The Star®-May/June 2018

Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupe

Mercedes-Benz Club of America ®

Michelin® Pilot® Sport 4 s, Genuine PassionExceptional Drives.

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The Star® (ISSN 0744-155X) is published bimonthly by the Mercedes-Benz Club of America, Inc. Mike Regennitter

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ArtiFact

FROM THE DAIMLER ARCHIVES

AAutumn 1965: In front of a haunting colonnade seemingly lifted from a metaphysical dreamscape by painter Giorgio de Chirico (1888-1978), passengers climb into a new-to-market MercedesBenz 200D taxi at Stuttgart’s main train station. The 200D – easily distinguished by a distinctive integrated light cluster beneath each headlamp – had succeeded the popular 190D that past summer.

This utilitarian workhorse of the no-nonsense W110 series – beloved by legions of traveling salesmen, taxi drivers and aspirational young couples on a budget – anchored the bottom end of the Mercedes-Benz “Finback” range through 1968 (see Buyers Guide, page 66, and The Star, September-October 2017). Stuttgart’s majestic central train station was constructed between 1914 and 1928. Designed by architect Paul Bonatz (1877-1956) in his signature fusion of classical and modernist styles, the colossal structure of reinforced concrete and limestone is known for its grand entry hall and monumental façade flanked by massive wings. An asymmetrically placed 12-story clock tower – crowned by an illuminated and rotating Mercedes-Benz three-pointed star that can be seen for miles – acts as an enormous exclamation point to complete the subtle composition.

While the Mercedes-Benz Finback range continues to attract a growing contemporary audience of enthusiasts who appreciate its retro-modern charms, Bonatz’s beloved landmark has become embroiled in controversy stemming from the “Stuttgart 21” urban redevelopment plan. Designed to combine high-speed intercity rail links with a revamped local transportation infrastructure, the scheme calls for parts of the historic station, platforms and tracks to be torn down and replaced by a modern underground facility. Long-running public protests led by local citizens, as well as cultural and environmental groups, have succeeded in partially delaying the project since the plan gained final approval in 2007.

Stephan McKeown

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Route planning

Spring is here and I expect that summer is close behind. The weather we have been experiencing around the country – snow in April, for example – had me wondering if some of our beautiful Mercedes-Benzes would ever get out of the garage. But judging by the activity we are seeing at events around the country, everything is moving along very well … even the cars.

I had the opportunity to attend the Boca Raton Concours d’Elegance in February and the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance in March. As it turned out, the weather was made for both events. The vehicles on display covered all automotive bases: There was something for every taste and included nearly every marque. In conjunction with the Amelia Island Concours was Cars & Coffee, which covered two very large sections of the golf course. The Mercedes-Benz Club of America section displayed some seriously nice cars. Josie Lesler, MBCA Enthusiast Committee chair, oversaw the section with a great deal of … well, enthusiasm. Meanwhile, Peter Lesler attended to judging business at both Cars & Coffee and the Amelia Island Concours competition.

Still in March, it was time for Tequila Rose, a Southwest Regional event hosted by the San Diego Section. Tequila Rose started in 1962 as a three-day weekend event in the Southern California desert. While it has taken place in several locations through the years, its current venue is Borrego Springs Resort in the Anza-Borrego Desert. Numerous activities were planned: golf-course putting, a gymkhana and a rallye. The desert is a very special place in the spring; flowers you don’t see just anywhere are blooming, emitting a wonderful desert fragrance all their own.

Membership development is high on the list of priorities for MBCA on the national, regional and section levels. Our members’ needs and desires cover a broad range of resources, activities and events. The Star magazine is possibly the one benefit enjoyed by virtually all. Other benefits include social and driving events, both on the road and to a lesser degree, on the track. Car shows also play a large role in many areas. Technical events and resources attract a smaller, but very active part of our membership. Adding to this list would be very easy. To achieve our goals in MBCA membership development, there are at least three strategic activities that we must adopt.

◆ Address the desires and needs of long-term members in all areas mentioned above: This includes social and driving events, car shows and technical forums.

◆ New members who may have joined the MBCA for any number of reasons need to be converted to long-term members. In some cases, a member may have been attracted by The Star alone, never experiencing MBCA activities that would otherwise prompt membership renewal.

◆ At all MBCA levels, we need to work to attract potential members from all age groups interested in a broad base of activities. Effective marketing of events, activities and benefits will be an important part of this work.

This list is simply a summary of activities that must be considered as we develop a strategic plan to continually grow the MBCA membership.

StarFest® 2018, May 15-21, is approaching quickly. StarFest is MBCA’s premier national event that takes place every other year. There is more to do and see than one would imagine. This is simply a reminder to register while you can.

The year is filled with many other MBCA national events around the country. Legends of the Autobahn® is an all-German concours d’elegance held at the Nicklaus Club-Monterey during Monterey Classic Car Week. In September, Silver Stars & Golden Aspens beckons. This five-day driving event showcases the beauty and grandeur of the Rocky Mountains. All available spaces are filled, but a wait list is being kept.

These are just a sample of some of the things for MBCA members to do. Check out The Star, the MBCA website (mbca.org) and your local section newsletters for many other scheduled activities.

See you at StarFest!

The Star® is the official magazine of the Mercedes-Benz Club of America, Inc.

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Membership development is high on the list of priorities for MBCA on the national, regional and section levels.

The Moving Target of Technology

Mercedes-Benz is justly proud of its efforts to stay at the leading edge in new technologies. The configuration of the rear

axle and the suspension that supports the wheels and the connections to the drivetrain are a fascinating technological response to the challenge of getting an automobile to simultaneously absorb road bumps, go around corners, and supply power to the rear wheels. Two stories in this current issue illustrate milestones in Mercedes technology achieved in the early 1950s with the Pontons and in 2017 with the release of the new GT R.

Once again, we’ve caught up with our indomitable travelers Elisabeth and Fred Smits, temporarily halted in Santiago, Chile, as their 1957 220S Ponton “Abel” undergoes necessary maintenance. After completing 100,000 kilometers since embarking on their round-the-world tour, differential and rear suspension needed attention after traversing a pass in the Andes Mountains between Argentina and Chile at an elevation of 11,000 feet – six times in three months.

The rear differential and swing-axle independent suspension were significant

advancements over the solid axles typical of the day, but few people who restore them today anticipate that their example is going to be driving rough roads day after day in a trek around the world.

With the help of mechanics at the local Mercedes-Benz dealer in Santiago, the couple is finally getting to the source of rear-end problem that has plagued them for awhile. We’ll have their detailed technical report in the next issue about the rebuilding of a W180 rear end, state-of-the-art in its day.

More than 60 years later, the challenge of managing rear-wheel slide in a turn and under power continues to be a research objective. As I experienced a few weeks ago in the GT R, Mercedes-AMG engineers have installed a refined version of rear-wheel steering that takes automotive technology one step further in stability and handling. At Daimler AG, there’s no time to rest on your laurel wreath: “The best or nothing” continues to be a moving target.

Contributors

As far back as lighting engineer Burton Benjamin can remember, he has had a passion for automobiles, even taking up SCCA vintage auto racing when he was 55. And for 50 years, he built model cars and airplanes, as well as dioramas, for individual customers and museums as a second career. Today he contents himself with building detailed models like his 1937 500K here.

Maurice Liang is an automotive photographer, writer, editor and publisher. His images have appeared in The Star, Automotive News, AutoWeek, and Car and Driver, among others. Liang is editor and publisher of Viper Quarterly, an award-winning club magazine devoted to the Dodge Viper and its owners. He has authored two Viper books, and is soon to release a third.

Laura Simonds says she was “born to travel.” Luckily, MBCA has brought many new places for her to see and experience. She’s traveled to international Mercedes-Benz club events in Austria, Germany, England, Ireland, Canada and Australia, as well as driven Route 66. A cherished benefit of her MBCA membership is making new friends around the world and creating lifelong memories.

Gary Anderson

Next issue the Smits will walk us through the rebuilding of the swing axle and differential on their 1957 220S Ponton.

Report from

GENEVA

From a stunning 4-door coupe to an all-electric city car, Mercedes-Benz delivered an impressive range of exciting new models at the 2018 Geneva

International Motor Show

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While Detroit is technically the first major show on the automotive calendar each year, the Geneva International Motor Show has always had the privilege of premiering automotive highlights from around the world.

Held every year along the shore of Lake Geneva,thisinternationalautoshowbenefits from Switzerland’s neutral-country status. There are no Swiss car manufacturers, so everyone is an importer of sorts, and the Geneva show halls are quite small compared with those of other international shows; manufacturers’ stands are nothing near as grandiose as they are in Frankfurt.

Premium brands such as BMW, Porsche, Audi and Mercedes-Benz always battle to be the star of the show – the news leader –and this year, Mercedes had a good stab at it once again. The long-anticipated four-door

AMG GT from Mercedes-AMG was on every journalist’s mind as their planes descended on Cointrin Airport.

The two Mercedes-AMG GT four-doors on display – one blue, one white – proved all the naysayers wrong from the outset. The GTs looked gorgeous, and the never-ending barrage of journalists getting behind the wheels and into the back seats made it clear that the star at Geneva sported a star on the grille. A close contender was the MercedesBenz CLS, which was a European premiere here. This was the first opportunity to compare both four-door coupes in the metal.

The company also premiered the new 2019 Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedan and wagon. The C-Class sedan features a sleek, coupe-like roofline and very sculpted flanks reminiscent of the CLA, which give both the four- and five-door versions a monolithic appeal. The C43 4Matic Estate, a true jack of

all trades, was the highlight for journalists among the new C-Class models.

Mercedes-AMG also unveiled the E53 4Matic Coupe, introducing AMG’s 53 inline 6-cylinder engine nomenclature into the two-door E-Class Coupe and the E-Class Cabriolet, as well as the new CLS.

While we will see a small number of the new Mercedes-Maybach S650s in North America, also shown for the first time in Geneva, sadly we won’t get the X-Class pickup truck developed in cooperation with Nissan, which debuted with a V-6 diesel and 4Matic in Switzerland.

The presentation wrapped up with the unveiling of the Smart EQ all-electric fortwo and forfour urban-oriented models, which will anchor the global EQ electric vehicle lineup. The EQ fortwo is already available in theUnitedStates;theupdatedversionwillbe on sale soon.

LEFT & ABOVE: Along with the remarkable new Mercedes-AMG 4-Door Coupe, Mercedes-Benz revealed the powerful Mercedes-AMG G63, smart EQ fortwo and extensively revised C-Class range.

STARTALK

Last-minute StarFest news

By now you should have registered for StarFest® 2018 and prepared your MercedesBenz for the multiple events. If you haven’t, it may still be possible to get hotel rooms for the event. If you’ve just decided to come, the Hilton Perimeter is full, but there will be a shuttle service to the nearby Springhill Suites.

Plan on daytime high temps to be in the 80s, with nights in the 60s. May is one of our drier months, but brief showers can happen. We will have the entire Hilton Hotel with security in the parking area and an area where you can wash your car.

There will be StarFest evening receptions/ banquets from Thursday through Monday, with complimentary light snacks and drinks each afternoon from 4-6 p.m.

Shuttles will be available to the nearby upscale Summit shopping and dining center, plus charming Mt. Brook and Homewood villages with gourmet restaurants and specialty shops and the very large Galleria Mall.

Please remember that for your factory tour and other activities, you will need your name badge and the appropriate wristbands. You can visit the factory only on the day you are assigned. The tour times were assigned in inverse order of registrations, with earliest registrations on Friday and latest now going into Tuesday. Sandals, shorts, or short skirts are not allowed due to safety concerns. Photography is not allowed in the factory. Canes or walkers are not allowed but wheelchairs are if you bring your own. We will have morning and afternoon tech presentations on a variety of topics at the training center each day during factory tours.

If you would like to be a concours judge, Pierre Hedary and Keith Morgan will be teaching an MBCA Judging School on Thursday. The Safe Drivers/Safe Families & Autocross programonSundayisrequiredfortheMonday Performance Driving at Barber Motorsports Park. This program is appropriate for everyone, and it may even save your life.

We are looking forward to seeing you soon to help us celebrate 25 years of Mercedes-Benz production in Alabama. Check out StarFest2018.mbca.org for info.

Jim Roberts StarFest Chairman

More on technical forums

I’ve been an MBCA member for several years and was clueless that there was a technical forum on the club website. I looked it up and I have to agree with Alex Rosner – it was extremely disappointing to see that a national club of this stature has a technical forum that is so difficult to navigate.

Your Letters

We want to hear from you. Email editor@mbca.org, or write to Star Editor, 361 North San Antonio Road, Los Altos, CA 94022. All letters received are assumed to be for publication and may be edited.

Also, Richard Simond’s Tech Q&A in the March-April issue mentioned that the club maintains a subscription to STAR TekInfo; again, I was unaware that this service is available in the club.

I’m probably more interested than most club members in servicing my own Mercedes. I may not be as fast as a dealer tech to affect a diagnosis or repair, but I still gain a lot of satisfaction in making the repair myself. I would like to suggest that a direct link to the technical forum be listed on the same page as Tech Q&A, as well as a notation that our club maintains a subscription to STAR TekInfo for club tech advisers to use to answer questions.

In my opinion, members need to know about all the services and perks offered by MBCA, not just The Star and car raffles.

Henry Christoff British Columbia Section

AMG experiences

IenjoyedtheBuyersGuideonthefirstC-Class AMGs. I had a 1995 C36 four-door; the AMGtuned inline-6 was very smooth. It had “only” 268 horses in a relatively heavy car, but very precise acceleration; it felt like I was driving a 1969 Lotus Elan.

The C36 was followed by a 2001 CLK55 Cabriolet: open-air fun and a very slight difference with a V-8 and the added convertible weight. I even visited AMG in Affalterbach –unusual back then – and they could not have been nicer, including introducing me to the man who assembled my engine. Nice touch.

Gary Horick Greater Washington Section

More single-model articles

I very much enjoyed the article on the A124 cabriolets (The Star, March-April 2018). I have had, since buying a first 1993 CE in Atlanta, seven 124 cabriolets – all unique colors – and a Euro Sportline cabriolet. I currently own a one-owner 1993 CE in Ice Blue Metallic with Navy interior and top. A beautiful car.

I also own – and am writing to see if you plan to do an article on 124 coupes – a magnificent 1993 300CE Sportline Coupe in Bornite with almost all options, and a Pearl Black coupe from the last year of factory production; both of these are California cars. About two years ago, I finally sold my other 1993 300CE Grey Pearl Sportline Coupe to a buddy in Los Angeles.

If you decide to do a W124 coupe article, let me know. It is such a beautiful design.

Robbie Robbins Central Coast Section

I received the most recent Star – another great issue. Thanks for including my 300CE in the article on the A124s. I had an idea for a future article. I think members would enjoy a piece on the special and anniversary editions of the SL, such as the 40th- and 50th-anniversary SLs, Mille Miglia, La Costa, Mille Miglia 417, etc. I’m not sure there were any special editions of earlier series, such as the R107. I own a 40th-anniversary-edition SL. I think this article would be of interest to both collectors of classic and modern SLs. I would be willing to contribute to the article.

Jeff Hirst Pittsburgh Section

Bring back the diesels

1936 belt buckle?

I have been a Greater Washington Section member since 1994, thanks to the late Joe Wozney: I have kept his autocross program alive and well. Recently, a neighbor gave me a Mercedes-Benz belt buckle. It is dated 1936 on the front, engraved with the number 689 in back, and signed “Instyle Prov. R.I.” Would any members know about its background?

Benjamin Weber Greater Washington Section

So, Mercedes-Benz is bringing a new station wagon to the United States – the AMG E63 wagon. Big deal: Who needs it? Too much power and speed for a grocery hauler. The fuel mileage sucks, too. We just sold an E350 wagon. We loved that car; it was one of the best vehicles we have ever owned. I have written Mercedes-Benz USA many times asking them to bring a diesel wagon to the United States. Never happened. I sold our E350 wagon and got a Volkswagen Golf diesel. We also have a rare 1999 E300D and a 2006 diesel Dodge Ram truck from the Daimler Chrysler era. With the VW emissions scandal, German manufacturers have quit importing diesels. We also have another of the banned VW diesels and a diesel Audi A3 in our family, and we love them. If MercedesBenz will not offer the vehicles and engines we want, it will cease to be our car company.

Dr. Bob Blair Central Coast Section

Do any readers recognize this Mercedes-Benz belt buckle?

A passion for classic-cars is international. A few years ago, I shipped two cars all the way to Performance & Vintage Classicos in the Dominican Republic for restoration. Run by Pablo Tapio, the shop has a fine reputation for its Mercedes-Benz restorations. I got to know Tapio well, and we talked about the concours d’elegance he was hoping to establish there.

Recently, he invited me to be a judge at their second-annual concours, to be held at the fabulous five-star Casa de Campo Resort & Villas, about a one-hour drive from the Punta Cana International Airport. The resort has it all: a gorgeous setting, five championship golf courses, a skeet and trap shooting range, beaches, polo field and yacht harbor.

The concours field had been laid out next to the polo grounds where the best players in the world from Canada and Uruguay played a match while the ballots were being counted and free samples of Chivas Regal Scotch whisky and Dominican rum were poured.

Tapio’sentriesincludedanewlyrestored 280SL and four R107 SLs from his workshop; the quality of his team’s work was readily evident. Of the 125 mostly local cars on the field, we selected a 1989 Maroon 560SL as Best of Show.

With a ferry connecting Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, Tapio is talking

about inviting some of the antique cars from that island next year. I look forward to returning and conducting a judging school to help local members of the MercedesBenz Club of the Dominican Republic enhance this regional concours event.

Doug Dees Toronto Section

2019 Mercedes-AMG 4-Door Coupe

To be honest, when I hear the words four-door and coupe together, I cringe. I don’t think four-doors can be coupes, and I don’t think the new Mercedes-aMG Gt four-door is a coupe. It’s an incredibly sleek sedan. So, when I traveled to Geneva to have a look at the newest member of the Mercedes-aMG Gt family, I hadn’t set my hopes too high. But boy, was I in for a surprise.

Right from my very first glance, the design spoke clearly to me. Sleek, flowing lines, visually well-balanced proportions, an incredibly hot-looking rear end (not an easy feat for a hatchback), powerful bulges everywhere –this car leaves no doubt it is a true aMG, but it’s not macho or brutish. Sensual and convincing is how I would define my first impression.

Up front, the Panamericana-style grille with its vertical bars spells business, while the two power domes on the hood continue the theme. Big 21-inch wheels, bulging front fenders and sculpted flanks starting at the front door then flowing through the rear door and over the rear fenders, well … I think by now you will have noticed where this is going.

In side view the greenhouse with its three-window styling detail is low and sleek and the four doors with frameless windows add to the impression of lightness. In

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particular, styling boss Gorden Wagener got that rear-end design right: those ultra-thin rear lights that look so good on the back of the two-door Gts make an even bigger impact here; the rear looks almost delicate. Four round exhaust pipes are subtle cues announcing the 6-cylinder versions, while the V-8s come with chunky square outlets. Belowthebighatch,bothversionsfeatureanextending rear spoiler that keeps the lines unspoiled (excuse the pun) when not in motion. Both front and rear screens are very steeply raked, while the metal portion beneath the windows is just the right amount to make the car look muscular, but not so much to make it appear plump. the dash is reminiscent of the clS interior, with the centrally mounted gear lever being the most obvious difference. Inside, the key element is the back where the aMG still offers enough headroom for adults, although for those taller than 6 feet 1 inch, it could get a little tight. trunk space is 13.9 cubic feet, which can be increased up to an impressive 48.8 cubic feet if the foldable rear bench is chosen over the optional two-single-seat configuration. one of the media representatives sitting inside the display car with me managed to sum up my feelings about this car better than I could: “this is the Panamera Porsche wished it had.” there’s nothing to add to that.

Mercedes-AMG GT63 • Mercedes-AMG GT63 S

TYPE: Four-door, four-passenger coupe ENGINE: 3,982cc AMG 4.0-liter V-8 biturbo

HORSEPOWER: GT63 – 577 at 5,500-6,500 rpm • GT63 S – 630 at 5,500-6,500 rpm TORQUE: GT63 – 553 lb-ft at 2,350-5,000 rpm • GT63 S – 627 lb-ft at 2,500-4,500 rpm

DRIVE SYSTEM: GT63 – AMG Performance 4Matic+ permanent all-wheel drive; fully variable torque split GT63 S – AMG Performance 4Matic+ permanent all-wheel drive; variable torque split, drift mode

TRANSMISSION: AMG SpeedShift MCT 9G

ACCELERATION: Zero-60 mph GT63 – 3.3 sec (est.) • GT63 S – 3.1 sec (est.)

