the original transmission’s gears. Compression is excellent across all cylinders and the car’s original Solex carburetors have been recently tuned to ensure even acceleration and ample power to pull this agile little roadster to grin-inducing speeds. The car drives and brakes straight and true and ride quality is excellent, stable and comfortable whether tooling through town, winding through the canyons or cruising down the highway. Having had our in-house German master mechanic sort through the car mechanically, it truly performs like the well-maintained 108k original mile example that it is believed to be. Lastly, the engine compartment is entirely correct and exceptionally clean and the car retains its spare tire, changing tools, rare original tool kit.
This is an excellent and uncommon opportunity to acquire a breathtakingly beautiful, incredibly honest and extremely original example of one of Mercedes’ most beautiful classic designs. Whether you’re a serious collector or a weekend enthusiast, the car has all the right things going for it: strong matching numbers mechanicals (including the original Solex carburetors), original factory spot-welded front fenders, original stamped hood, an exceptionally straight body, a dry California provenance with a resultantly solid undercarriage, beautiful cosmetics and a rare and desirable factory correct color combination. With 190SLs continuing to appreciate at dizzying rates, this is an investment-grade example that deserves the consideration of any serious buyer.