TOP SPEED: GT63 – 193 mph • GT63 S – 195 mph

Mercedes-AMG GT53

ENGINE: 2,999cc AMG-enhanced 3.0-liter Inline-6 turbo with EQ boost HORSEPOWER: 429 at 6,100 rpm • TORQUE: 384 lb-ft at 1,800-5,800 rpm

EQ BOOST MAX HP: 21 • EQ BOOST MAX TORQUE: 184 lb-ft

DRIVE SYSTEM: AMG Performance 4Matic+ all-wheel drive; fully variable torque distribution

TRANSMISSION: AMG SpeedShift TCT 9G

ACCELERATION: Zero-60 mph 4.4 sec (est.) • TOP SPEED: 177 mph

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©2018 Wes Duenkel

Motorsport Photography

Distinctively AMG

on the E63 station wagon platform, the dramatic Mercedes-AMG 4-Door Coupe is available with a range of engine, suspension and brake choices. The GT 53 uses a 48-volt electrical system for state-of-the art control, power management and entertainment systems. Configurable displays include a Supersport setup with visual cues to track performance.

Entirely developed and built in Affalterbach as opposed to being an adaptation of a Mercedes-Benz design from Sindelfingen, the technology in the GT four-door coupes is distinctive.

Anchoring the performance of this exciting four-passenger car, AMG engineers make clear, is the platform used in the E63 lineup, employing the floorpan of the E63 station wagon.

In terms of performance, the GT takes off where the CLS ends. The GT53 offers the 3.0-liter inline-6 cylinder with EQ boost (429 horsepower). The brutal 4.0-liter V-8-powered GT63 or GT63 S punch the air with 577 or 630 horsepower and 590 or 664 poundfeet of torque, making the GT63 S currently the most powerful AMG model available. Both V-8 engines feature two twin-scroll turbochargers. Power is transmitted via a 9-speed auto gearbox. That power is good enough for a 0-60 time of 3.3 or 3.1 seconds –unbelievable performance for a four-seater sedan.

The GT53 comes with a new 48-volt onboard power supply, running lights, cockpit infotainment display and control unit. The V-8 features AMG Cylinder Management, switching off four cylinders in partial-load driving while in Comfort mode. Active engine mounts as part of the Dynamic Plus Package adapt their rigidity to the respective driving conditions.

There are no fewer than six different drive modes (Ice, Comfort, Sport, Sport+, Race and Individual). Even more choice comes with the AMG Dynamic Select system, which can be tuned precisely to the driver’s skills (basic, advanced, pro and master). For drivers anticipating track use, an aero package with bigger front spoiler and fixed rear wing is available.

All four-door GTs come with AMG 4Matic Plus and active rear-wheel steering as standard, while the suspension setups are distinctly different. The GT53 relies on conventional steel springs and adjustable dampers, while the GT63 and GT63 S come with air suspension based on AMG Ride Control Plus. There is even a brake hierarchy – silver for the GT53, red for the GT63 and yellow for the GT63 S – with different degrees of braking. The GT63 S comes with 20-inch wheels as standard, the other two start off on 19-inch rims with 21-inch rims optional.

Inside, there are two 12.3-inch LED displays as standard. Like the other AMGs, the GT’s gear selector is mounted centrally on a wide console surrounded by eight buttons, which can be gesture activated. A new feature for the GT is the display setup called “Supersport,” with visual cues to track performance. A nice feature is the AMG Track Pace app, which can record and store up to 80 specific laps for evaluation and comparison.

A look at the engineering and technology of the new Mercedes-AMG 4-Door Coupe

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Based

First introduced by Mercedes-Benz in the 1950’s, our Coco Mats are Custom-Tailored using rugged, top-quality coco fiber. Every mat is secured to the floor using a heavy rubber nibbed bottom that quiets road noise while protecting your interior. Available for classics to new Mercedes models. Hand-Made in USA.

www.cocomats.com 1.800.461.3533

2019 Mercedes-AMG C43

TYPE: Four-door, four-passenger sedan

ENGINE: 2,996cc AMG-enhanced biturbo V-6

HORSEPOWER: 385 at 6,100 rpm

TORQUE: 384 lb-ft at 2,500-5,000 rpm

DRIVE SYSTEM: AMG Performance 4Matic all-wheel drive, rear-biased torque distribution (31/69)

TRANSMISSION: AMG SpeedShift TCT 9-speed transmission

PERFORMANCE: Zero-60 mph 4.6 sec (est.)

TOP SPEED: 130 mph (electronically limited)

Make no mistake: The MercedesAMG C43 sedan unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in March isn’t just a cosmetic variation of the C300 with a bigger engine. Except that the 3-liter biturbo V-6 borrowed from the E-Class wasn’t assembled at the AMG workshopinAffalterbach,everyperformance aspect of this vehicle has been redesigned or enhanced by AMG engineers. The result is a satisfying performer with more response than the base sedan, but without the tailkicking capabilities of the AMG C63.

SHARP

The 2019 Mercedes-AMG C43 Sedan offers more style, performance and efficiency

ARTICLE GARY ANDERSON IMAGES DAIMLER GLOBAL MEDIA

The power train designed by AMG consistsoftheproven 3-liter V-6 with larger turbochargers and engine-control-unit remap with a stable of 385 eager horses backed up by 384 pound-feet of torque.

Power reaches all four wheels through a 30/70 rear-biased 4Matic AWD 9-speed rapidresponse multiclutch AMG transmission tuned to offer what the product developers call a “more emotional” driving experience.

Of course, the AMG Dynamic Select drive programs – Comfort, Sport, Sport+ and Individual – are selectable with a separate button to switch to the Manual paddle-shift mode that includes F1-like shift warning lights on the gauge cluster.

The gauge cluster, standard in traditional two-dial arrangement, can be replaced with a fully digital 12.3-inch driver display that can be configured to provide information appropriate to specific driving circumstances.

Suspension improvements are as important as power enhancements. AMG Ride Control sports suspension offers both sporty driving dynamics for back roads and track enjoyment, as well as Mercedes-Benz typical comfort on long journeys. Components include four-link front suspension and independent multilink rear suspension, for high-camber cornering stability, with electronically adjusted damping performance at each wheel to compensate for changing driving style, road conditions and selected suspension settings.

Speed-sensitive steering, an AMG technology used on all models including the GT R and GT4, is standard on the C43, providing a precise, authentic feel with servo assistance that varies with speed and performance setting.

AMG body modifications, including front splitter, side panels and rear diffuser, are not merely cosmetic, but designed to improve aerodynamic performance.

AMG buyers will have a wide variety of interior options to suit individual tastes, including steering-wheel shape, performance seating, and the Track Pace app for the Comand infotainment system. The new C43 sedan, along with its coupe and cabriolet siblings, will be available at U.S. dealers by the end of 2018.

Live from New York

New Mercedes-AMG C63 models at the NY International Auto Show

On the eve of the 2018 New York International Auto Show, Dietmar Exler, president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA, hosted a Meet AMG preview event at the company-owned flagship Mercedes-Benz Manhattan dealership.

At the festive press-only event March 29, Mercedes-AMG CEO Tobias Moers unveiled the GT63 AMG 4-Door Coupe and the Cabriolet sibling to the C43 AMG sedan, both presented at Geneva earlier in the month.

But the evening’s headliners were the 2019 MercedesAMG C63 and C63 S in all three body styles: sedan, coupe and cabriolet. Sadly, there was no news of a wagon, which is otherwise promised for non-U.S. markets. These updates on the current versions included enhanced engine performance, restyled exteriors, updated interiors, improved suspension elements and a broader range of AMG performance options.

Power and torque from the hand-built AMG engine are impressive in the base model and truly awesome in the S version; both use the AMG 9-speed multi-clutch SpeedShift transmission for agile gearshift response. AMG drive modes of Slippery, Comfort, Sport, Sport+ and Individual – plus Race in the S model – which interact with the electronic-control unit, transmission and steering, as well as the new AMG Dynamics selectable handling characteristics, can be selected to suit the car’s behavior to the driver and the driving conditions.

Both levels of C63s come standard with an electronically controlled limited-slip differential appropriate to the rearwheel-drive performance drivers expect.

Beyond those standard capabilities, there is now a long list of options for the driver who wants to take the car to the track – or even just enjoy it to its fullest on entertaining back roads – with enhancements that could include a flat-screen reconfigurable driver’s gauge cluster to supplement the 12.3inch center screen, various steering-wheel configurations emulating F1 steering-wheel controls, and the AMG Track Pace app (standard on the S version), a display and logging system to help improve on-track skills.

Optional performance seats and standard seats are available in a wide range of leathers with contrasting stitching and trim.

Significant changes have been made to the exterior of the cars, starting with the new AMG-family radiator grille with vertical louvers and redesigned front-bumper ducts, to the sporty side skirts and aerodynamic AMG wheels, and finishing with expressive tailpipes, enhanced diffuser and body-colored rear spoiler. These top-line sports compacts will be available at U.S. dealers in early 2019.

2019 Mercedes-AMG C63 & C63 S Sedan, Coupe & Cabriolet

TYPE: Four-door, four-passenger sedan; two-door, four-passenger coupe and cabriolet

ENGINE: 3,982cc 4.0L twin-turbocharged V-8

HORSEPOWER: 469 at 5,500-6,250 rpm; 503 at 5,500-6,250 rpm (S) TORQUE: 479 lb-ft at 1,750-4,500 rpm; 516 lb-ft at 2,500-5,000 rpm (S)

DRIVE SYSTEM: Rear-wheel drive TRANSMISSION: AMG SpeedShift MCT 9-speed transmission

PERFORMANCE: Zero-60 mph 4.0 sec • 3.9 sec (S)

TOP SPEED: 155 mph (electronically limited); 180 mph (S) (electronically limited)

If there’s one thing that ties Airstream and Mercedes-Benz together, it’s a relentless pursuit of the absolute best. And after leading the industry with the Interstate, the #1-selling Class B Diesel Touring Coach for six years, we went even further. The new Atlas boasts more than 50 best-in-class features, including bespoke materials, luxurious finishes, air suspension, and a diesel generator. Step inside at airstreamatlas.com

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It’s a pursuit.

IMAGES Mike LeMpert • denis L. tanney

Amelia Island Awards

to avoid rain, this year’s amelia island Concours d’elegance took place on saturday March 10; Mercedes-Benz automobiles received multiple awards, including two time-honored marque-specific accolades

The Mercedes-Benz Club of America Award

THE MOST HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT MERCEDES-BENZ

• 1931 Mercedes-Benz SSK Sport/2 • Bob, Sandy and Gary Bahre - Paris, Maine presented by Pete Lesler, national concours chairman of MBCA

The Mercedes-Benz Star of Excellence Award

THE MOST ELEGANT MERCEDES-BENZ

• 1957 Mercedes-Benz 300Sc Coupe • Vin and Erica Di Bona - Los Angeles, California presented by Michael Kunz, Mercedes-Benz Classic Center

1957 Mercedes-Benz 300Sc Coupe

1931 Mercedes-Benz SSK Sport/2

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OWNERSHIP is OPTIONAL

ARTICLE GARY ANDERSON IMAGE DAIMLER GLOBAL MEDIA

As Bob Dylan wrote in one of his first songs, “The times, they are a’changin’.” In the automotive industry, one prime example is that the concept of automotive ownership is in a state of flux.

In an Autoweek interview at the Geneva Auto Show, Britta Seeger, named one year ago as the member of Daimler AG management responsible for Mercedes-Benz Cars Marketing & Sales, talked about the company’s “Mercedes me Flexperience” that is being rolled out in Europe to compete with similar services already offered by Porsche, Cadillac and Volvo. The new program, as reported: Rather than taking out a loan to buy a car – or leasing a specific vehicle for a defined amount of time –thecustomerwouldsubscribeforaperiodofa year or more to the service, paying a monthly fee. Through the dealer network, the company would provide access to any of several models in a specific price range, with individual model “rentals” being for a period as short as one month, and capped at 12 different models per year per subscription. The company would cover all services including insurance, maintenance, repairs and wear-and-tear.

All requests for vehicles and scheduling of delivery and collections, as well as other administration, would be handled online. Subscribers could select power train, exterior colors, interior trim and features ahead of time.

Seeger noted that “We are not at all bypassing our dealers.” The local dealer would provide vehicle access and service. Advantageswouldincludebeingableto select different kinds of vehicles for different uses – a GL for a long vacation trip, a sporty two-seater for weekend enjoyment or a luxury sedan for a family occasion. Snowbirds could even have a vehicle in the south in the winter and in the north in the summer.

Prices have not been announced, though the comparable service for Porsche’s Passport subscription program offers lower-tier vehicles for $2,000 per month and $3,000 per month for more exclusive vehicles. Seeger has indicated that the program will come to the United States in trials this year.

In other news: Have we seen the beginning of the end of the big international auto shows? Daimler AG has recently announced that it would not be participating in the North American International Auto Show in Detroit next year. On the other hand, participation in nonautomotive events such as the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and South by Southwest in Austin are still on the calendar. In addition, livestreaming remote introductions on social media is a new thing … we’ll all just have to stay tuned.

Mercedes me Flexperience plan offers a contemporary alternative to traditional automotive buying and leasing programs

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Race Report from

ThethreeMercedes-aMGGt3teamshad highhopesfortheMobil1twelveHours of sebring – held March 14-17 – the second race of the 2018 season in the iMsa Weathertech sportsCar Championship and the second round of the Patrón north american endurance Cup. sebring, of course, is the notoriously bumpy 3.74-mile circuit –known for its long straights, concrete surface and tight corners – that was a B-17 training airfield during World War ii. it remains an active airport today.

When the race was all over, the no. 33 team Riley Motorsports car with drivers Ben Keating, Jeroen Bleekemolen and luca stolz had finished third in the Gt daytona (Gtd) class. they completed 321 laps in 12:01:21.019 hours – only 11.053 seconds behind the class leader, the lamborghini Huracán of Paul Miller Racing – with a best lap average speed of 111.267 mph. Keating was pleased. “the car is very strong and fun to drive,” he said, touting the grip of the new Continental tires and the car’s overall balance. With the team now in a leading position in point standings, Keating feels strongly that the squad has a strong chance of winning the championship this year.

Car no. 75, the sunenergy1 Racing Mercedes-aMG Gt3 car driven by car owner Kenny Habul with thomas Jaeger and Mikael Grenier, finished 10th in Gtd class, an

impressive result despite a brake-pad change that took more time than expected, as well as a pit-stop penalty. Unlike no. 33, Grenier said their car lacked balance as well as having brake issues. they finished just a little more than a minute behind the leader, recording a best-lap average speed of 110.773 mph.

the P1 Motorsports Mercedes-aMG Gt3 car no. 71, driven by team owner Juan “JC” Perez with Kenton Koch and loris spinelli, finished in 14th place in class, quite good for its inaugural run at sebring. Running near the top 10 throughout the day, the car recorded an average speed of 110.480 mph on its best

lap. “there were no mistakes during any pit stops and everyone did a great job – you can’t ask much more from them,” Koch said. “the car was reliable from start to finish. We were just learning the car and as the sun set, the car had much better handling.”

in the preliminary two-hour iMsa Continental tire sportscar Challenge race on March 16, four of the nine Mercedes-aMG Motorsport customer racing teams finished in the top 10 in the Grand sport Gt4 class. top finishers in fourth place were co-drivers ari Balogh and Greg liefooghe in the no. 19 stephen Cameron Racing car.

ARTICLE denis l. tanney IMAGES denis l. tanney • daiMleR GlOBal Media

Mercedes-AMG GT3 & GT4 teams score well at historic airfield circuit

TOP: Mercedes-AMG Team Riley Motorsports No. 33 Mercedes-AMG GT3 earned third in the GT Daytona (GTD) class in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on Saturday, March 17. ABOVE: On Friday, the No. 19 Stephen Cameron Racing MercedesAMG GT4 took fourth place in the Grand Sport (GS) class in the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge two-hour race.

You’llhavetogoallthewaybackto2013–beforethephenomenal domination of the mercedes-amg Formula 1 team had swept aside all of its competition – to find the last occasion a silver arrow didn’t win either of the two opening races of the FIa Formula 1 World championship. and you’d have to look back another nine years to the last time a Ferrari driver won the first two races of the season. In that instance, it was the great michael schumacher who, in 2004, went on to collect the seventh – and last – of his drivers’ championship titles. this year, it was scuderia Ferrari team driver and schumacher super-fan sebastian Vettel, mercedes’s chief rival, who won in melbourne and Bahrain.

after the ritual uncorking of non-alcoholic beverage on the podium in sakhir, the german cast aside suggestions that fate might be favoring him; from a mercedes-amg perspective, so should we. after all, both fortune and misfortune contributed to his success. on each occasion, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas could have earned these victories but for a better-executed strategic approach. What is clear – and what was always the case if you read between the bold headlines in the buildup to the season – is that this will be a more fiercely fought campaign than any since Hamilton and mercedes-Benz became a world championship-winning force in 2014.

the 2018 F1 season has been billed in some quarters as the “Fight for five,” a reference to Hamilton and Vettel both striving to reach mercedes-Benz postwar legend Juan manuel Fangio’s tally – and perhaps settle a private, psychological query: Which of the two is truly the best driver of this generation? It’s not an easy debate to settle, particularly when you consider that Fernando alonso, max Verstappen and, potentially, daniel ricciardo all have a stake in this debate. But history counts statistics rather than the obfuscation of merited opinion, and the fact is that only one of F1’s two current four-time champions can make it five come abu dhabi’s F1 finale in november.

Siren’s song

In preseason testing at Barcelona, the mercedes W09 eQ powerplus – a refined evolution of Hamilton’s 2017 championship conquistador, bedecked in electric-blue, wavestriped silver livery – sang a siren’s song. While the W09 didn’t lay down the ultimate pace –that honor went to Ferrari – the mercedes-amg seemed a step ahead of Ferrari’s sF71H and aston martin red Bull’s renault-powered rB14 on the long runs and race simulations. add to that its bullet-proof reliability and poise through the circuit de Barcelona-catalunya’s high- and medium-speed corners, and evidence suggests it may be a less demanding mistress than its predecessor.

was the quickest one out there, but it would be blown away by the new one.”

designers paid particular attention to the packaging around the rear – which allison reckoned is worth a quarter of a second per lap –as well as raised front-suspension wishbones, intricate aero detailing and an all-new m09 eQ power unit. the pU itself was developed in part because of a 2018 regulation change that requires each car to complete an F1 season on three engines and two energy recovery stores (ers), representing a 40 percent increase in miles required.

“the biggest challenge we’ve got is lifting our durability limit,” said engine chief andy cowell at the car’s launch. “the amount of change on the power unit is quite considerable, and we’ve focused on trying to increase the life of the hardware without losing performance.”

But testing is testing; while Ferrari set the benchmark time, red Bull – having progressed through the latter stages of 2017 – also looked to have built on the excellent chassis qualities that counter the current power deficit of the renault. the siren’s song would be demystified in melbourne.

Race time

through Friday’s practice for the australian grand prix, Hamilton duly demonstrated his car’s performance with fastest times and handled his media duties with an air of disarming swagger. But while he was half a second faster than teammate Bottas in the morning,

DAMAGE CONTROL

examine the details, and it is clear that the W09 is a significant step forward. as technical director James allison pointed out: “across the entire car, across every part of its surface, we have made it new. We found different ways of doing it and have found improved ways of getting downforce and performance into the car.

“each improvement is small in isolation, but they add up in their totality to something that is enormous,” he added. “Last year’s car

Verstappen’s red Bull was less than 0.2s off his pace going into saturday; in race trim, this suggested the game was afoot. there was an air of anticipation: could a six-way fight for pole be on? not really. once mercedes engaged “party-mode” on the engine for qualifying, red Bull was 0.5 seconds off the mark. that made it a straight fight between the silver arrows and Ferrari. Indeed, Vettel made a fight of it as Hamilton made a small error in his Q2 run; the german broke the lap record to go fastest with a 1:21.944 lap.

the fight for pole reduced to three in Q3 when Bottas touched the wet grass on the exit of turn 1 – lost traction but kept his foot in – and slammed into the wall on the exit of t2. the 27g impact was enough to trigger red flags. as the Finn clambered awkwardly through his new grade 5 titanium halo device (capable of withstanding the weight of a

Upset in Australia: Lewis Hamilton (here trailed by Ferrari’s Kimi Räikkönen) took an early lead at Melbourne and appeared to be cruising to an assured victory – only to have Ferrari use a Virtual Safety Car period and a perfectly timed pit stop to deftly leapfrog Sebastian Vettel past the Englishman and snatch an unexpected win from a frustrated Mercedes-AMG Petronas team.

Unforced team errors contribute to Mercedes-AMG’s loss of the first two rounds in a tightly competitive 2018 Formula 1 season

INSIDE LINE

double-deckerLondonbus,butsoaestheticallydespisedbyMercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff that he would like to take “a chainsaw to it”), Bottas looked embarrassed, like a child falling behind in class.

Bottas’s dilemma is tough. He’s seriously fast and able to access speed few can match. Problem is that his teammate is an F1 great and appears to be able to easily counter his pace. Moreover, Mercedes junior Esteban Ocon and an out-of-contract Ricciardo hover in the wings as Wolff prepares the team for a post-Hamilton future –whenever that might be. The Finn showed in 2017 that he is sensitive to performance pressure, which confounds his natural self-belief; this year, the spotlight is on him like never before. This accident could not have been more poorly timed and, as former Mercedes driver and F1 championNicoRosbergobserved,“Thatisreallytheworstwaytostart the season because it is such a setback for your personal confidence.”

Bottas would start 15th after taking a gearbox-change penalty for the damage, finishing eighth in the race.

Ghost in the machine

Hamilton, on the other hand, obliterated them all once qualifying resumed. Having struggled to keep the temperatures of his new Pirelli ultra-soft rears under control, a delay by Ricciardo before his final quick lap inadvertently cooled Hamilton’s tires and allowed them to come to life when he most needed them. The result was a devastating lap: 1:21.164, 0.7 seconds faster than second-placed Kimi Räikkönen. He might not achieve such an emphatic pole again this year.

Hamilton comfortably led from the start, apparently with pace to spare, and held station 4 seconds ahead of the Finn before the Ferrari stopped for new tires on Lap 18. The Briton was immediately called in to cover-off the undercut and emerged with a set of soft tires ready to takeadvantageofVettel’s(nowleading)imminentpitstop.Butitdidn’t come. The Australian GP often induces Safety Car deployment; when Romain Grosjean’s Haas stopped with a cross-threaded wheel nut, the race was neutralized by Virtual Safety Car conditions. Incalculably, this meant that when the German pitted while the cars were circulating at reduced speed, he did so with enough time to spare that he emerged still in front of Hamilton.

Confused, Hamilton got on the radio demanding to know how this had happened, but the truth only emerged in the post-race investigation that followed. A bug in the team’s offline software predicting the delta times between cars pitting and staying out during safety car periods had caused a miscalculation.

“The number we were calculating was around 15 seconds and in reality the number was slightly short of 13 seconds,” said Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin. “We thought we had a bit of margin and then we came out in second place.... In future we will make sure that we have got more margin.”

Numbers game

HamiltonspenttherestoftheracechasingVettel,closingtowithin a second of the Ferrari before giving up to protect his engine; with a couple of laps to go, he encountered the lack of frontal downforce that F1 sporting boss Ross Brawn refers to as “the force field” behind a car, an issue the sport is trying to eradicate. But with pace to spare, this was a race Hamilton should have won; had he pushed for more of a margin when he was leading, he would have.

After Melbourne, there was criticism about the lack of overtaking and the placid nature in which Hamilton apparently capitulated. However, such observations failed to take in the bigger picture: Ferrari had stolen a win from Mercedes, and the top-four places, completed by Räikkönen and Ricciardo, were covered by just 7 seconds at the finish. Moreover, it was a Red Bull that recorded the fastest lap.

Lewis Hamilton passes Kevin Magnussen’s Haas in Bahrain. Hamilton started in ninth place, and made multiple passes to move into fourth by lap eight; he ended the race in third place.

... under different circumstances, but again through a combination of poor communication and a failure to quickly read changing conditions, Mercedes found itself starting behind Ferrari in Bahrain.

INSIDE LINE

Two weeks later in Bahrain, under different circumstances, but again through a combination of poor communication and a failure to quickly read changing conditions, Mercedes found itself starting behind Ferrari. A key difference though was that it did not enjoy a pace advantage through most of the weekend. Indeed, Ferrari and Red Bull had the upper hand for much of it.

The W09 was over-heating the rears on supersoft Pirellis, something that happened in 2017 on abrasive surfaces, but was now more telling because of the tight competitive spread. All this led to an all-Ferrari front row on the Sakhir circuit, with a rebounding Bottas third, only 0.023 seconds shy of Räikkönen’s second spot.

Hamilton, meanwhile, would start ninth, forced to take a fiveplace gearbox penalty, an issue Wolff admitted caused him “physical pain,” such was his frustration. Strategically, Hamilton would opt to qualify on the soft tire to give himself the possibility of running a long one-stop strategy to everyone else’s two. That was the plan, anyway.

Vettel took the lead at the start, with Bottas using the cleaner side of the track to out-drag Räikkönen for second. Hamilton made a lightning start but got hung out wide at the first corner and dropped behind Alonso for 10th place. He was then cut off by Verstappen at Turn 1 the next time around. Hamilton was lucky to escape damage in the collision, which ultimately eliminated the Dutchman; Verstappen’s teammate Ricciardo retired simultaneously with an engine failure.

As the leading trio sped away, Hamilton made his way up through the field in virtuoso style, including a brilliant three-car pass on Alonso (yes!), Ocon and Nico Hülkenberg. That may go down as the moment of the season. By Lap 8, he was up to fourth and closing on Räikkönen.

Lost in translation

Up front, Bottas kept Vettel honest, but by the time the German pitted for his first stop – triggered by the emergence of Bottas’s crew in the pitlane – Vettel had already cleared the undercut and the Finn followed him in a lap later to cover, as did Räikkönen.

This put Hamilton in the lead, but on the older softs he wasn’t able to stay there for long; he pitted for medium tires on Lap 26, convinced he would be able to catch Vettel when the German stopped for a second time. Then the race turned on its head when Räikkönen pitted for a second time on Lap 35. Something went drastically wrong in the Ferrari pit: Released prematurely, the Ice Man ran over his rear-tire man, breaking the crew member’s shinbone and fibula.

The No. 7 Ferrari, still with a solitary soft left-rear tire matched to three supersofts, was abandoned in the pitlane: With one of its men prone and injured in the box, Vettel had little choice but to manage his softs to the end of the race – which he did with aplomb. That he won the race on 38-lap-old tires was extraordinary; that Bottas was unable to catch him on fresher, more durable rubber – equally so.

Bottas got close enough to have a look up the inside of Turn 1 on thelastlap,butitwasnotenoughtoworryVettel.Hamiltonmeanwhile frequently asked race engineer Peter Bonnington what lap times he should be driving, clearly confused as to whether he should push or hang back. Afterward, the frustration was clear and Mercedes later admitted it should have reacted sooner to Ferrari’s change in strategy.

“We were probably a little bit too slow to recognize the threat that Vettel was going to take the soft tires all the way to the flag,” Allison said. “Had we been slightly quicker to react to it, we would probably have kept more pressure on him on the laps 35-45, and we might have had a better outcome as a result.”

And yet, it could have been worse. A two-three finish, as Wolff acknowledged, was more than could be guaranteed given the pace of the opposition; Red Bull’s double retirement was an added bonus. In the contests to come, there may well be less margin for error.

Sebastian Vettel (left) of Ferrari is congratulated on a masterful drive to first place in the Bahrain Grand Prix by Mercedes-AMG’s Valtteri Bottas, who was forced to settle for second.

What is clear is that this will be a more fiercely fought campaign than any since Hamilton and Mercedes-Benz became a world championshipwinning force in 2014.

The Beauty is a

Hot laps in the mighty Mercedes-AMG GT R

The paddock was still and quiet. The mist was just lifting from the track as the loading gate on the unmarked transporter opened. The driver unfastened the hold-downs and climbed through the side door of the trailer. Then suddenly the bright-green beast lurking in the shadows opened its bloodshot eyes and with a bark split the morning calm before its roar subsided into a menacing growl.

This was the moment I had been waiting for since learning from Mercedes-Benz USA staff two weeks earlier that they would be bringing the MercedesAMG GT R to the Western Automotive Journalists Media Days in March at newly renamed WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Not only would we be able to photograph the car for The Star magazine, I would have the opportunity to drive it at speed on the storied track.

Beast from the Green Hell

This wasn’t just any GT R: If you’ve seen a version painted in Green Hell – Sir Jackie Stewart’s famous term for the Nürburgring – Magno matte finish at Amelia Island or another major U.S. automotive event in the past year, this was the car you saw. As I slid into the driver’s seat to move the car to our early-morning photo shoot, I realized that I was sitting in the same model in which Lewis Hamilton had driven demo laps just days before at Circuit of The Americas during the recent South by Southwest event in Austin, Texas.

Except for that specific paint finish, the car before me was built in the same plant – to exactly the same specifications – as the GT Rs now used as safety cars in Formula 1. The only physical differences between this review car and those vehicles are they include a roll cage installed in the stock interior and an additional set of display screens mounted in front of the co-driver, one monitoring the race feed transmitted to commercial cable channels, the other selectable for track data and car positions. A communication system is installed behind the seats, and safety lights are mounted in an aerodynamic roof pod.

Other automotive companies have an aspirational sports car at the top of their performance lineup, but no other manufacturer offers their machine in six progressively hotter versions as Mercedes-AMG does with its GT, all of which share the same basic exterior appearance. A customer can order a GT, GT S, GT C, or GT R coupe – all of which are totally practical for the street – or the track-only GT3 and GT4. There are even roadster versions of the GT, GT C and GT S.

My coach for the day – International Motor Sports Association driver and AMG Driving Academy instructor René Villeneuve – explained the model range this way: “Each of the GTs was a logical step up in power, suspension and aerodynamics towards the ultimate goal of a car that could be used on the track as effectively as it could be driven on the street. The GT R is the model that bridges that gap, competitive on the track and still pleasant to enjoy on the street.”

PRIDE

ARTicle

GARY ANDERSON iMAGes RICHARD SIMONDS MAURICE LIANG DAIMLER GLOBAL MEDIA sPeciAl THANKs ASHLEY GILLAM RENE VILLENEUVE

LEFT: Mean green machine. ABOVE: The Beast awakens in its lair, shattering the early-morning silence at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, then sniffs out the circuit in a few preliminary reconnaissance laps.

Under its skin

Many manufacturers brag that their production sports cars are derived from track cars. For MercedesAMG, it is the other way around. The F1 safety cars, as well as the GT4 customer racecars, competitive in FIA and IMSA racing with changes only to body panels and cockpit structure, are derived from the GT R.

For comparison with the other street GTs, the 3,982cc 577-horsepower biturbo V-8 engine producing 516 pound-feet of torque offers 27 horsepower and 14 pound-feet more than the GT C and over 100 horsepower more than the GT.

With the “intelligent lightweight” aluminum-chassis structure and extensive use of carbon-fiber panels, the GT R has an awesome power-to-weight ratio of 5.94 pounds per horsepower unit.

Designed from the start for optimal handling, the engine is located behind the front axle, connected to a 7-speed dual-clutch SpeedShift transaxle to the rear of thecockpitwithadriveshaftthat–accordingtoMBUSA representative Ashley Gillam – weighs only 8.5 pounds, in a carbon-fiber torque tube. When cornering, power is split between the rear wheels by an electronically controlled limited-slip rear differential integrated into the transmission housing. This configuration results in a near-perfect 47:53 front-to-rear weight balance.

The front and rear tracks have been widened 2.2 inches beneath wider fenders for improved stability. The GT-standard independent front and rear wishbone suspension, built of aluminum to reduce unsprung weight, is damped on the GT R by adjustable coil-over shock absorbers.

Airflow for both cooling and handling was as carefully designed on the GT R as on an F1 car. The openings in the front of the car not only channel air to the radiator and oil cooler, they maximize airflow into the wheel arches to cool the brakes and turbocharger intercoolers mounted behind the front wheels.

In addition to the functional diffusers under the rear bumper and fixed carbon-fiber wing to reduce lift, the GT R has an almost invisible aero component in front. A carbon-fiber splitter concealed in the underbody in front of the engine and weighing only 4.4 pounds automatically moves downward by 1.6 inches at 50 mph in Race mode to create a venturi effect in the airflow, reducing front-axle lift by up to 88 pounds and sucking the car onto the road. At the same time, when the flap opens, air is channeled more efficiently to the rear diffuser and brakes.

Braking, of course, is as important to lap times as power and suspension. To provide maximum stopping ability in competition while improving driveability in normal traffic, the GT R comes standard-equipped with a high-performance composite brake system. However, since this Green Hell GT R is used in demonstrations, it was equipped with the carbon-ceramic brake system that increases stopping power and fade resistance while reducing unsprung weight by another 37 pounds.

ABOVE: Slotted, vented and winged, the GT R came ready to rumble with a 577-horsepower biturbo V-8 engine and carbon-ceramic brakes. RIGHT: At speed through the famous Corkscrew turn at Laguna Seca.

<‘The GT R is the model that bridges that gap, competitive on the track and still pleasant to enjoy on the street.’

Finding the beauty in the beast

To fully demonstrate the potential of an incredible vehicle like this requires an experienced professional. Villeneuve took the helm; I took the spare seat. As he showed me some braking and turn-in points I had never seen before on Laguna Seca – my home track for 17 years – Villeneuve casually mentioned that he had logged more than 20,000 laps on this track.

On hot-lap rides like these, I’m always impressed with the difference between a race driver’s skills and those of even the best amateur. Villeneuve didn’t just use the car’s awesome acceleration more often; he also hit the brakes faster, harder and more frequently than I would to bleed speed into a corner. I was glad that the seat belts automatically tightened under deceleration, or I would have suffered serious bruising from being thrown violently against the belts 11 times a lap.

Then it was my turn. While I was considerably slower around the track than my coach, within two laps I was driving faster than I had ever previously driven at Laguna Seca. The car is just that easy to drive.

After our initial laps, Villeneuve talked me through the experience. “The automatic shift sequences in the GT R are actually superior to what an average driver can achieve. Using them gave you the chance to gain confidence in the car’s handling before trying to manage manual shifts, but you quickly learned how easy it is to keep this car on the correct line.

“You may not have noticed it, but the rear steering makes a big difference in that. By the rear wheels turning opposite the front wheels at lower speeds, the car turns in quicker, with less inclination to oversteer on tight turns like the Andretti Hairpin. By contrast, on the faster sweepers like Turn 4 after the tire bridge, the rear tires turn the same direction as the front wheels to set up additional understeer to keep the car stable.”

Villeneuve’s astute observations of my driving technique helped me to appreciate this car’s features. “You also had the benefit of the variable spoiler on the front of the car to increase traction as you accelerated to your maximum track speed on the front straight, but I was glad you followed my hand signal and lifted slightly at the crest after the Start-Finish so that you wouldn’t go light coming into Turn 1.

“I did have the variable traction control knob set at half, which allowed you a little oversteer in the run-out after the Corkscrew to keep you on your line into Turn 10. I dial it down when I’m driving since I know the car and track. Overall, you did a good job out there.”

So, how much would this glorious machine cost if youwantedtoknowhowitfeelstodrivearealracecaron the street and track? The GT R is $157,000, base price. Our example had $20,000 of performance options such as ceramic brakes and carbon rear wing, and another $20,000 of cosmetic and comfort options like paint, convenience package, sound system and interior trim, coming in just under $200,000. But you can’t buy more performance in any other car for that price.

ABOVE: Luxury appointments make the cabin of the GT R a fine place to spend time, on or off the track. A nearly identical GT R is used as the 2018 F1 Safety Car. RIGHT: The view most often seen by competitors.

<The car before me was built in the same plant – to exactly the same specifications –as the GT Rs now used as safety cars in Formula 1.

For friends and travel aficionados who have been following our world tour driving our 1957 MercedesBenz 220S Ponton “Abel” and towing our Zambezi travel trailer, we celebrated our first 100,000 kilometers December 7 after leaving New Zealand in May 2014. We marked the milestone in Bento Gonçalves, Brazil, with club members of the Veterancar dos Vinhedos (Veteran Cars of the Vineyards). From there we drove south to Montevideo in Uruguay and ferried across the mouth of the Rio de la Plata to Buenos Aires in Argentina for Christmas. A week later we were in Córdoba in the middle of the country to welcome the New Year. What amazing places to celebrate the holidays.

We must confess to secretly feeling almost indomitable: Ever-willing Abel has now carried us safely through nearly four years on the road in North, Central and South America. In early January, as we were catching up on some postings on the internet, we saw an announcement from the Club de Automóviles Antiguos de Chile, whose members we met almost a year ago. The club was organizing El Paseo Cordesando, a charity rally from Santiago to Santo Domingo.

We could almost hear Abel asking if we could go back to Chile and participate in that rally so that he could meet with his old car friends for one more drive before we leave South America for the

other hemisphere later this year. It would take us off our planned route, but no matter. We have learned that taking a spontaneous side trip can pay unexpected dividends: Sometimes the journey itself can become the adventure. However, there was one slight hitch. Even after we got to Mendoza, about 700 kilometers from Córdoba, there was the little matter of getting from there to Santiago. To cross the formidable Andes Mountains towering between Argentina and Chile, there is only one route, over the 3,183-meter El Paso Internacional Los Libertadores (10,443foot International Pass of the Liberators).

We had no fixed timetable and Abel was running well. And so on the first day, our Ponton took us from Mendoza to Uspallata over infamously winding Ruta 52, said to have 365 curves in just one 12-kilometer stretch. We drove 80 kilometers on dusty gravel roads in 40°C heat (104°F) with no shade. But we’ve experienced much worse on our travels, and we knew it would be worth the suffering. Abel handled it without issue.

The second day, Abel – again without complaint – took us from Uspallata up the more gradual ascent to El Paso Los Libertadores. Ruta 7 is a fine road, winding around and, at times, carved into the awe-inspiring Andes with peaks soaring above 8,000 meters.

After a wait at the border of nearly three hours for permission to cross, the

route was much steeper traveling down into Santiago, beginning with a descent of what seemed like a thousand corners. The Paseo Cordesando from Santiago to Santo Domingo was lovely and the trip there was both thrilling and informative.

Not a day after finishing the event, we hopped again over El Paso Los Libertadores to Mendoza in Argentina and into San Juan to meet up with the Dakar Rally, this year celebrating its 10th anniversary in South America since abandoning North Africa in 2007 because of security concerns.

After the excitement of the Dakar, we drove north along Ruta 40 along the eastern ranges of the Andes during the last weeks of the rainy season. Abel had to cross deep fords along the road.

Then near Belén in Peru, we heard a suspicious click-clack noise coming from the rear axle. This component has been Abel’s Achilles’ Heel during our entire tour; we decided to drive back to Santiago for repairs.

For the next month or so, we’ll be taking time off in Santiago to overhaul Abel’s drivetrain and do our annual car maintenance – and sleep in real beds for a change – and then be ready for the last leg of our South American adventures. We plan to return to Belén and continue driving Ruta 40 north into Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia, and finally leave the Americas for Europe in early August for many more adventures to come.

PAGE 44-45: Roadside stop, second day, between Uspallata, Argentina, and the Chilean border. BELOW: Driving the “365 Curves,” first day, Ruta 52 between Mendoza and Uspallata, Argentina.

Ever-willing Abel has now carried us safely through nearly four years on the road in North, Central and South America.

Sometimes the journey itself can become the adventure.

United States Mexico Guatemala Honduras El Salvador Galápagos

The Long & Winding Road

Our travels around the world so far: Over 62,000 miles driven, three continents and 17 countries visited • August 2014 - March 2018 •

Peru Canada

N

2014 United States

2015 Canada United States A Mexico

2016 Belize

Guatemala Honduras El Salvador Mexico A

Cuba (side trip)

New Zealand (side trip) Colombia Ecuador

Galápagos (side trip)

2017 EcuadorA Peru

Antarctica (side trip) PeruA Chile Argentina ChileA ArgentinaA ChileA ArgentinaA Brazil

A denotes an additional visit

Amazon Region ((side trip) Uruguay ArgentinaA

2018 ChileA ArgentinaA ChileA

LEFT: Our faithful Ponton “Abel” is dwarfed by the majestic Andes near the border of Argentina and Chile.

Colombia Ecuador

Cuba Belize Chile

Brazil

Argentina Uruguay

Classic THREESOME

1957 300SL Roadster • 1956 300SL Coupe • 1958 220S Cabriolet A

Three magnificent examples of three of the finest automobiles ever made by Mercedes-Benz – all collected by a discerning couple and all meticulously restored by the dedicated craftsmen at Kienle near Stuttgart

During the years that Peter and Janet Tigges lived in Germany, they came to enjoy taking longdistance car tours around Europe and in particular had developed an abiding respect for automobiles made by Mercedes-Benz. So when the couple settled in Palm Beach, Florida, in the late 1980s, they decided it would be fun to own a few examples of some of the classic cars wearing the threepointed star and built in Stuttgart.

With luck and the assistance of a classic-car dealer in Fort Lauderdale, the Tiggeses were able to locate and acquire a 1957 300SL Roadster in 1991, followed by a 1956 300SL Gullwing Coupe in 1992. When they found a 1958 220S Cabriolet A for sale in their own neighborhood in 1993, they couldn’t resist buying that, as well.

In each instance, the vehicles were in reasonably good condition when purchased, but the Tiggeses decided to have all of them completely restored. In all three cases, the couple decided the appropriate place to carry out the restoration was in Germany at Kienle Automobiletechnik in Heimerdingen, near Stuttgart, considered one of the world’s leading restorers of MercedesBenz automobiles.

The couple flew the Roadster, and then a year later, the Coupe, back to Germany, and personally drove each car to the Kienle workshops, where the automobiles underwent thorough restorations. The only variation with the Cabriolet’s restoration process was to ship it directly to Kienle, flying over to pick up the car when it was done.

In each instance, they were able to spend a few months enjoying the newly

restored car on roads in Germany, Austria and Italy that were familiar from the days they first lived in Europe; they again dropped each car off at Kienle for final checks before shipping it back to Florida.

After 10 years of driving enjoyment and occasional displays at local shows, the roadster and Gullwing were sent back to Kienle for reconditioning and some minor upgrades. Flash forward 10 years more: The Tiggeses decided in 2017 that it was time to make some lifestyle changes, which included downsizing to a house with less car space; they reluctantly decided to consign the cars to RM Sotheby’s Auction House for sale at Amelia Island last March. Now they are pleased that the cars have gone on to new owners who can enjoy the cars as much as they have during the past 25 years.

The 300SL Roadster, 300SL Coupe and 220S Cabriolet A all exhibit key traits of a classic Mercedes-Benz: subtle originality, mechanical excellence, luxury without excess, timeless design.

ARTicle GARY ANDERSON iMAGes RM SOTHEBY’S

RIGHT:

... the 300SL Roadster was shipped from Germany to the Hoffman dealership in Beverly Hills on October 31, 1957.

1957 300SL Roadster

Their classic-car dealer in Fort lauderdale located this 300SL Roadster for the Tiggeses in California in 1991, about a year after beginning the search on their behalf. All the Tiggeses could learn of the droptop’s early years was that the 300SL Roadster was shipped from Germany to the Hoffman dealership in Beverly Hills on October 31, 1957.

That makes the car on these pages oneoftheveryfirstroadstersproduced,a fact echoed by the low serial numbers of chassis, body and engine – all matching the original Mercedes-Benz build card. Also recorded on the build card were the original exterior and interior colors, Fire-Engine Red (543), and Saddle Tan, just as they appear today.

Though the exterior was nice and shiny, the upholstery was worn and frayed, and the engine compartment and undercarriage were grimy, indications of a car that had been well-used, though cared for and enjoyed. It came complete with its hardtop, standard tool kit, spare tire and workshop manual.

Having previously lived in Germany for many years, the Tiggeses knew where they wanted this special machine to be restored. A week after taking possession, October 20, 1991, the pair flew to Germany with the roadster riding on its own first-class ticket, stowed carefully in the aircraft’s cargo hold.

Upon arrival, they had the car made roadworthy at the local Mercedes-Benz service shop before driving it to the Kienle workshops in Heimerdingen for restoration. Kienle removed the engine and shipped it to the Mercedes-Benz shops in Bremen to be rebuilt, while the company’s technicians undertook restoration of the chassis and interior.

When the roadster was finished almost two years later, the couple returnedtoEuropeanddrovetheas-new car through Germany, Switzerland, France and Austria before shipping it back to Florida in August 1993.

After restoration, the Tiggeses enjoyed their classic sports car regularly. In April 2007, the machine was shipped back to Kienle for reconditioning along with the Gullwing. At that time, Kienle installed disc brakes on the front wheels and fitted the vehicle with seat belts for greater safety. The couple then returned yet again to Germany and retraced several beloved short tours around the region in their refreshed classic.

During the last eight years, the car has been driven regularly, though only for short distances, and has not accumulated much additional mileage. The odometer, which was reset when the engine was rebuilt, showed 13,416 miles when the 300SL Roadster arrived at Amelia Island.

in 1992, the year after the Tiggeses found their 300SL roadster, their classic-car dealer located a 1956 Gullwing for them. However, the only information available about the vehicle was that the previous owner had acquired it in Florida in 1987. The car was complete and in good running condition – with the Graphite Grey paint still able to hold a shine – and was fitted with Rudge knock-off wheels in place of the standard lug-bolt wheels, quite a bonus.

However, the red-leather interior was badly worn; the Tiggeses were also somewhat dismayed to uncover the fact that a factory replacement engine had been fitted at some point early in the car’slife:Fullybuiltreplacementengines could be ordered through the MercedesBenz dealers during the period that the 300SLs were produced. Much more concerning was the alarming discovery that at some point early in its life, a small portion of the car’s alloy body shell had been patched with a soft-drink can and painted over.

With only those clues, the Tiggeses and their dealer speculated that, like many of the other 1,000 Gullwings imported into the United States out of the 1,400 produced, the first owner might very well have taken part in the amateur sports-car races that were so popular when the coupe was new.

Regardless, this Gullwing was to receive a second life. Like the roadster the year before, the couple flew with the car back to Germany. Alloy specialists at Mercedes-Benz Autowerkstadt in Duisburg repaired the body, the engine was sent to Bremen for rebuilding, and the body and chassis went to Kienle.

With the car’s paint and interior requiring complete replacement, the Tiggeses took the opportunity to select an elegant factory-correct combination of dark-blue paint and oyster-beige leather. The Rudge wheels were rechromed to contrast with the new paint. Because Gullwings can be stuffy on long trips, an air-conditioning system was fitted to overcome Florida’s heat and humidity.

As with the roadster before it, when the Gullwing was completed in November 1994, the couple returned to Germany and made several road trips in the Coupe before returning it to Kienle for shipping back to Florida.

In 2007, Kienle was commissioned to upgrade both 300SLs. On the Coupe, disc brakes were installed, air conditioning was upgraded, and some engine work was done before its return to Florida. Since the original restoration,theTiggeseshavedriventhe car regularly and shown it occasionally, but it has accumulated only 7,910 miles.

1956 300SL Gullwing

…a small portion of the car’s alloy body shell had been patched with a soft-drink can and painted over.

In June 1993, the Tiggeses were walking their dog near their home. Spying an old car up on blocks in an open garage, they looked closer to discover an unmistakable Mercedes-Benz grille and three-pointed star. Larger than the pair of sports cars the couple were then having restored in Germany – and a convertible to boot – the Tiggeses recognized the derelict as a 220S Cabriolet, built in small numbers during the years immediately following their Coupe and Roadster.

Their local Mercedes-Benz dealer knew the car and was able to help them buy it from the elderly owners. As Janet recounted later, “Poor ‘Gracie’” – the name they gave her – “was dirty, rusted and neglected, but a gem underneath.”

When Peter Tigges opened the trunk to find a shopping bag holding receipts from a tour through Belgium, Switzerland and France that the first owner had taken after picking up the car at the factory in Sindelfingen, the Tiggeses were sure they had been fated to rescue her: They had taken that same trip with new cars several times while living in Germany.

The pair weren’t as familiar with the unibody vehicles of the mid-1950s as they were with the tube-framed 300SLs, but soon learned that this could be an excellent driving car. The elegant design

was dominated by a graceful sweeping line from front to rear, with front and rear fenders smoothly integrated into the doors – reminding contemporary observers of pontoon floats on military field bridges. The dignified 220Ss were the apex of the Ponton range pioneered by Mercedes-Benz beginning in 1953.

By now quite experienced in the process of resurrecting an older car, the Tiggeses immediately had Gracie shipped to Kienle. Consulting with the workshop’s specialist, they decided to have the rather bland off-white exterior repainted in an elegant dark blue, and the interior reupholstered in red leather matching the tattered original trim. Of course, the extensive rich burled interior wood trim, white steering wheel and original Becker radio were rejuvenated, and the engine and all mechanical components were completely rebuilt.

In 1995, the car was shipped back home to Florida, and has lived a life of luxury in an air-conditioned space, never again to feel a raindrop or scorching heat; since then, Gracie has accumulated just under 7,000 miles. With her proud grille, luxurious interior, and flawless road manners, the Tiggeses are sure she is ready to provide another enthusiast family with the refinement, comfort and reliability for which Mercedes-Benz is renowned.

3 1958 220S Cabriolet

ASpying an old car up on blocks in an open garage, they looked closer to discover an unmistakable Mercedes-Benz grille and three-pointed star.

HERITAGE

Sometimes the most brilliant and influential of company personalities can be well-known and wellrespected within the enterprise, but almost unknown to the general public. Fritz Nallinger was one of those. In a career that started at Benz in the 1920s and ended only when he reached mandatory retirement age in 1965, Nallinger reached the top of the Mercedes-Benz design, engineering and development tree. It was, by any standards, a crowning achievement.

ARTicle GRAHAM ROBSON iMAGes DAIMLER ARCHIVES

Youthful promise

In the early years of the century, Friedrich Nallinger was an important technical member of the board of Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft – until he joinedDaimler’smajorrival,Benz&Cie,in1911.

In 1898, when the Nallinger family was living in Esslingen, near Stuttgart, Friedrich’s fourth son, Fritz, was born. While the father’s career prospered – he became Benz’s technical

director in 1912 – his son received an education, served in the German armed forces and joined Benz as a technical design and development engineer in 1922.

This was an exciting period at Mannheim, for Benz was one of the two most influential of German carmakers, even though Germany’s national finances were in chaos: The strain of paying postwar reparations was crippling and caused hyperinflation to develop. Still, Benz managed to survive. The birth of Mercedes-Benz became inevitable after Benz and Daimler began merger discussions in the mid-1920s. By this stage, the younger Nallinger had become involved in testing – even becoming an occasional “works” driver or riding mechanic in Benz’s colossally fast and successful Blitzen models. Although he never became a famous racecar driver, in those days he definitely had ambitions and always seemed to be interested in the latest technical, mechanical and aerodynamic layouts.

It was during this time that Nallinger, along with another young engineering star, Hans Nibel, began work on designs –based on Edmund Rumpler’s streamlined 1921 Tropfenwagen (“dropcar”)–thatwouldeventuallydevelopintotheworld’sfirst

mid-engined racecar, and explored using Rumpler’s pioneering layout for a range of sports and touring cars. Although this grand vision faded – the Rumpler racecar was not a success –in the following years Rumpler’s configuration spurred Benz engineers to think deeply about rear-engined or mid-engined production cars and the merits of independent suspension.

New responsibilities

In a League of

HIS OWN

Fritz Nallinger (1898-1984) was at the center of design, engineering and development at Mercedes-Benz for an unprecedented 43 years

As every Mercedes-Benz enthusiast knows, the merger between Benz and Daimler – with both companies building Mercedes cars after dropping the Daimler badge some years earlier – took place in June 1926. In 1924, when the two firms first signed the Agreement of Mutual Intent, Nallinger had been appointed to the new board of management; with the merger finalized, his position was reconfirmed. From that moment, Nallinger moved his office a few miles from Benz in Mannheim to Mercedes-Benz in Untertürkheim; his close colleague at Benz, Nibel, made the same geographical move. Both then worked alongside Ferdinand Porsche, who was enjoyingatempestuoustimeatDaimler.For all the engineers and managers working in thecombinedcompany,thiswasanexciting and productive period. Not only was an all-new series of production automobiles under development, but Porsche was totally committed to getting the most out of the supercharged 6-cylinder sports cars – starting with the 24/100/140 – the supercars of the day. Unhappily though, Porsche was also beginning to beat a repetitive drum about the merits of his latest brainstorms, which included going all out to design small, rear-engined cars. Soon this all culminated in a blazing boardroom row with Nibel, which boiled over in October 1928. This resulted in Porsche storming out of the company (he would set up his own high-profile consultancy). Nibel was appointed the undisputed technical director of Mercedes-Benz; Nallinger worked alongside his friend and colleague as the new head of all Mercedes-Benz test and experimental facilities.

MAIN IMAGE: Fritz Nallinger celebrates his 1924 Swiss Alps Rally victory in a Benz 16/50-HP race car, Mannheim plant. ABOVE LEFT, FROM TOP: The rear-engined, swing-axle Rumpler. Seizing on the promise of the Rumpler’s configuration, Nallinger and Hans Nibel designed advanced – but ultimately unsuccessful – mid-engined sports and racing models like this one. ABOVE RIGHT: At the Grand Prix of Germany, July 1926, Nallinger (beside the cockpit, with bow tie) confers with race winner Rudolf Caracciola, at the wheel of the supercharged Mercedes 2-liter 8-cylinder racecar.

Golden years

ForNallinger,thissignaledthestartofanear40-yearperiod in which the company not only settled into a very sensible and successful management structure, with real logic applied to engineering, technical progress and to the manner in which new products were developed. In the 1930s, there was not only the launch of the world’s first diesel-engine production cars and the development of magnificent military aircraft engines (see The Star, May-June 2013), but also an increasingly dominant involvement in Grand Prix motor racing.

In those early years, Porsche’s SS/SSK series of supercars matured and improved under Nallinger’s oversight; there was eventimeforNibeltocommissiontheultra-rareandspecialized SSKL.Butitwasinthelate1920sandearly’30sthatNallinger’s department offered a progressive approach to new chassis design: Independent front suspension was introduced in 1931, joined by the arrival of the huge and magnificent Type 770 Grosser model. To have considered a monstrous indulgence like this in the mid-1920s, when both companies were still tottering, would have been unthinkable; in the calmer and more stable atmosphere at Untertürkheim, it seemed entirely logical.

An incredibly skilled, dedicated and capable team of designers, engineers and development technicians helped Mercedes-Benz transform from merely surviving to becoming the most influential of all German carmakers, as well as evolving a series of single-seater racecars that not only won Grands Prix around the world, but set a series of high-speed record runs that no rival could match.

In the watershed years of the 1930s, the production car arm of the flourishing company was equally successful. With Nallinger in charge of the firm’s test and experimental departments, Mercedes-Benz remade itself, developing a series of advanced models that set unprecedented high standards for the rest of the automotive industry. Not only did the 770 Grosser have a massive and ambitiously detailed 7.7-liter 8-cylinder engine, but supercharging, vacuum servo brakes and a 6-speed transmission as well. After the Grosser came the all-new Type 170 with independent suspension, followed by the 200 derivative in 1932 and the 290 a year later. These three inexpensive models were highly successful with 13,775 170s, 15,622 200s, and 7,495 290s sold.

With Nallinger in charge of the company’s test and experimental departments, Mercedes-Benz remade itself, developing a series of advanced models that set unprecedented high standards for the rest of the automotive industry.

Rear-engined Mercedes-Benz 170H, 1936

Advertisement, Mercedes-Benz 170, 1931

Mercedes-Benz 500K Cabriolet, 1934

Mercedes-Benz 230 Sedan, 1936

Advertisement, 770 Grand Mercedes Pullman, 1930-1938

But that wasn’t all. Nibel and Nallinger’s teams – even after Nibel’s sudden death in 1934 –developed the innovative if ultimately unsuccessful rear-engine 130H and the striking highspeed flagship models – 380K/500K/540K – all built around a new family of supercharged 8-cylinder engines, all offering startlingly attractive coachwork and all faster than almost any other road car in the world. These cars were developed with an eye to rapid transport along Germany’s new Autobahnen, and were powerful examples Germany’s new self-confidence.

King of ‘large engines’

This was the time when Nallinger became even more famousandpivotaltoMercedes-Benztopmanagement,andthe technical team in particular; the company removed him from work on private cars and set him up to run an entire section of the company that was concerned with the evolution of what it called“largeengines”–whichincludedworkonmassiveVee-12 aero engines, power units for marine and railcar applications, and other engines for military use.

From that moment and until after War II, he really dropped out of the public eye; within the increasingly high walls of Untertürkheim, he grew in influence. Along the way, he was promoted yet again and became a full board member of Daimler-Benz in 1941. Among his major concerns was the building of a new factory to assemble DB 601 aero engines of the type used in the legendary Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter, and to advise on the ways and means of building some of the tanks that made the German blitzkrieg methods so effective in the 1940s. It was this sort of activity that enabled him to work in and around Stuttgart until the fighting – and the destruction – was finally over in 1945.

Although no longer directly involved in motor racing, it was Nallinger who teamed with the promising young engineer, Rudolf Uhlenhaut, in 1936, to establish the specs of the stupendous W125 GP car. When the company was persuaded to start work on the ambitious Type 80 land-speed-record contender, it was Nallinger’s engineers who rushed to finalize the DB 603 version of the aero engine, a water-cooled 44-liter inverted Vee-12, which – it was hoped – would produce up to 3,000 brake horsepower and propel the Type 80 to speeds of more than 400 mph.

Mercedes-Benz 12-cylinder W125 speed-record car, 1938

DB 603 1,800-horsepower aero engine, 1944

Mercedes-Benz W25 racecar, 1934

Rolling chassis, Mercedes-Benz T80 speed-record car, 1939

Postwar period

Following WWII, Nallinger had to operate in a very modest manner, not only because his company had virtually been bombed to destruction, but because the postwar occupying forces (the French in this part of Germany) were determined to keep this segment of the defeated nation’s industry rigidly under their control. Accordingly, as there would be no scope for any new military equipment to be designed and manufactured, Nallinger was effectively out of work. Thus, it was not until 1948 that he was allowed to resume his duties as a full board member – as the technical supremo of the fast-recovering Daimler-Benz AG organization.

Not that Nallinger had been idle: While Mercedes-Benz was gradually re-creating itself – first by building postwar versions of the 170V – his engineering team, now with Hans Scherenberg as an increasingly important colleague and Uhlenhaut looking after new-car development, was beavering away on the first truly postwar cars, the W186 models, more familiarly known as the 300s.

In later years, it became clear that the W186 had been Nallinger’s pet project, to the virtual exclusion of everything; it seemed as if all his pent-up energies – first stifled by his work on military projects, then by bureaucratic interference from the French – went into this enterprise. Not only that, but when the time came to develop the charismatic Gullwing 300SL, it was apparently Nallinger who looked carefully at what Jaguar had already achieved with the XK120C racecar, recommending that the same basic approach – using much-modified versions of a production car – should form its heart. It was he, therefore, who encouraged the team to produce what became a sensational competition car; a sensational road car followed.

Master of all

Nallinger continued to be at the absolute pinnacle of his technical career during the next 15 years – overseeing a larger and ever more resourceful design and development

ABOVE: At the European Grand Prix, Nürburgring, July 1954, head engineer Rudolf Uhlenhaut (left) and technical director Fritz Nallinger share a lighthearted moment in front of the new W196R single seater. Juan Manuel Fangio piloted his W196R, start No. 18, to overall victory.

RIGHT: With pen in hand, a seated Nallinger reviews design sketches; Friedrich Geiger – lead designer for both the prewar 540K and postwar 300SL – stands behind him, early 1960s.

team – he remained the master of all he surveyed, the leader of the orchestra. And yet, he sometimes seemed to be the most practical and enthusiastic of all his colleagues, with interest –and input – into almost everything.

When the time came for an all-new sedan range to be developed, now known as the much-loved Ponton, it was Nallinger who signed off on the costly implementation of the new car’s unit-body construction. By the same token, when Alfred Neubauer proposed bringing Mercedes-Benz back into Grand Prix racing, it was Nallinger who finally agreed that it would not be sensible to update the 1939 Type W165, but that a totally new pair of cars – the W196 single-seater and the 300SLR racing sports car – should be developed instead.

Although Nallinger was by no means a dictator, he seemed to make all the important technical and sporting decisions of the period. For instance, he was the single person to order an immediate withdrawal of cars from the Le Mans race of 1955 following the horrid accident, and it was Nallinger who personally ordered Neubauer to close the entire operation after the Targa Florio race that followed later in the year. And he was right, of course.

An unmatched record

In the late 1950s and early ’60s, Nallinger, in effect, became the revered elder statesman of a still fast-expanding concern. It was on his watch that fuel injection became more widely used in Mercedes-Benz cars. Work had already begun on the first of the “New Generation” models, the first Mercedes-Benz models to abandon swing-axle rear suspension, and on the innovative Wankel-engined C111 project, when Nallinger finally retired.

In 1965, when he finally handed over the technical reins to Scherenberg, Nallinger had more than 300 patents listed in his name and had completed an amazing 43 years of service to Mercedes-Benz. It was a record which no one seemed likely to match in future years – and no one ever has.

By the 1950s, Fritz Nallinger was technical director of Daimler-Benz AG, with overall responsibility for the design, testing and development of all vehicle lines. TOP: Plan view and cockpit rendering of a 300SL Gullwing Coupe, 1954. ABOVE: Mercedes-Benz Pontons, 190SL and 300SL Coupe – all overseen by Nallinger – drive through the Sindelfingen factory gates, 1955.

Although Nallinger was by no means a dictator, he definitely seemed to make all the important technical and sporting decisions of the period.

PASSION

PERIOD PIECE

Building a wonderfully detailed 1:8 scale model of a 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500K cabriolet by renowned italian firm Pocher

How does it happen that I just recently completed creating one of the most complicated miniature automobiles of an original vehicle ever manufactured, produced nearly 30 years ago?

As background, I spent 68 years in the lighting industry, becoming a Fellow in the Illuminating Engineering Society and founding my own company, which I sold to Philips North America.

But as far back as I can remember, I’ve always had a passion for cars. In my lifetime, I’ve owned classic Rolls Royces from the mid-1930s, postwar Jaguars, BMWs, Austin-Healeys and MGs. Recently, I’ve enjoyed a range of more modern Mercedes-AMGs, having tired of the maintenance time it took to own and drive a true classic.

Wanting to expand my horizons, I enrolled in a racing course; at the age of 55, I was the oldest person in my class. Finding that I enjoyed both the speed and competitive challenge, in 1962 I bought a Formula 3 open-wheel racecar previously owned by Peter Revson, who had won a national championship in the car. I raced it in Sports Car Club of America events for 10 years.

I have been building model airplanes and cars as an amateur and professional for 50 years, as well as making dioramas for collectors and museums. In 1990, I bought a kit for a 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500K from Pocher Micromecannica S.n.c. of Trento, Italy, then renowned as the manufacturer of the most accurate, detailed and complicated automobile and railroad models in the world. The cost was $500, quite a lot even then for an automobile model.

However, the model, one of the most complex ever manufactured by Pocher, is made up of a total of 2,378 parts, 503 in special high-strength plastic, 1,399 in brass, 250 in stainless steel and 261 in various other materials including leather, iron, copper and rubber. It is as faithful a reproduction as possible, designed from an original automobile that the owner loaned to model designer Arnoldo Pocher, made to true 1:8 scale.

The model has many operating parts, including some that can’t be seen, such as the pistons and crankshaft. All the suspension parts, accurate reproductions of the originals, are operational: the doors open and close using the door handles and the windows can be raised and lowered. The leather seats even have padding and springs under the upholstery. The most challenging part was assembling the wire wheels; each spoke had to be inserted separately.

I started assembling the model three years ago – a project inspired after seeing a similar show car on a television program – and it took two years to finish. Based on my own experience, I made changes to the printed build instructions. For example, drilling and tapping all steel parts for screws and, instead of painting the body, I hand-polished the panels using car wax.

Ifcarefullyphotographed,thecarisindistinguishable from a real car, and is an endless delight to inspect and a pleasure to exhibit to friends.

LEFT: The large-scale Pocher model 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500K has huge presence. It was last available for sale in the 1990s. ABOVE, FROM TOP: The 1:8 scale allows fool-the-eye-illusionism. Sample pages from the comprehensive instruction manual offer some idea of the intricate assembly process, including moving pistons, connecting rods and camshaft in the beautifully detailed engine, elegant cockpit, working suspension and amazingly detailed brake assembly. Burton Benjamin and his very special 500K.

W110, W111 & W112 Finback Sedans • 1959-1968 Modernist Milestones

The Mercedes-Benz “Finback” models – both the no-frills W110 range and the exquisite W111 and W112 luxury sedans – combined advanced safety features such as crumple zones and seatbelts with Stuttgart’s traditional robust engineering, reliable engines and classically restrained modern styling

Product management has always been key to the success of the Mercedes-Benz Cars company. Carefully planned model changes, long production runs, multiple market offerings from combinations of basic chassis series and engines, and derivatives for niche markets have been the hallmarks of the company’s product offerings both before and after the watershed of World War II.

Perhaps one of the best examples of production management was the W111 chassis series, first introduced as a mid-priced allpurpose 6-cylinder sedan in 1959. After two years of production, the series was extended with the less expensive 4-cylinder W110 series for the personal and commercial markets while at the same time enhanced with the W112 for the luxury sedan market. The hand-built bodies and V-8 engines for luxury coupe, convertible and limousine customers were added to the series.

This Buyers Guide focuses specifically on the core sedan lineup, with the obvious styling flourish of vestigial fins on the rear fenders that gave the lineup the not-entirely flattering nickname of “Heckflosse,” German for Finback – as they’re referred to in the United States – or Fintail in England.

Today, the Finback range – handsomely styled, roomy and, if purchased with care, practical and reliable – makes an excellent, inexpensiveentrypointintoMercedes-Benzclassic-carownership.

Background

Mercedes-BenzengineersunderthedirectionofFritzNallinger and Béla Barényi had made a major leap forward in 1951-1952 when they introduced the integrated body and frame (unibody) chassis into large-scale automobile production with the W120 Pontons. Work on the succeeding W111 Finbacks began in 1956, carrying forward the major safety concept of nondeformable passenger compartment with front and rear crumple zones, as well as the single styling line from headlight to taillight. The structural characteristics of the bodies were improved with Barényi’s introduction of crash-testing as a development method.

In styling terms, the rounded bodies of the Pontons were widened, with edges and lines straightened to provide greater interior, engine and luggage space. The exact reasons have been lost in history, but fins were added to the ends of the rear fenders, perhaps in emulation of a trend that had dominated U.S. automobile design through the 1950s, or to improve aerodynamic stability, or simply to give the driver an idea of where the car ended at the rear and sides.

Three 6-cylinder models – the 220b and 220Sb with the M180 engine, and the 220SEb with the M127 engine – with successively higher horsepower and fancier trim levels – were introduced at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September 1959 and put into production for the model year 1960. These were quite attractive cars, with up-to-date features including quad-stacked headlights on the units bound for North America and smooth single lenses covering the stacked headlights on the European units, and double bumpers all around with front and rear overriders.

In 1961, the model line was split into three to broaden market reach. The W110 chassis, similar in most respects to the W111 but with a 2-inch shorter wheelbase, 4-cylinder M121 gasoline engine or OM621 diesel engine and very basic trim, was introduced in the 190c and 190Dc to offer a lower customer price-point.

The 4-cylinder Finbacks were quite plain. While the rear shared its body panels with the more expensive W111s, including the distinctive fins, the front was almost ponton-like in appearance. Anything that did not enhance the functionality of the cars was not included. For example, the W110s had single 7-inch sealedbeam headlights with large round chrome bezels on the fenders that came straight up from the single bumper.

Many of the W110s, especially in Europe, were used as taxicabs or for other utilitarian applications, so most of them were well used up at the end of their life. The smaller engines – especially the diesel engines – were designed for longevity and economy, not for performance; and, as a result, they are quite leisurely on the road. Thus, the W110s have never been seen as collectible and certainly not worth restoring, though today if a buyer were to come upon one in excellent original shape, it would hold enough interest to be worth refreshing and enjoying.

At the other extreme that same year, the more desirable and expensive 300SE sedan was created by inserting the more powerful fuel-injected 3-liter M189 engine from the 300d into the W111 chassis, with additional interior trim and exterior design features, as well as power steering and air suspension. With the improvements, the chassis was designated W112. A year later, recognizing that the 300 Adenauer limousines were getting long in the tooth – but executives and diplomats still needed to be transported – the 300SEL long-wheelbase version was created to meet high-end demand until the 600 Grosser could be introduced.

By 1965, the world was literally passing Mercedes-Benz cars by, so the entire lineup was refreshed with more powerful engines. At the bottom of the line, the 4-cylinder gasoline engine was

increased in capacity to two liters, and two carburetors were used for fuel to create the 200 model and the 190Dc became the 200D. The 2.3-liter M180 engine replaced the earlier powerplant on the rest of the series, creating the W110 230 and the W111 230S.

However, the world really was by this time tired of fender fins, so the high-end W112s were discontinued in favor of the “newlook” W108s and W109s, with their rear-end styling treatment adapted from the essentially hand-built bodies of the W111 coupes and convertibles with their rounded rear fenders.

By February 1968, the transition was essentially complete and the last of the Finbacks, the W110 200s, were shipped.

Reasons to buy a Finback sedan

All three Finback chassis series shared a proven unibody chassis with built-in safety features. Though the Finbacks were not quite up-to-date by the time the series was discontinued, the styling has proven to be handsome among the best of the traditional Mercedes-Benz cars – and quite timeless.

Cabin visibility is excellent, and the spacious seating and trunk space are great for families and touring. The ride is comfortable, especially in the W112 series, even with the leisurely performance. The 4-cylinder models (gas and diesel) offer quite good fuel economy. Overall, if purchased carefully, these cars can offer great value for the money.

Reasons not to buy a Finback sedan

Many examples of the Finbacks, especially the W110s, have been pretty much used up; their intrinsic desirability isn’t sufficient to justify any restoration costs, especially if body work is needed. That’s not necessarily a reason to turn down a good example if one turns up, but simply means that for someone who wants one of these icons of period styling, the hunt may take some time.

For the same reasons, many of the basic trim pieces and even some of the mechanical parts are no longer available; an incomplete example, though in good running order, won’t provide the satisfaction of owning a car that is representative of its historical period.

Checkpoints

The holy grail of these cars is the one- or two-owner car that was carefully maintained in its lifetime and then tucked away: Most examples are probably on their fifth or sixth owner and have been used as a beater for too long, with repairs and maintenance needs ignored because of the costs.

Start by checking carefully for rust in floors, inner fenders and structural members. Depending on extent, any more than superficial rust will make it financially impossible to make one roadworthy and safe to drive.

ABOVE & RIGHT: The utilitarian W110 range – engineered to the same high standard as the much more luxurious and powerful W111 and W112 Finback models – came equipped with smaller, more efficient 4-cylinder engines. Offering identical interior and luggage space to the longer W111, these no-nonsense machines, particularly the diesel model, were a popular choice with taxi drivers. The update of 1965 brought slight improvements to both gasoline and diesel engines, relocated front indicators, simpler taillights, revised rear trim and new C-pillar cabin air outlets.

Chronology: W110, W111 & W112 Finback Sedans • 1959-1968

1959 August: Three W111 Finback models – 220b, 220Sb and 220SEb – with many new safety features – introduced to replace the Ponton 219, 220S and 220SE

1961 April: Automatic transmission becomes available in 220SEb

1961 April: 4-cylinder Finback models 190c (1.9-liter gas) and 190Dc (2.0-liter diesel) introduced as chassis W110, replacing Ponton models 190b and 190Db

1961 August: W112 300SE introduced with standard automatic transmission, air suspension, dual-circuit brake system and 4-wheel disk brakes, a first for Mercedes-Benz

1962 January: Last of Hydrak transmission availability in W111s

1962 April: 220Sb, 220SEb fitted with front disk brakes

1962 August: 4-speed automatic transmission becomes available in 220b, 220Sb and 190c

1963 March: 300SE long wheelbase introduced with 4 inches of extra legroom for rear passengers; 4-speed manual available in both versions of 300SE

1963 July: 4-speed automatic transmission is offered as option on the 190Dc

1963 August: 190c, 190Dc and 220b fitted with dual-circuit power brakes with front disks

1964 January: 300SE gets higher compression ratio and larger injection pump to increase horsepower

1965 July/August: 220b, 220SEb and 300SE production ends; W108/109 production begins; 230S replaces 220b

1965 August: 200 (2.0-liter) and 200D replace 190c and 190Dc

1968 January: 230S production ends

1968 February: Finback sedan production ends; total sedan production of W110, W111 and W112: 973,033

200D & 200 (W110) • 1965 -1968

Buy the best one you can find. Poor repairs to the body or any of the major systems (engine, fuel, cooling, drivetrain, etc.) can be expensive, whether you want a car that can be shown with pride or just a daily driver that will mark you as having distinctive tastes.

Front suspension on cars of this era required regular lubrication – even when not used regularly – to prevent the grease from drying into a concrete-like consistency that will break components. A rarely driven low-mileage model can be worse than a well-maintained, high-mileage car because of corrosion, fuel-system rust, dried-out seals that leak oil, and so forth.

A vehicle inspection by a mechanic who knows the cars of the era – preferably one who knows the characteristics of the Finbacks – is seriously recommended: You need more than a modern-car technician to perform a thorough assessment.

Trim pieces, knobs, chrome and emblems should all be intact; short of finding a junkyard cache of Finbacks, they are nearly impossible to get. The W112s were produced in very low numbers and most of the W111s and W110s have already been crushed and reincarnated into the metal of modern cars.

Check the air suspension on all W112 cars; it is expensive to rebuild/replace. At the very least, it will probably need to be disassembled and rebuilt. An alternative is to replace the whole system with a modern air-suspension system, a practical strategy in today’s low-rider world.

Buying strategies

If you’ve taken a liking to this period piece, with its interior space, practical approach to motoring and evocative styling, the best bet is to look for one of the last examples built that incorporated all the improvements made over the life of the cars, especially engines, brakes and mechanical components.

The W112s are the most satisfying of the line because of their luxury touches and good performance, though perhaps the most challenging to find in good, complete condition. The downside of this model is the air suspension, but that can be serviced, rebuilt or replaced with a modern system. If price appreciation is part of the equation, these cars likely will be more collectible over time.

On the other hand, the 220S and 230S are more practical to own, with less chrome, no air suspension, much greater choice and availability of parts from donor cars due to higher production numbers. Should a W110 in good condition cross your path, think about the possibilities of owning a piece of automobile history.

Alternatively, you can look for one of the custom-bodied vehicles – limousine, ambulance, hearse or station wagon – that were built for many years on the sturdy, sensible chassis.

Finally, the bottom line is that if you can find a Finback that appeals to you for sale in excellent condition at a reasonable price, buy it. On the other hand, think very carefully before attempting anything like a restoration.

ABOVE: A beautiful 1965 example of the stylish and desirable Mercedes-Benz 300SE sedan, with its luxurious interior trim, opulent leather seating and unique exterior design features, as well as power steering and air suspension, powered by a fuel-injected 3-liter M189 engine rated at 195 horsepower. RIGHT: From the cover of a W111 220, 220S and 220SE sales brochure, 1959.

300SE (W112) • 1961-1965

Today, the Finback range – handsomely styled, roomy and, if purchased with care, practical and reliable – makes an excellent, inexpensive entry point into Mercedes-Benz classic-car ownership.

Lot 8248 – This 1998 Mercedes-Benz C43 AMG shows 88,281 miles and was purchased by the seller from its second owner six months ago. Power is from a naturally aspirated 4.3-liter V-8 paired to a 5-speed automatic transmission. As acquired, the car’s front end needed repairs due to an accident in 2015 involving the hood, grille, bumper cover, passenger headlight, radiator support, radiator and condenser. All items were professionally replaced and paintwork was completed by a local body shop. While the front end was being repaired, several maintenance items were addressed, including four new tires, brake pads, new water pump, thermostat, radiator, engine belts, hoses, filters and sensors. Service records since 44,000 miles are included, along with all factory books and brochures, the original window sticker and a Carfax report. Sold from Simpsonville, South Carolina, February 21, 2019, for $12,250.

Lot 8229 – This 2007 Mercedes-Benz S600 was sold new in Houston. Two previous local owners accumulated 39,105 miles. It is finished in black-over-black leather and features night vision, heated/cooled and massaging front and rear seats, a heated steering wheel, keyless entry and ignition, rear sun shades, dual-pane sunroof, and navigation from the factory. Power comes from a 6.5L twin-turbocharged V-12 that produced 510 horsepower and 612 lb-ft of torque when new, with a 5-speed automatic transmission and rear-wheel drive. Various service records are indicated on the included Carfax report. Sold from Houston, Texas, February 23, 2018, for $36,000.

Lot 8390 – This 1967 Mercedes-Benz 230S Finback was first sold in Santa Monica, California, and remained with the original owner until 1981. The car was with the family of the second owner until being acquired by the seller in April 2016. Power comes from a 2.3-liter inlinesix paired to a 4-speed automatic transmission. The seller has added around 2,000 miles behind the wheel, and recent work included rebuilding the Zenith carburetors, installing a Pertronix ignition, a new fuel pump, water pump, tires and more. This W111 is now being offered at no reserve with service records and spare parts. Sold from Santa Monica, California, March 2, 2018, for $9,500.

Lot 8440 – With one family from new, this 1989 Mercedes-Benz 560SL is finished in Black Pearl Metallic over a Palomino-leather interior. The car was bought new at Schumacher Mercedes in Scottsdale, Arizona, by the seller’s uncle, and was reportedly driven sparingly throughout its lifetime, accumulating only 103,000 miles. Power comes from a 5.6L M117 V-8 paired with a 4-speed automatic transmission and limited-slip rear differential. Service and a mechanical inspection were conducted just prior to the sale, and maintenance records date from 2002 to present. This R107 is sold with service records, owners books, the original purchase sticker, a matching hardtop and stand. Sold from Houston, Texas, March 6, 2018, for $18,750.

Lot 8449 – This 1967 Mercedes-Benz Unimog 404 was originally sold to the Belgian military before being imported to California and converted for civilian use. Purchased by the seller two years ago, it currently shows 22,000 kilometers (~13,000 miles) and the seller has added around 500 kilometers (~310 miles) after a refinish and major service. Powered by a 2.2-liter gasoline 6-cylinder coupled to an 8-speed manual transmission with two reverse gears, this example has been mechanically and cosmetically refreshed with fresh paint and drivetrain upgrades. Sold with all receipts for the improvements. Sold from Vallejo, California, March 7, 2018, for $23,750.

Light it Up

Now it was perfect. Almost. The 1993 A124 E320 Cabriolet my Toronto Section colleague had located for me was in my garage and all mine at last. After a couple of weeks addressing some Convenience-relay issues, seatbelt presenters in need of lubrication, and a broken power-antenna actuator gear, I finally noticed the one dashboard warning light illuminated in the car: the lamp indicator warning, telling me one of my lights wasn’t working.

It appeared immediately after switching on the parking lamps, so that was a context clue. The Lamp Control Module (part No. 126 542 01 32), an innovation from the W126 era, the system monitors voltages on the left- and right-hand sides of the car. Should there be a difference between the two sides, the system will illuminate the dashboard indicator lamp. Three things can cause this condition.

Obviously, the first thing to check for are bulbs that are not illuminating as expected. Not knowing the intimate details of the previous owners’ bulbreplacement schedule, I took a shotgun approach and carefully replaced each lamp in the parking-lamp circuit with the OEM-spec bulb, making sure pairs matched and that I had bought the correct voltage and base of bulb. The Owner’s Manual does foreshadow how picky the system can be if DIYers get creative in purchasing bulbs at the discount store. For good measure, I obtained some contact cleaner from my local music store (often used it on electric guitars and DJ equipment), and cleaned the bulb sockets before installing replacements.

The second thing to troubleshoot is the fuse box (Image 1). Knowing I had replaced most of the torpedo fuses in my 124-chassis fuse box, I merely reinspected these to ensure the contacts for fuses 3, 5, and 8 were clean and their fuses intact. The old-style fuse boxes, fuses, and copper contacts can degrade over time; fortunately my car is practically perfect preserved.

Third, there is the bane of all Mercedes-Benz vehiclesbuiltintheearlytomid-1990s:thewiring.While my engine wiring is in good shape, there is a common spot on the 124 chassis that needs extra attention. It’s actually more of an area – the entire rear end of the car.

Having already inspected and replaced the entire set of rear-end bulbs, I disassembled each rear lamp (thankfully, a 10-second, no-tools job on each side), cleaning it with contact cleaner on the metal bars that not only held each bulb in place, but also completed the electrical circuit that lights them. These can otherwise corrode, and the ground wires attached can easily become separated or poorly attached.

Unfortunately (or fortunately), this was not my problem. Glad that my car had not been exposed to the moisture that precipitates corrosion, I moved back up front to the fuse box. A friendly member of a Mercedes-Benz online forum I frequent pointed me to the aforementioned lamp control module. More specifically, I was interested in the connectors exposed once the module box has been removed from the relay box behind the 124 chassis fuse box (Images

1 & 2). Removing the rain gutter underneath the windshield helped me access the box.

Suspicious of all the rear lamps – research and inspections of the entire car’s exterior lighting system made me so – I focused on the 10-pin X2 connector of the three connectors present for inspection. With my multimeter set to 20K Ohms, I went to work measuring resistances on the pins, from pin to ground; each one, except for No. 4, registered an 18.9K Ohm readout. According to the forum poster’s table, this lead me to conclude that something was awry within the wiring going to the left license lamp.

Sure enough, careful disassembly of the cover and sheathing on the wiring harness following the left-hand trunk hinge lead to the discovery of one broken and one exposed wire (Image 3) in the harness for the third brake light, license lamps, and trunk interior

lamp switch; I had found my smoking gun! I was now only a solder repair and some electrical-tape mummification away from putting the one big flaw in my A124 to bed.

Little did I know at the time that I was killing two birds with one stone. That the license lamps were illuminating with the wiring in this condition indicated a short somewhere. I had verified that the trunk lamp had not been staying on by shutting my smartphone in the trunk with the video recorder operating. The previously suspected license-lamp circuit must have been the culprit in my previously undiagnosed (and assumed-normal) battery-drain condition.

Hasta la vista, trickle charger!

Windshield wiper problems

QMy 1973 450SL has problems with wipers that squeak when they are operating. I’ve also had problems in the past with wipers that refused to move at all. Is there anything I can do to fix the squeak problem and avoid a complete seize-up?

AMost classic Mercedes-Benz vehicles from 1959-1971 (also the R107s to 1989 and the W600s to 1981) have windshield-wiper shafts emerging from a depression in the cowl at the base of the windshield (see photograph below). These occasionally exhibit a squeaking noise or, in extreme cases, a locked wiper mechanism. The problems are caused by corrosion from water entry into the shaft bearings. When cars have been repainted, the drain holes in the wiper-shaft depression may become plugged with paint, preventing water from draining out of the depression, and then seeping into the shaft bearings.

Non-illuminated switches?

QI have a question concerning the interior illumination of a 2017 GLC 300. I noticed that three levers – the wipers, steering column adjustment and cruise control – to the left of the steering wheel do not illuminate when you turn on the lights (or when they have turned on automatically) for evening driving. It seems a bit weird that all of the other switches in the interior will illuminate for evening visibility but not these three. Is this by design?

AThe switches you refer to are not designed to illuminate. They are “haptic” – touch controlled. (They click as you rotate them and you observe the result on wipers, cruise control, and steering column position). Other manufacturers that I have observed do not illuminate these touch-operated controls – this is not a case of Mercedes-Benz saving money by not illuminating them. Owner’s response: Thanks for the extra input. For the heck of it, I checked out my other vehicles, an Infiniti and a Porsche. Same thing: So it runs across other model lines and countries. I am a gearhead so this caught me by surprise.

Buying a CPO Mercedes-Benz?

and proof of ownership. I went to the MBUSA website but could not find a link for this kind ofserviceonit.Anyoneknowifthisispossible and how to get it done?

AThe user may have confused the Monroney sticker – required by the U.S. government to be displayed in all new automobiles since the mid-1970s – with the Mercedes-Benz Zertifikat, a certificate of authenticity from the Classic Center that provided production information on a specific car. Unfortunately, the Zertifikat program has been discontinued. However, owners may request the data sheet or build card from the Mercedes-Benz Classic production archives by submitting their VIN and proof of ownership (a copy of the vehicle registration, most likely) to www. classicparts@mbusa.com or call 866.622.5277 for information.

New Parts Available from the Classic Center

The solution is to remove the wiper arms and the chrome cover, rubber or nylon seal – if so equipped – and feed a penetrating lubricant (such as Tri-flow) on the shafts. Usually, this will free the shafts and allow the wipers to operate normally. After getting the shafts to move freely, replace the shaft covers – part No. 1078240072 for R107SL models or part No. 1108240472 for other models – to help seal the shafts from water. (Your model may have a different part number – check with your Mercedes-Benz parts person, or the Classic Center for model-specific part numbers). To prevent recurrence, open the drain holes in the wiper-shaft depressions with an awl to allow water to drain without corroding the wiper shafts. As the cowl is steel, it is recommended that you repaint the drain hole to prevent rusting. Using a Q-Tip dipped in matching paint is the safest way to get the paint in the opening. Do not use spray paint. (Thanks to George Murphy for suggesting this topic.)

QI am considering buying a certified pre-owned (CPO) 2014 SL550 with 35,000 miles. I am hesitant because it will be my daily driver for an estimated 6,500milesperyearandIwanttobesureIam not going to have significant maintenance and repair bills. I’m weighing the pros and cons of buying a new car that I don’t like as much (an Audi A5 convertible) or this preowned SL. I am a long-time Mercedes owner (three E-Class and two MLs dating back to 1995), but am now looking for a convertible to replace my BMW 3 series convertible.

AOn a 2014 Mercedes-Benz, most major maintenance is still another 50,000 miles or five years away. However, to hedge your bets, get the CPO extended warranty, and then you should be protected. Other respondents on the MBCA Forum advised that a less-desirable vehicle even if it is new – is not the answer because life is short. So the thing to do is find a car you really like and go for it!

Window sticker for R107?

QI follow an R107 page on Facebook. A user posted that he was able to obtain a copy his car’s window sticker from MBUSA by providing his VIN

Restoring and maintaining older cars can be constrained by the availability of replacement parts. Mercedes-Benz Classic Center does its best to find sources to produce new parts to original specifications. When new parts become available, we will publish this information as part of the Tech Q&A.

Pagoda & Ponton Wheel Brake Cylinders: Attention 190SL and Ponton (W121) owners. Wheel brake cylinders are now available after a year’s absence. Contact the Classic Center to confirm fitment for your specific car

Part Number Location Retail Price

001-420-33-18-64 left front (2) $159.00

001-420-34-18-64 right front (2) $159.00

001-420-04-18-64 rear (2) $134.00

Plaid 300SL Gullwing Upholstery Cloth:

The Classic Center has just announced availability of the wool plaid cloth as used in the 300SLs. Blue is currently available, and red and green should be available soon.

The retail price for the 1.4 meter bolt width is $494 per meter for red and green, $200 per meter for blue plaid.

To order, contact the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center USA Parts Department: Phone: 866.622.5277

Email: classicparts@mbusa.com Website: www.MBClassicCenter.com

FIX THE SQUEAK: Wiper shaft (arrow 1), drain hole (arrow 2) sit in cowl depression on Laura and Richard Simonds’s sedan.

Photo Credit: Mercedes-Benz USA

Amelia Island

Sharing the Show Fields

Article JIM RoBERTS imAges MIKE LEMPERT

For more than 22 years, Mercedes-Benz USA has sponsored the Amelia Island invitational Concours d’Elegance, and each year an ever-larger number of Mercedes-Benz Club of America members attend. More recently, the informal Cars & Coffee at the Concours for preregistered member cars has become a highlight of the weekend event for individual members.

Selected club cars are displayed on the show field on Saturday at no charge to the car owners and are usually exhibited in front of the impressive Mercedes-Benz USA pavilion with its massive threepointed star. Due to impending rain forecast for Sunday, March 11, the concours was moved back to Saturday and had pride of place on the main fields, so the car clubs were forced to another fairway. We were all together, and everyone had a great time enjoying the various member vehicles that National Concours Committee Chair Pete Lesler had assembled.

After leading the selection of club awards, Lesler left to present the annual MBCA trophy at the invitational concours on the main field, so MBCA Vice President Steve Ross, Secretary Jim Roberts, and past Southeastern Region Director Pierre Hedary and his friend, Elaine, presented the club Cars & Coffee trophies to the surprised and delighted MBCA members.

Enthusiasts Committee Chair Josie Lesler convinced organizers to set up a hospitality tent where we were able to meet one another as well as people interested in joining the club. MBCA Treasurer Julie Bruggner, Southeast Region Director Daniel Cabrera, Central Region Director Rick Siefert and Director at Large Cliff Reyle joined the presidents of Alabama, Southern Stars, Central Florida and Southwest Florida sections in greeting members and interested visitors.

The evenings before and after the Saturday shows were highlighted by club dinners for members attending the show, a tradition started by Peachtree Section several years ago. Four years ago, Alabama Section took over arrangements for the Saturday evening affair and, by popular request, added a Friday evening event in Kingsland, Georgia, just across the state line from Amelia Island. This year, MBCA members filled both venues to capacity with a great program Saturday night, including a presentation by former MBCA Secretary Jim Luikens about the Daimler Silver Star award that he was presented for 2017.

The Amelia Island weekend has become a great event in terms of content, and MBCA members and leaders have made it a fun club activity. You should block the second weekend in March on your calendar for 2019 and start making your plans to attend.

A second year of threatening weather has made the Amelia Island organizers old hands at combining the invitational Concours and Cars & Coffee club displays

PAGE 79: Joan Couch of Central Georgia Section won Best Original Car for her 1971 250 sedan. ABOVE: An eclectic mix of Mercedes-Benz automotive metal delighted Cars & Coffee viewers.

Most Distinctive

Most Iconic

Highest Mileage

Best Roadster

• Best Classic SL

FAR

•

Best Original Car

•

Best Restored Car

• Nicest

FAR

Coupe

• Best Sedan

LEFT: Dr. David Halpern, Tampa Bay Section, 1958 300SL Roadster, Best Classic SL. LEFT: Joan and Tommy Couch, Central Georgia Section, in shades of brown; hers a 1971 250 sedan, Best Original Car, his a 1970 280SL, Best Restored Car.

RIGHT: The 1965 190 of Ed Owen, Minuteman Section, Most Distinctive Mercedes-Benz. FAR RIGHT: Al and Fran Rubin, Southwest Florida Section, 2011 SLS AMG, took Most Iconic.

LEFT: William Greener, Finger Lakes Section, 1985 300CD, Nicest Coupe. LEFT: The Puentes, father and son, Southwest Florida Section, 190E 2.5-16 EVO, Best Sedan.

RIGHT: Anne Grafer’s 1985 380SE with over 400,000 miles won Highest Mileage Mercedes-Benz in the show. FAR RIGHT: Alex Djuric, Triangle Section, 1967 250SL, won for Best Roadster.

turning Passion into Action

2018 has started off with significant events like the concours at Boca Raton and Amelia Island. During these two events, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting many more members, volunteers, and uniting with friends. It’s such a privilege to get to work alongside so many individuals who put in so much time and effort to create a legendary experience for fellow club members.

Mercedes-Benz Club of America is an active volunteer-based member organization that provides car enthusiasts the opportunity to experience the heritage of the classics, appreciate the art and performance of the modern cars, enjoy a driving event on a track, and share amazing stories from other car fanatics. I enjoy sharing with members how they might consider being a part of something much more significant and rewarding by volunteering.

If you have ideas to help steer an event, consider contacting your section leadership to see how you can help. Many seasoned members are ready and willing to share their knowledge with other enthusiasts.

Be warned; there is a potential side effect of volunteering. There is scientific proof that volunteering improves health and happiness. Consider giving your time in helping continue providing a legendary experience and steering the future of MBCA.

I look forward to seeing you at upcoming MBCA section and national events throughout the year. If you see me, please stop and let’s chat. I would like to meet you and discuss how you can share your passion with other members.

2018 National election News

Mercedes-Benz Club of America will conduct national elections this year to select four Directors at Large and six Regional Directors. Directors at Large whose terms expire in 2018 are: Julie Bruggner, Scott Suits Sr., Cliff Reyle and Frank Cozza. Regional Directors in the six even-numbered Regions will also be elected, including Mid-Atlantic, Eastern, Southeast, Great Lakes, South Central, and Southwest.

Active members interested in running for office can go online for information and petition forms: 1) Go to www.mbca.org; 2) click the “Login” button at the top right corner of the home page and follow the log-in instructions; 3) click on the navigation tab titled “Community” then on the drop-down titled “MBCA Resources.” Printable petition forms are under the “Election” section.

original completed nomination petitions, along with the signed Conflict of Interest statement, are due at the National Business office by close of business Tuesday, May 15.

If you need assistance with the petition process, please call the NBo at 800.637.2360, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday or 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday, Mountain Time.

This year the club will use on-line voting so it’s important that we have your current email address. The on-line voting is streamlined and saves on printing and mailing costs. Please call or email us with your new or corrected email address.

Mike Regennitter

Steve Ross

2018 Election Committee Chair

A Daimler Brand Rewarding

Article & imAges PAUL GILBERT

One of the best cars I ever owned was not one I was seeking. A fun performance car near the bottom of its depreciation, but with collectible-car potential, seemed like a win-win scenario; it wouldn’t cost much and it might actually appreciate in value someday. There is a formula that often works with desirable classic cars: They should be two-door models and equipped with the highest-performance options available for that car. There are many notable exceptions, but this simple formula fits many desirable collectibles. Just notice the cars being sold at classic-car auctions.

With this formula in mind, I was seeking a CLK55 AMG from 2002. This was the last year of the W208 body with its muscular look. When the W208 model came out in the 1990s, automotive journalist Jeremy Clarkson of BBC TV’s “Top Gear” said, “Mercedes has got it absolutely right with the CLK. Whenever I see one of these cars on the road, I whinny like a horse.” With a 342-horsepower engine and a 0-60 time of 4.9 seconds, the AMG-tuned CLK55 was the fastest production MercedesBenz sold in America. Times have changed.

As I searched the web for one of these in 2013, I stumbled across an ad on Craigslist for a CLK430, located about 15 minutes from my home in suburban Northern Virginia. This version looked identical to the CLK55, but with a less powerful version of the M113 V-8 and without the upgraded brakes. The ad did not have much detail and the single photo was a little blurry. It had just 57,000 miles and was advertised for $10,000, which was a fair market price. While it was not exactly what I was looking for, it was worth taking a look at since it was nearby – and had low miles.

Heading out the door, I asked my 14-yearold daughter if she wanted to check out a car for sale. I didn’t expect her to say yes, but to my surprise she did. She was already thinking a third car would be useful in a couple years when she started to drive.

When we arrived, it was clear the owner had a great interest in cars – and not enough space for his growing collection. He had a supercharged Corvette, a Jeep Rubicon, and several other vehicles of note. He said he bought the Mercedes-Benz for comfortable highway driving, but with all the competition, the CLK was not driven much.

It was the Sport Package CLK430 with the same body cladding and 5-spoke AMG wheels as the CLK55 AMG. It was also a very nice color combination of dark-blue exterior and light-grey interior. The car was in excellent condition. While it was not

Handsome Bargain

Finding the perfect car I wasn’t looking for – a 2002 CLK430

the model I thought I was looking for, its condition and good maintenance records made me give it a second look.

As the test drive started with my daughter in the passenger seat, I had to explain to her that because I was testing the car’s power and response, I was going to accelerate at full throttle, hit the brakes very hard, and turn sharply; it was all in the name of science, to test the vehicle’s condition. This was her first taste of performance driving, and after a few spirited maneuvers, her smile said it all.

My last-ditch effort to avoid this purchase and continue my search for its AMG cousin was to throw out a low-ball offer. I noted that the alignment was noticeably off; if the alignment were fixed and any suspension issues addressed, I would offer $8,000. After a few minutes of awkward silence, the owner said “sure.” A week later, it was mine.

Four years and 20,000 miles later, the CLK ranks as one of the best, most reliable cars I have ever owned. other than routine maintenance items such as tires, brakes and shocks, the only parts that have needed to be replaced was a bushing in the shifter, and the hood latch. A few of the buttons on the temperature control have gone dead but it still works. For a car of any age, this is remarkably reliable, which speaks to its great engineering and build quality.

FROM THE TOP: The 2002 CLK430 with Sport Package at a 200-year-old grist mill in Aldie, Virginia. The author and his daughter enjoy autocross in the CLK. Stylish, durable interior.

LEGENDS

The Legend Continues

Honoring 35 Years of the W201 Series

35 years ago the Mercedes-Benz W201 marked the first chapter in the history of the C-Class. Today, the W201 models are celebrated as young classics by MBCA members from coast to coast. This year we honor the W201 series with a special class.

Club Run Down Under

Our Mercedes-Benz Club of America membership has brought many wonderful friends into our lives – both in our country and internationally. One couple with whom we developed a friendship is Christine and Robert Reid from Brisbane, Queensland, in Australia. In fact, Chris and Robert drove on Route 66 with us for the entire two weeks during MBCA’s 50th-anniversary event in 2006.

When we vacationed in Australia this past February, the Reids invited us to join them for the Mercedes-Benz Club of Queensland Monthly Run. We quickly accepted; it’s an event very similar to our First Sunday Drives. Fortunately, the torrential rain leading up to the Sunday run didn’t materialize during the driving portion of our excursion that day. The Reids picked us up in their right-hand-drive 2009 B180 CDI. We enjoyed the comfort and performance of this model, wishing that we had it here in the United States.

Fifty-three members gathered in the small town of Woodford for morning tea before the start of our run. We were introduced to many of the members, including club President Geoff Greensill.

ARTICLE LAURA SIMOnDS IMAGES RICHARD SIMOnDS

Geoff presented the Mercedes-Benz Club of Queensland (MBCQ) 40th-anniversary book to new members, giving us a copy, too.

Then everyone joined the lineup of Mercedes-Benz cars to drive the two-lane roads through picturesque bush country and farmland. The run ended at Hotel Radnor – a classic 100-plus-yearold pub and hotel – in Blackbutt, Queensland, with additional club members joining us at the destination. With the various MercedesBenzes parked in neat rows in the front of the hotel, we mingled with members and then enjoyed a delicious lunch of locally raised beef and chicken, and locally grown produce.

Heavy downpours of rain occurred during our drive back to Brisbane, but it certainly didn’t dampen the pleasure and enjoyment of the day. We realized what a great treat it was to join in with MBCQ, and we noted the many similarities to our own MBCA. We strongly recommend that people reach out to other clubs in our international network when they’re traveling abroad. We may be separated by distance and backgrounds, but our common love and enthusiasm for Mercedes-Benz vehicles is universal.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Drive with the Mercedes-Benz Club of Queensland, Australia, began with tea and a group photo in Woodford. On the road in 2009 B180CDI. The Hotel Radnor, Blackbutt.

Your Club – Your Events

SectionEvents

Driving Tours & Events

on January 13, TriAnglE SECTion toured the Riley Technologies facilities and then visited the Hendrick Performance Heritage Center to see Rick Hendrick’s personal auto collection. Dave Waters

on February 10, a group of TExAS Hill CounTry SECTion members enjoyed a barbecue lunch and toured Dick’s Classic Garage. We donated a generous supply of items to the charity Johns Kids, which collects school supplies for local students. Charles Dove

February 11 marked the 28th year that the WiSConSinSECTion has visited the Chicago Auto Show. The Mercedes-Benz area displayed the new Mercedes-AMG GT C convertible and GT R coupe, and the 2019 G-Class SUV made its debut. Jim Loseke

More than 30 Mercedes-Benz vehicles of roAD STArS SECTion members caravanned to beautiful Mariner Sands Country Club in Stuart, Florida, for a February 14 Valentine’s Day lunch. Paul Rodecki

The DESErT STArS SECTion’S annual Poker Run, this year with 24 cars, was held February 24. The route took us to a railroad, a livinghistory museum, a tram, an old town and a pie café, ending at a pizzeria with cold libations, hot food and prizes. Harman & Susan Cadis

HouSTon SECTion members traveled to Magnolia February 25 and toured Tony Gullo’s Classic Car Museum. Tony Gullo is a section member and his museum has more than 250 vehicles of all marques and models on display. Erroll Hines

eDitOr GENIE ANDERSoN

FROM THE TOP: Wisconsin Section at the Chicago Auto Show. Desert Stars Section’s popular annual Poker Run. The Texas Hill Country Section toured Dick’s Classic Garage car collection.

SectionEvents

The SAn FrAnCiSCo BAy ArEA SECTion held an “oscar” First SundayDriveMarch4.Sectionmembersposedforared-carpetphoto, and then took a driving tour to many of the famous San Francisco locations seen in Hollywood films. Lou Piccinini

Asinyearspast,membersfromalloverthecountryattendedtheAmelia Island Concours in March, including me, from the inDiAnApoliS 500SECTion. In addition to the Cars & Coffee show featuring MBCAmember cars, members were invited to enjoy the hospitality at the Mercedes-Benz Pavilion on the main field. Dave Weaver

The ToronTo SECTion visited the Canadian International Autoshow March 22 to see the Mercedes-Benz display. It was an excellent opportunity to learn more about Mercedes-Benz's new technologies and to admire the beautiful new designs. Howard Rubin

With plentiful rains falling throughout the Southeast Texas region this year, the bluebonnets were abundant in the historic Chappell Hill area, where the HouSTonSECTion’S annual Bluebonnet Run took place March 23. Forty-three members enjoyed the drive and the spectacular vistas of flowers. Erroll Hines

TOP: Houston Section members during the section’s annual Bluebonnet Run. ABOVE: San Francisco Bay Area Section’s “Oscar” First Sunday Drive took in famous filming locations around the city.

SectionEvents

Meetings & Social gatherings

The BriTiSH ColuMBiA SECTion’S Award Dinner was held January 13 at Pier 7. Regional officer of-the-Year award was presented to Tony Millikin; Marie Stenzel received the Member-of-the-Year Award. our new Northwest Regional Director Jeff Schindler joined us. Sean Clark

roAD STAr SECTion’S first membership meeting of the year was held at The Gallery Grille in Tequesta, Florida, January 20. Paul Rodecki

norTH TExAS SECTion held its first 2018 membership meeting February3atRomano’sMacaroniGrill.Membersenjoyedcamaraderie, an excellent lunch and a discussion of upcoming events. Ron Seifert

ForTH WorTH SECTion members enjoyed a pre-Valentine’s Day celebration February 3 at Bonnell’s Fine Texas Cuisine. We had a beautiful private room for dining – and for all 35 members to play the game, “How Low Can You Go?” DJ DeJesus

The norTH TExAS SECTion held a K1 (electric, indoor go-kart) racing event in Richardson, February 10. Fifteen members attended, 12 hot-shoes raced, and no one crashed; we wore helmets, followed instructions and had a rollicking good time! Ron Seifert

Valentine’sDaycameearlyforthe MiSSiSSippi SECTion withalovely dinner in a private room at Biaggi's Ristorante Italiano in Ridgeland, February 11. We viewed a film about Bertha Benz. Mike Marsh

niAgArA SECTion held a Valentine’s Day Brunch February 11 at the East Aurora Country Club. This is an annual event; the only changes are the venue and the lively and varied conversations. Debra Boehm

The SiErrA nEvADA SECTion had a great turnout February 12 for its Valentine’s Day supper at Hobey’s Casino and Restaurant near Reno. The company and conversation were lively, the food delicious, and service top-notch. Gary Dyer

on February 24, AlABAMA SECTion members traveled to the grand opening of the Mercedes-Benz of Birmingham’s new and very large Irondale Campus showroom and facility. Among the speakers was MBUSA President Detmar Exner. Jim Robertson

on March 3, members of the BluEgrASS STArS SECTion judged the automotive-science projects presented by students from duPont Manual High and Meyzeek Middle schools at the Louisville Regional Science & Engineering Fair. Lawrence Gettleman

HouSTon SECTion enjoyed a luncheon cruise March 17 on Lake Conroe. It was a beautiful day for cruising on the Victorian-era riverboat, and enjoying the music and dancing on board. Erroll Hines

Jim and Sean Hannon with Ernie and Diane Castillo hosted more than 40 members and guests under the trees for ForT WorTH SECTion’S annual N’awlins Crawfish Boil March 23. DJ de Jesus

FROM THE TOP: Road Stars Section’s first membership meeting of the year was at The Gallery Grille in Tequesta. Houston Section members went aquatic with a luncheon cruise on scenic Lake Conroe. Alabama Section attended the grand opening of Mercedes-Benz of Birmingham’s new dealership. This year, Fort Worth Section‘s annual Crawfish Boil was enjoyed alfresco.

SectionEvents

Technical Sessions

As part of a preview visit to spectacular new service facilities at Mercedes-Benz of Jackson’s all-new facility February 1, MiSSiSSippi SECTion members had 19 classic Mercedes-Benz models on display in the pristine, state-of-the-art service department. Daniel Hughes

Fifteen EASTErn oklAHoMA SECTion members enjoyed a comprehensivetourandpresentationsattheJackieCooperMercedesBenz dealership in Tulsa, February 6. John Kushnerick

HouSTon SECTion held a very interesting technical session February 17 with a detailed and comprehensive presentation regarding all aspects of vehicle fluids, presented by our very own expert, Kenneth Stuntz. Joseph Middleton

The DESErTSTArSSECTion met at Airpark Collision Center March 3 for fascinating demonstrations of many types of automotive repairs, including repainting, color-matching techniques and scanning, along with a lively Q&A session running throughout the morning. Tina Small

Section Event reports in The Star are based on materials uploaded to the MBCA website. Deadline for the next issue is June 1. Visit mbca.org, select the Star Magazine tab and click on Submit Event notice or Submit Event report to publicize your section’s upcoming activities, submit reports and pictures, and learn what other sections are doing.

FROM THE TOP: Mississippi Section displayed members’ classic Mercedes-Benz automobiles while previewing service facilities at the new Mercedes-Benz of Jackson dealership. Desert Stars Section at Air Park Collision Center tech session. In a comprehensive presentation, Kenneth Stuntz delved into the subject of vehicle fluids for fellow Houston Section members.

CLUB NEWS

Mercedes-Benz of Birmingham

Mercedes-Benz of Birmingham has just expanded to a second campus just 10 miles from its long-term location, which will remain in operation for all service and certified pre-owned and commercial sales. interestingly, the two locations are each just five miles from the StarFest© 2018 hotel along the same interstate highway.

the site is as impressive as the facility: it’s at the top of a substantial hill located directly across the highway and significantly above the British, italian, Japanese and other German luxury-brand dealerships that are huddled together on the same amount of land as Mercedes-Benz of Birmingham alone. Add the glass tower and it is reminiscent of a castle on the Rhine overlooking a picturesque village below.

the massive building presents the floor-to-ceiling glass image of all new Mercedes-Benz dealerships. the tower is functional: New cars are brought down to

e all feel that Mercedes-Benz, the inventor of the automobile, stands above all other car companies. How about a Mercedes-Benz dealer that literally – as well as figuratively – stands above all others?the showroom after preparation where their eager new owners take delivery. the elevator is quite busy, as there is room for almost 600 Mercedes-Benz vehicles on site.

the service bays, floored with spotless inlaid stone rather than the typical concrete, are climate-controlled year-round, with the largest ceiling fans you’ll ever see to circulate the cooled or heated air to the 40-plus bays.

the intake line is four lanes wide. Add two more lanes and 24 more service bays at the older dealer location and you have a massive service capacity.

Article

JiM ROBERtS

W

magazine are on display in the lounge. We’re going to have to place a library cover on the magazine; available issues disappear quickly.

This dealership helped establish the Alabama Section in 2005 when the general manager called me at home and said, “I understand you would like to form a local section of the Mercedes-Benz Club of America. How may we help you?” Now that is a great introduction, and the relationship has grown warmer and mutually more beneficial every year. Several of the 200-member team at Mercedes-Benz of Birmingham are active Alabama Section members, and we have several events at the dealership each year. The new facility will also be hosting a reception during StarFest 2018.

Ownership changed about three years ago when a consortium consisting of Randy Powell, Joe Agresti, and Nick and Terry Saban took ownership, with Powell as the dealership’s general manager. And yes, that’s the Nick Saban who is the head coach for the University of Alabama’s football team, overseeing the last five of its 13 national championships. Combine this with his earlier championship at Louisiana State, and no one else has won more. Bronze plaques in the service and sales areas proclaim his philosophy: “Expect Excellence.” If his schedule allows, he will join Mercedes-Benz members at StarFest. He is a genuine car guy who feels that the Mercedes-Benz is the best car in the world. Even before he became a dealer, he would not let his family drive anything else.

This new Mercedes-Benz facility is full of high-tech features. For example, as customers enter the extensive property, the service staff is alerted, wi-fi is available everywhere on the campus, and wheel alignment is automatically checked as part of every service visit.

Powell summed up his team’s efforts: “Mercedes-Benz has a world-class plant in Vance (Alabama). People in Alabama have embraced Mercedes-Benz in a really powerful way, and we just felt like we wanted to build something world-class here.”

With this dealership, Alabama Section members feel they are the most fortunate section in the Mercedes-Benz Club of America; they look forward to sharing their good fortune with you at upcoming StarFest 2018, May 15-21.

Mercedes-Benz of Birmingham

750 Mercedes Way Irondale, AL 35210 205.848.7000 www.mbbhm.com

If

For additional information, call MBCA at (800) 637-2360.

The Loyalty Rewards Certificate can only be printed once and will expire 60 days from the day the certificate is printed. The Loyalty Rewards program cannot be combined with, but not limited to, the following: DE1, DE1+, MBDEAL, Diplomat, and any Fleet Program. Offer excludes Commercial Vans, smart, SLS AMG Coupes or Roadsters, and AMG GT Coupe or Roadster. The Loyalty Rewards program may be combined with other discounts. Check with your dealer for further details.

Photo

SLs for Sale

1961 190SL Dark Grey/Red. 45,374 miles. Recent complete concours level restoration. Matching numbers: chassis, body, 1.9 liter 4-cyl engine, 4-speed man trans., factory 50-liter fuel tank, and correct date-stamped alloy wheels. Richard J Larsen: 929.220.9009, darkgrey190sl@gmail.com (NY)

1979 450SL Black / Red. 65,000 miles. Mechanically sorted, well documented in seldom seen colors. Needs new soft top; hardtop+unique hardtop stand in great condition. $14,500 Richard Zengilowski: 978-761-8860 rzengilowski@comcast. net (MA)

1979 450SL Dark blue /204 Bamboo Leather. 8,956 miles. Not daily driver. Owner since Feb.1980 is ASE Master Auto Tech. All paperwork, factory Zertifikat, build sheet, always in heated garage, mostly highway miles, not driven in bad weather. Mint cond. Dennis Walach: 978-531-2040, w1ok@verizon.net (MA)

1979 450SL Dark Green / Gold. 122,000 miles. Dark green hardtop; dark brown canvas top. $12,500 obo. Albert Alsedek: 717.492.4045, alberte2969@comcast.net

1983

1986

(PA)

1980 450SL Roadster Chocolate Brown / Tan Leather. 93,000 miles. Hard top with hoist. New soft top. Custom 17” wheels. Euro style headlights. Nardi steering wheel. New systems throughout. All history. Garaged. $9,900. Sarah Kling: (651) 2901555 billkling2@gmail.com (MN)

1982 380SL Champagne / brown. 57,000 miles. Hard & soft tops; tinted windows. garage kept, no rust, well maintained. New brakes, Becker radio, steering. Converted A/C. Michelins. Extras. $21,000. Todd Carver: (972) 342-8919 aenviroman@ verizon.net (TX)

1983 380SL Lapis Blue / Blue. 53,500 miles. Excellent original body/interior. One family owner since 80’s. Always garaged. Dealer serviced. All svc records. Original tops. Double chain conversion. Motivated seller. $14,500. Cathy Beatty cathybeatty@verizon.net (PA)

1983 380SL Black / Black. 140,000 miles. Very clean and original, new soft top, seats are perfect. Original radio. A/C works great. Very clean. No Rust-No leak spots in drive. Asking $12,400.00. VIN WDBBA45A1DB027294. Thomas Jutte: (937) 210-0263 (OH)

380SL Navy exterior/ Gray leather interior. Newer radio, newer tires, A/C, recent valve job w/timing chain, rebuilt trans. Needs soft top. Beautiful, rust-free. Always garaged. $8,500. Raymond Swannie: (214) 695-3703 rayandcheri@yahoo.com (TX)

1984 380SL Black / Camel. 130,000 miles. 1984 380 SL convertible for sale. Black on black. Automatic, runs good. Heat and air work. CD player. Teresa Juergens: 479-856-5528 tfrench55@gmail.com (AR)

1984 380SL Root Beer Brown / Tan. 88,480 miles. 2nd owner–only added 4000 miles. Orig.soft top never in rain. Factory pwr steering, cruise, disc brakes, AM/FM. Immac. orig. paint. Sheep skin on seats. Compl. Rebuild of top end. $18,000. obo. Bill Dean: (209) 296-4387 (CA)

1986 420SL White / beige. 98,000 miles. Rare - only 1 of 2,148 models produced world-wide. Engine completely rebuilt at 95,000 miles. Maintained, garage kept, starts right up. Nice driving condition. $35,000, consider trade. Jerry Ciardello: 603.894.4464, gmcsales@comcast.net (NH)

560SL Ivory / Brown Leather.

1987

1989 560SL Light Ivory / Brown. 54,991 miles. Canvas top. Hardtop with carrier. Well cared for since new. Recent svc inc brakes, fluids/new filters, new shifter bushings, Bilstein shocks, battery. Records, receipts, literature. $21,500 Joseph Laycock: 803-507-4534, joebarb310@gmail.com (SC)

How to Submit Trading Post Ads

To submit a Trading Post Ad, upload your ad, with a good quality image if desired, at: www.mbca.org/create-classified-ad

ToappearintheJuly-August2018issueof The Star, ads must be active on the website at the end of the day May 31, 2018. Ads submitted to the website are posted immediately.

1987

1989

1988

1989

1989 560SL Arctic White / Blue. 70,000 miles. Great driver. Stunning paint,no rust. Original Becker radio, crack-free dash, both tops, garage kept. Last, most collectible year of the R107. Silver Star Preservation, clean Carfax, NY inspection. $24,900 Lawrence Taylor: 717-406-8015 larryt543@yahoo.com (NY)

1990

1989

A club member may post one Mercedes-Benz related ad of up to 250 characters (approximately 35 words) and one photo on the website free of charge, space permitting. Members are charged for additional words and pictures. The online ad may be edited or removed by the member

All ads are automatically removed after 60 days online unless renewed

Only ads for Mercedes-Benz vehicles, parts, literature, and related services are accepted.

Non-members or commercial enterprises may post text ads for Mercedes-Benz related vehicles, parts, goods, and services on the club website. Ads up to 300 characters $30 per issue with 60 days on the website. Fees must be paid in advance and are non-refundable. Please submit commercial ads to Ryanne@mbca.org or call 800.637.2360.

The terms of sale, payment, shipping, and other affairs related to Trading Post ads are the sole responsibility of the buyer and seller. However, if issues arise, write to: editor@mbca.org.

MBCA and the Editor of The Star reserve the right to edit or remove any advertisement without recourse, justification, refund, or compensation.

Club members without internet access may submit ads by mail to:

MBCA National Business Office 1907 Lelaray Street Colorado Springs, CO 80909-2872

Please follow correct ad format when submitting ads by mail. Ad must be typed or clearly printed, and include name, address, phone and credit card information or check. Always include member number. Photographs submitted by mail

not be returned. Trading Post ads automatically expire after 60 days unless promptly renewed.

No inference should be made that the goods and services advertised herein have the endorsement of Daimler AG, MBUSA, or MBCA.

560SL Blauschwarz metallic / gray. 177,000 miles. Beautifully restored with extensive maintenance to ensure trouble-free, long-term driving performance. https://photos. app.goo.gl/No3G7npHtUranKpC2 .$19,900 obo. Richard Koida: 503.705.1064, richardrv7a@gmail.com (OR)

560SL Diamond Blue/Cream Beige. 29,750 miles. Beautiful, original, in excellent cond. Rare color combo. New soft top, original hard top. Replaced many items: seals, brake job, fuel sending unit. 3 owners. $42,000. Eric Shank: 717-729-8509 (PA)

560SL White/Black.71,112miles.Everythingworks,well maintained, garage kept, white hard top with rack, new tires, crack-free dash. $19,500. Barry Guthrie: 704-400-9432 (NC)

560SL Signal Red / Cream Beige. 53,200 miles. excellent condition, both tops, all records from new. All original paint/sheetmetal, tools, books and spare. See, drive to appreciate. $28,500 negot. Creighton Howard: (920) 455-9009 candkfhoward@new.rr.com (WI)

560SL Anthracite / Light Gray. 53,000 miles. Beautiful. Body, chrome, glass, paint, interior in excellent condition. Well maintainedmechanicals.Alwaysgaraged.Hardtop.$27,500Tim Richards: 765-480-0421 , f.timothy.richards@gmail.com (MI)

300SL Astral Silver / Blue. 11,000 miles. Rare 5-Speed manual (one of 130 imported to U.S.). One owner. In as new condition. All original documents. $29,500. Bob Tenges, 414852-8622. rtenges@me.com. (WI)

1991 300 SL SmokeSilver/Tan.92,000miles.Wellmaintained. Never seen snow and rarely rain. Serviced by Black Forest LLC since 2007. All records. Runs great! Includes hard top w/stand & cover. New leather seats. David Harrington: 2629498940 haviddarrington@gmail.com (AZ)

2000

2004 SL55 AMG Grey / Silver. 43,000 miles. A Calif. Car, pristine condition, fully loaded, GPS, heated/cooled dynamic seats, panorama roof, a super car w/ luxury appointments. $28,950.

Michael Gertner: 949-852-8400, mgertner@mail.com (CA)

2006 SL55 AMG Aegean blue / light grey. 84,500 miles. A stunning car. Retractable hardtop. Includes a transferable 3 year extended warranty for the engine and powertrain. $21,000.

Donald Snodgrass: 6185247590, don@k4qky.com (MS)

2004

2009

2012

1997 SL320 Sport Silver / Gray. 78,000 miles. Both tops, factory Bose system, and Sport Package. All maintenance up to date. Branded title due to theft and recovery when the car was new–no reported damage at that time. Have title and complete printed Carfax. $8500. Joesph Beck: 360-202-5337 (WA)

1998 230SLK Kompressor Brilliant Silver / Salsa red. 34,000 miles.Retractable hard top. Well maintained and in good condition. 1 owner. It’s a summer car; always garaged. Serious inquiresonly.$14,000OBO.KarlEbenhoch:(262)786-9364(WA)

1998 SL500 Silver / Gray. 90,000 miles. $8,000 in dealer maintenance in last 24 months makes this SL close to new condition. Top works perfect, Silver Arrow wheels, nearly new tires $12, 500 OBF. Michael Banker, 602-577-7802 michael. banker7@gmail.com (AZ)

2000 SL500 Firemist Red / Java Nappa Leather. 67,000 miles. in excellent condition. New motor mounts, hvac controls, cat converters, hydraulic top cylinders and recovered hardtop interior. My show car for the past 2 years. Doug Mills: 678-8145286, dblairm@gmail.com (GA)

SL500 Silver / Grey. 143,000 miles. Garage kept beauty. New black soft top and hydraulics. New headliners on both hardtops. New upholstery. New front brakes. New tires. Asking 10,500 O.B.O. Dan Saldana: 817-975-9237 (TX)

SL500 Desert silver / light saddle. 74,700 miles. Panorama roof. Stored winters, excellent condition, new tires & battery.$15,000 Larry Smith: 847.687.1762, ljsmith99@ comcast.net (IL)

2016

Howard

Other

Other Mercedes-Benz Vehicles for Sale

1962

Mercedes-Benz Vehicles for Sale

1934170CCabriolet

1955

1957

1962

1970 280S Med. Blue/Blue. 14,601 miles. One of the best original-condition sedans. All original ownership docs. Complete mechanical R&R. New fuel pump, rebuilt carbs, tires, heaterlevers,brakes,hydrocompensator,shocks,sunroof.Henry Coelho: 860.657.2424, hcoelho42@gmail.com (CT)

1970 300SEL 6.3 Silver Blue / Royal Blue.Concours ready masterpiece of German engineering that can be enjoyed on the road. Completely gone over for safety, reliability, to manufacturer standards. Hard to find another like it. $68,000 Mario Puente: 239.204.7434 mpuente-benz@hotmail.com (FL)

1972280SEL4.5 Blue/Blue.112,000miles.Pristinecondition. Great example of the W108 in an elegant color combination; superb 1992 paint job still in great condition. Everything in perfect working condition. $24,800. Saul Rosa: (954)588-6005, saulrosa@gmail.com (FL)

1974 240D Beige / bamboo. 309,000 miles. Euro. delivery model. Runs strong. Interior good, exterior needs restoration.Factory A/C, sunroof and drive lights. Manual trans. and windows. You pay for transport. Merritt Penney 845.986.9708, (NY)

1975 280C The complete car. The body is bad, but the interior is good. European engine, head lamps, and suspension. Peter Mindermann: 361-749-0485 (TX) NO PHOTO

Need

something for a Mercedes-Benz?

Visit mbca.org/classified-ads online. New ads appear every day. If you’re selling something, use the classifieds. Ads are free to members. Reasonable rates for businesses.

SLK 350 Red / Beige. 1,502 miles. The car is in excellent shape with only 1,502 miles on it. $45,500 for quick sale.

Williford: 3254502153 (TX)

Gray/Blue.Immaculate,rare,inexcellent cond. Driven only to shows, stored in climate-controlled garage. All history, trophies, ribbons. All orig. matching numbers. 3-speed w/overdrive. New brakes, top, tuneup. $85,000. Anthony Massaro: 941.284.1952 t.massaro@yahoo.com (FL)

180D Black / red. 47,384 miles. Excellent original unrestored car. Mechanically sorted to be a driver, interesting provenance, second owner, original bill of sale and service history, leather reclining seats, vent windows working Becker Mexico radio. $15,950.00. William Coon: 802 453-2684 (VT)

220S Cabriolet Black / Tan. 64,000 miles. Multiple show awards inc Best of Show - Mercedes Benz of N. America Car Show. All original parts, fully restored, garaged. $180,000. Hans Karl: 302-378-1878, lisapupa@prodigy.net (DE)

220SEb Cabriolet Light grey beige / Dark brown Leather. 72,150 miles. Restored late 1980’s. Auto trans., power steering & brakes. Best of show Shelton Vineyards 2016. Air, Becker radio, beaut. wood, new Michelins. $98,000. Charles Bronk: 910-949-2420 charliebronk@embarqmail.com (NC)

220SE Fully restored, beautiful. Owned for 20 years, all paperwork. $75,000. Serious Inquiries only. James Donovan: (206) 364-1258, Jl_donovan@hotmail.com (WA)

1962 M-B Motorhome White. Runs, drives. New brakes. 6-cylinder Diesel pusher. Needs oak interior repaired, cleaned. Similar coach, restored, sold @ 2013 auction for $99,000; 1959 sold for $169,000. $45,000 negot. John Glas: 716.201.8821 (OR)

1968 280S Green/Tan MB-Tex One owner. Meticulously maintained, immactulate. Excellent and fully restored. Rare 4 spd, fact a/c, am-fm, radials. All provenance, docs, svc. hist, records .No rust or accidents $21,950. N Cohen: 770-883-9115 cici123@mindspring.com (GA)

1968 230 Finback Light Grey. 173,000 miles. 4speed oncolumn transmission, new fenders, Garage kept. Never driven in snow. Real good condition. Harold or Rose Keichel: (440) 2561354 (OH)

1970 300SEL 6.3 European version excellent condition inside and out; low mileage on engine by Metric with 3-inch exhaust, electronic ignition; a powerful performer. $35,000; John J. Perenyi (617) 327-4150 (MA)

1977

1978

1979

1982 380SEL Black / Black. 89,700 miles. Excellent runner. Extremely clean body, mechanically very strong. Over $7k invested since purchase early summer 2017. My mechanic said it is one of the cleanest W126s he has seen. Ezra Trull: 224-6106355 Ezratrull@aol.com (IL)

1985 380SE Burgundy / light tan. 143,000 miles. Exterior glossy, interior beautiful, no stains. Garage kept. Runs and drives beautifully, has no mechanical issues. Well-cared for, in excellent condition. $7000. James Catanese: 484-437-3369 (PA)

1983 300CD Turbo Signal Red / Beige. 146,000 miles. All original, unmolested, with service records. A Florida car in excellent condition. $13,500. Karen or Nathan Whitlock: 727201-9946 (FL)

1986

1985 300TDT Wagon Silver / Black. 77,206 miles. Original owner, always garaged, yearly dealer maintenance . VIN: WDBAB93C8FF032076. Loc: Brookline. Continuously registered andinrunningcondition.Morephotos.$14,900.RobertFuentes: 516-301-0579 (MA)

LWB 450SEL Light Beige / Brown. 21,200 miles. Factory keys, all books/brochures, production cards, original window stickers, most later registrations, insurance, service receipts. Second owner. VIN 116 033 12 068656I. $45,000.Boris Alexeev: 503.200.4449 boral@comcast.net (OR)

300CD Red / Palomino. 109,001 miles. Original, runs great. A driving candidate for restoration. M-B specialist inspected motor/drivetrain. Will need some cosmetics to get backto100%.Oneof7,502coupenon-turbodiesels.$8500OBO. Brooks Karns: 610.888.1298 (PA)

280CE W123 Rally Car Red, Black / Beige, Black. 169,000 miles. Like Carlsson 1980 Paris-Dakar model. Tuned, new injectors, fuel pump, sparks, filters, stereo, CB Band, USB. Rim18 staggered tires. New A/C, M-B maintained. $19,750. Hedi Enghelberg: 954.778.8543 Hedi@Enghelberg.Com (FL)

1994

1994

1995

1995

1995 S600 and 1996 S500. Two mid-90s S-Class.1995 S600 is dark grey / black. 22,000 miles. The 1996 S500 is beige/beige with 90,000 hwy miles. Both for $37,000. Wendy Van Dyck: 415.221.2700 (CA) NO PHOTO

1995 E300D White/Grey. 170,000 miles. Interior: 100 exterior: 90. Last year of style. No winter driving. Garaged last 7 yrs. Wheels, tires excell. Needs motor work/head. $1,400. Robert Campellone:401.258.6839,rcamp274@gmail.com(RI) NOPHOTO

1995 E320 Wagon Beige / Beige MB-Tex. 37,000 miles. Enthusiast owned past ten years from 16k mi. Nearly new condition.Nowinters/rain.MBspecialistmaintained.collectible M-B from second (sr) owner. $18,500 Peter Diebold: 603-7954592 pdd195@gmail.com (NH)

1999

E320 Brilliant Silver/Grey Leather. 43,000 miles. From Gregg Prokop‘s private collection, dealer-serviced, Pacific NW garage queen in unbelievable condition. Better than new; relive final years of quality German craftsmanship where simplicity met the road. 206-419-8000. greggprokop@gmail.com (WA)

E320 Convertible Red. 72,000 miles. Great driver; have owned last 10 years; dealer maintained; original radio and original wheels. $14,225. Michael Levenson: (253) 4056453 (WA)

S500 Coupe Black/Grey.81,000miles.WhenM-Bswere built to look good and drive better. Sleek, clean, and well loved. Show or drive. $12,900. Nick Gangas: 520-820-5100 (AZ)

E320 Cabriolet Grey / Grey. Excellent condition. Black top, auto, ps, pdb, pw ,seats, top, am-fm-cd,a/c. Southern car, rust and accident free. Complete M-B dealer svc hist, clean Carfax. New top, brakes, radials. $11,950. Norm Cohen: 770.883.9115 (GA)

C43 AMG Silver / Black/silver. 64,000 miles. As new, no modifications. Owned 10 years by MBCA Technical Advisor. No rust.Allbooksandrecords.Well-maintained.Leatherseatswith rare silver inserts. 305 hp at 302 ft-lb torque – fast. $16,900. George Murphy: 865-482-9175 perfanalysis@comcast.net (TN)

Other Mercedes-Benz Vehicles for Sale Parts & Misc for Sale

Trailex Aluminum Trailer 23ft, only 6ft 10in high. Pristine. Tandem wheels. 4700lb cap. Garage kept. Used 3 times. Winch (never used). Extra lighting, spare tires & alloy wheels. $19,000. Hamlin York; 561.301.7040. Hamlinyork111@gmail.com (FL)

2008

1961 Mercedes 220Sb sedan parts Various interior & exterior chrome trim parts, driveshaft, Becker Europa radio, misc.Freeparts;youpaytheshipping.GeneKruger:8054598868 krugerbenz@calinet.com (CA)

Tire Chains & Storage Bag Rare Mercedes OEM SpurGleitschutzketten, never used, like new. Bag in VG condition with slight cracks, staining. Good concours tie-breaker. $200+ ship. Jim Luikens: 616-450-5659, jluikey@gmail.com (MI) AMGwheels18inX8.5in From2013E350;fitsmanyEuropean cars . $599 for all 4. (new OEM $1260 ea., aftermarket $599 ea.). Priced to reflect curb rash,discolored center medallions. One wheel 1/8: out of true but holds air, runs smooth. William Ver Duin: 440.567.9246, billverduin@gmail.com (AZ)

SLS Black OEM Wheels, Tires and TPMS Set of staggered set OEM Powder-coated wheels, (19 X 9.5), (20 x 11). Continental tires (265/35 ZR19 (98Y)), (295/30 ZR 20 (101Y)). Front tires new, rears 6/32nd left. Include center caps & TPMS. $2,499 plus S&H. Patrick Osweiler: 817-919-4864 .trident@1scom.net (TX)

Winter tires and Avarus-Savini Wheels Fits any Mercedes 19” mounts: 4 used winter tires, wheels/lug nuts. Tires: Dunlop SP Winter Sport 3D (~5000 miles); 235/50/R19 (99H) Wheels made by Avarus-Savini. The Set: $600. Kirk Christoffersen: 303.775.7666, kirk.christoffersen@gmail.com (CO)

AMG Wheels, 3 tires. From a 2001 S430 . Two have almost new General G Max 275/40ZR 18 tires. Another has Sumitomo 245/45ZR18 $400. Peter Novak: 847-757-4298, captpan777@aol.com (IL)

1988 190E 2.3 and 1997 C280 190E Some good parts left: 4 Factory wheels & tires, interior items, glass, doors, rear deck & bumper assy. Also ‘97 C280 (Black/Tan). Starts, drives but needs front repair $1,500. FOB destination Davenport. James Kraus: 563.343.1525 (IA)

Becker Europa II Radio and Cassette Player From 1972 350SL. Photos available. James Lico: 650-296-9776 jlico911@ gmail.com (CA)

123 Station Wagon Superior Hydraulic Pump (Used) John Heisig: 631.725.7285 (NY)

280 Engine Head Unused engine head for a 1972 280SE or 280SL. Complete with exhaust valves, valve springs, rocker posts, chain sprockets, and injection valves, all brand new. $2,000. Henry Zwick:973.377.0052 Henryjzwick@gmail.com (NJ)

300SL Exhaust Pipe Late 1950s to early 1960s 300sl exhaust tip. A reproduction that was never used. $700. Postage extra John Herrlin: 9735434506 (NJ)

1968 300SE parts Parting out a 1968 300SE. Arnt Johansen: 407-864-0426 arntmercedes@yahoo.com (FL)

fall ‘17. Excellent condition, needs nothing. Car located in Western NY State. Drive anywhere. Purchased for relative who no longer needs it. $8000 firm. Call ! Walter Rittman: 917.680.7905 (NY)

E320 Bluetec diesel Black / Cashmere. 130,000 miles. Mostly hwy miles. Rare, sought after, 36 mpg, many options, pristine inside and out, no accidents, mechanically excellent – recent svc by MB. Records/photographs. $13,000 OBO. Karl Spiller: (415) 259-1268, karljohannspiller@gmail.com (CA)

2011 E350 S4 Blue Lunar blue / Beige MB-Tex. 50,950 miles. Beautiful family car, seating for 7, Rear Seat DVD Entertainment Sys, Pano Roof, Nav, Satellite radio and more. New tires and brakes.Powerliftgateandcargocover.$26,000.InBuffalo.Gene Long: 716.912.2902,genelong.2hl@gmail.com (NY)

2012 CLS550 Black / Light Grey. 5,500 miles. Like new condition. Original owner, dealer maintained. Indoor garage kept. NEVER snow driven. No accidents. Serious inquiries only. $39,900. Isabel Torres-Ullauri: (646) 932-1921, mitullauri@gmail.com (NY)

2013 ML350 4Matic Diamond White / Macadamia. 26,000 miles. Comand, Nav, Heated Seats, CD Changer, Lane Keeping, & Tracking, Blind Spot, Sirius XM, Bluetooth, Rear Camera, Power Mirrors, Harmon Kardon Audio. 25,750 Miles. “B” Service. $28,500 Frank Wolz: 602.618.1948 fawolz@gmail.com (AZ)

2014 ML63 AMG Polar White / Designo Auburn Brown Nappa Leather. 23,425 miles. One of the nicest and fastest ML63s that you can buy. Clean Carfax ,1 Full year of factory warranty. One owner / all maintenance has been done. 100% mint. Mark Pelchen: 724-454-7823 mpelchen@comcast.net (PA)

2014 E550 Cabriolet Silver / Grey/Black Nappa Leather. 32,000 miles. One owner, non-smoker, garaged. Excellent cond., loaded w/options, has Premium 1 package. No accidents, clean Carfax, always dealer serviced. $36,250 OBO. Richard Pescatore: 805 234-5745 slopescatore@yahoo.com (CA)

2016 C Class Sedan Cardinal red / beige. 4,510 miles. Pristine, always garaged, serviced by M-B. Two free services remaining and balance of original warranty. Premium 1 package, entertainment pkg, moonroof, etc. $32,900 Daniel Bender: 650532-3088 (CA)

Parts & Misc for Sale Vehicles Wanted

E55AMGLeatherSeatCoverNOS NOS black Nappa leather seat cover for 1999-2002 W210 E55 AMG. MB part A 210 910 3747. New never removed from original shipping wrapper. NLA from M-B. David Pienkowski: 859.230.0870 pienkow@ uky.edu (KY)

Wind Deflector for 380SE New–in box. Wind Deflector model #BQ-6-78-0016. Discontinued, rare. Complete, NOS part. May fit other models. $250+S/H. Howard Marcove: 303.378.0952 (CO)

License Plate with M-B Star Mercedes-Benz quality large raised M-B Star (chrome) firmly attached to a satin brushed- finish stainless steel plate. Includes chrome frame, protective plate cover, snap caps and mounting screws. $49.95 + 7.95 SH. Gianfranco Pigoni: 786.535.5624, autofashion1@yahoo.com (CO)

Catalogs/Manuals Customer parts catalogs (pictures/ no part numbers) 1965 250S / 250SE / 300SEB catalog A $30.; 1965 220b / 220Sb catalog D $30.; 1955 190SL catalog A $100.; Owners Manuals 1956 300Sc edition A $100.; 1957 300S edition B Reproduction $100.; Kenneth Brown: (831)214-2041, kbrown933@AOL.COM (CA)

Star Magazine collection 2002-2018. 84 magazines plus eight library bookcase MBCA Star holders. Contact for complete inventory of publications available. $375.00 + shipping.KennethGarber:(775)720-5674,Kennethsgarber@ gmail.com. (NV)

Parts & Manuals 1976-1981 Aluminum Climate Control Servos - $595 exchange; Cruise amps $195 up; ACC Panels $195 up; Pertronix solid state ignition – $119 for 1975 and older models to eliminate ignition points; ACC & Door lock repair diaphragms $7.50/$14.95; Heater lever repair kits –$129 for 108, 109, 113 models; SLS pump repair kit - $59; 107SL reman blower motors $395, also 123, 126, 140, 210 models; Parts Picture Books & Owner’s Manuals from 1960s2005; Call for list. www.perfanalysis.com George Murphy: (865) 482-9175 perfanalysis@comcast.net (TN)

Vehicles for Sale - European Autobody, Inc 1984 300TD Coupe, #173. 1977 450SL, green, $12k #206. 1982 380SL White w/ Black Int, Auto, 8cyl, $9k #226. 1969 280SE Coupe Gry w/ Blk Int, Auto, 6cyl, Under Restoration, $90k when complete #249 1966 Coupe Beige, Auto, 6cyl, Project or Parts Car, $8k #250 1985 380SL Gold w/ Brown Int, 8cyl Project Car, $5k #251 1976 280SL Orange w Black Int., $22k #286 visit www.europeanautobodyinc.com 561.495.5600 or 561.436.3131 Steve Wolf: 561.436.3131 (FL)

Mercedes-Benz Shop Closed All left-over assorted manuals, parts and tools for sale. Owners manuals, Service manuals and assorted parts for most models from 19601990. Mostly used, some new. call with needs Jeffrey Pritchett: 410.526.4495 (MD)

Wanted: 1991 560SEL Prefer black, silver, or white, but willing to look at all colors. Please call or email. If emailing, please reference 1991 560SEL in subject. David Schouweiler: (260) 414-8979 shew1344@comcast.net (IN)

Wanted:280SESedan Looking for 67 to 72 280SE 6 cyl sedan must be original not restored and rust free willing to pay market value John Kappert: 604 490 6285 kappert@shaw.ca (British Columbia)

Wanted: 1971 280 SL I’m looking for a well documented California or Southwestern car. Please contact me at 847610-0070. Thanks, John John Liapes: 847-610-0070 JJL60@ me.com (IN)

Wanted: SLC Small European bumpers preferred; service docs must; please email pics and detailed description Alex G Wijnen: 805-758-9155 alexgwijnen@yahoo.com (CA)

Wanted: W202/W203 C-Class, R170/R171 SLK, or any CLK hard top Prefer cars from west, southwest, and south. Will consider car of any color combination but must be automatic. Daniel McCall: 703-398-4154 mrporsche356@yahoo.com (VA)

Wanted: Classic & Vintage Mercedes Any Condition, Top Dollar 500K, 540K, 170, 300SL Gullwing, or Roadster,. Any classic cabriolet, coupe or roadster. Peter Kumar: 800-452-9910 peterkumar@gullwingmotorcars.com (NY)

Wanted: Any Classic Mercedes in any Condition Any Roadster, Gullwing, Coupe or Cabriolet. Very serious and professionalbuyer.Pick upfromanywhereinUS,topdollarpaid, Alex Manos: 877-912-0007 continental5000@gmail.com (CA)

Wanted: 190SL, 230SL, 250SL, 280SL Collector seeking SLs and other classic coupes and convertibles. Any condition, anywhere, cash, quick transaction. Drew Schneider: Drew Schneider: 440-781-3036 dicschneider@aol.com (OH)

Commercial Businesses and MBCA Members

Who operate commercial enterprises are encouraged to advertise in the mbca.org online classifieds, which also appear in each issue of The Star. The advertiser is responsible for posting and renewing its ads, which must berenewedevery60days.Currentcommercialratesapply.

StarryEyed

Fritz Nallinger tookoverthetestingandexperimentaldivisionatMercedes-BenzafterFerdinandPorsche left the firm in 1928. Porsche’s SS/SSK supercars – upgraded and then augmented by Nallinger’s SSKL –were formidable machines. This program commemorates the Grand Prix of Nations at the Nürburgring, July 14, 1929: The team of Count Max von Arco-Zinneberg and August Momberger won their class in an SSK (see The Star, January-February 2017). Nallinger’s story begins on page 58. Image Daimler Archives

With its bold stance and iconic streamlined silhouette, the 2019 Mercedes-Benz CLS is a breathtaking statement of aerodynamic elegance. And while the exterior of the CLS sees a simplified reduction in lines and edges, the interior gains a comfortable fifth seat. A reminder that innovation really does lead to beauty. MBUSA.com/CLS

2019 CLS450 Edition 1 shown in Graphite Grey paint. European model shown. Vehicle available summer 2018. ©2018 Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC For more information, call 1-800-FOR-MERCEDES, or visit MBUSA.com.

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