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PreWar Mercedes Benz


alsancle

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  • 2 weeks later...
He is saying the A is under restoration and available restored.

Yes. That seems to be the trend these days - pay $1.5M to $2M for an older restoration, re-restore it and sell it 2 years later for $3-4M. For example the Cab A in a couple of weeks in Scottsdale. They're really flipping these cars fast.

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Guest rwmoulton
[ATTACH=CONFIG]288349[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]288350[/ATTACH]

Couple more. About 30 pieces of the brass trim that will later be plated, and another shot of the engine rebuild.

Were all those trim pieces formed by hand or did you have some originals to go by?

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Three cars coming up for auction in the next few weeks. A sports Cab A at RM in Scottsdale next weekend, a 380 Cab A and a 540K rebodied special roadster at Artcurial in Paris next month. The latter is estimated at $2.5-3.5M, but I'll be surprised if it brings a bid over $1.5M. That would be 50% more than the highest auction sale of a rebodied roadster.

Looking at the photos of the Franz Prahl-rebodied Special Roadster, I see some things that are not correct. Some of the interior trim looks too heavy. No Willy Vogel lubrication pump on the left side of the firewall, so probably no central lube system at all. The distributor cap is wrong. There should be two hood handles on each side, not one. The hood hinge looks too big or sticks up too high - could be optical illusion. There is supposed to be only one tail pipe on these cars, not two. There is no slide-out writing surface under the passenger side glove box. Beautiful car, and looks straight as an arrow, but not the best Special Roadster recreation.

The most recent rebodied special roadster auction sale I know of was 2006 and $836K. I predict the errors in this car will keep the bids under $1.5M and unsold, but I do not have a good track record predicting auctions - I've been low almost every time.

Edited by 540K (see edit history)
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The Cab A won first in class and best of show at Arizona Concours yesterday, but they took away the latter because it's being auctioned next weekend. What a bunch of crap. Cars are bought and sold every day. Why would they deny the owner, who spent gobs and took the added risk of showing it one last time, the full enjoyment of his car before it goes to someone else? I can understand they don't like being an unwitting "advertiser" but the Saoutchik 540k won Pebble and was auctioned the next year.

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Agree- it seems like a good time to sell is often after the car is judged in a concours; and it is not like it is a secret given the car appears in the catalog, right? Also, what difference should it make to the attendees who are looking to enjoy these cars not so much who owns them. Without the cars, it is tough to have a concours regardless of how established it is - no different than the local show & shine in that regard.

BTW - Craig, saw your jig for sale in the MBCA "Star" - GLWS - you never know where a buyer might be looking!

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BTW - Craig, saw your jig for sale in the MBCA "Star" - GLWS - you never know where a buyer might be looking!

Yes, it's too bad they got the contact info wrong. I have contacted them to run it again next quarter.

News report online suggests Taffet got to keep the Best of Show award after all. Show claims they have a policy of not accepting cars to be auctioned that week in Scottsdale, and that seller must have decided after the car was accepted. I still think it's a hokey policy for the show to have. Show awards cut both ways - helps prove it's a good car/restoration, but also may keep the new owner from getting to go to that show (ten-year wait to go back to Pebble, as I understand it).

Edited by 540K (see edit history)
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The Cab A won first in class and best of show at Arizona Concours yesterday, but they took away the latter because it's being auctioned next weekend. What a bunch of crap. Cars are bought and sold every day. Why would they deny the owner, who spent gobs and took the added risk of showing it one last time, the full enjoyment of his car before it goes to someone else? I can understand they don't like being an unwitting "advertiser" but the Saoutchik 540k won Pebble and was auctioned the next year.

High bid of $3.1M yesterday, but failed to meet reserve. The auction estimate had been $3.4M - $4M, so I doubt it missed the rerserve by much. Perhaps it will sell post-auction.

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I watched the 1937 320 Cab B go through Scottsdale yesterday. It had a reserve and did not sell at $1.045. This morning I looked at the pictures in the listing. The question I have is the seat pattern correct? It looks more 1965 Chevy or Plymouth than 1937 MB.

Charlie Theobald

1963 Plymouth 426

1968 Toyota Corona

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I watched the 1937 320 Cab B go through Scottsdale yesterday. It had a reserve and did not sell at $1.045. This morning I looked at the pictures in the listing. The question I have is the seat pattern correct? It looks more 1965 Chevy or Plymouth than 1937 MB.

Others could tell you more than I can about the 320's, but it isn't the trim pattern like the same period 500K/540K's.

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post-102942-143142941978_thumb.jpg

This is the interior shot that I have of the 540K when I worked at Bob Platz's. Of course I wish I had a better shot but this is what I think the pattern should look like. It's been a year and a half since I've seen Henry Magno's Combination Coupe so I really can't say what his has. And I need to revise my opinion of the B-J 320's pattern. I think it's from a 1969 Plymouth Sport Fury!

Charlie Theobald

1963 Plymouth 426

1968 Toyota Corona

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OK, I found it. http://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/Scottsdale2015-178719

Nice car. Marked sold at 1.045 million. I thought the seats were the same as the 500k/540k but I'm not a 320 expert. These do look different but it also looks like a pretty nice car.

Please please

If anyone can explain to me how people are buying for 1.045000 $$$ cab b the max price is 300k$ With the best restoration.

That not a 500k not 540k

Please if the buyer exist for that car contact me I will help you to buy 3 cars for that amount of money

Thanks

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The seats on the 320 Cab B are more or less correct from what I can see. The execution maybe not so great. Looks like they used foam since you can see the edges of the foam showing sharp corners under the leather. These cars (Cab B and D) did have a combination of pleats and wider panels. One thing is for sure, you can't look at one body style and assume it's the same for another. Both my Cab A and Combination Coupe originally had significantly different upholstery treatment. And as you 500K 540K owners know, the upholstery patterns can vary quite a bit from car to car, regardless of body style.

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Mike Brady from the ACD club sent me this picture and the following comments. He's from the Toronto area and the car was local along with the Mayfair roadster. Does anyone know more about the early history of this car. I believe it was a PB best of show 10 or so years ago with the spares moved to the back.

"I assume that the attached photo is the SSK now owned by Arturo Keller. This photo was taken at Bud McDougald's Toronto home in the early 1960's where it remained until the late 1970's. McDougalds' widow donated it and a number of other cars to the Canadian Automotive Museum about 1996, the year I got my drivers licence."

post-31305-143142947229_thumb.jpg

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  • 2 weeks later...
Three cars coming up for auction in the next few weeks. A sports Cab A at RM in Scottsdale next weekend, a 380 Cab A and a 540K rebodied special roadster at Artcurial in Paris next month. The latter is estimated at $2.5-3.5M, but I'll be surprised if it brings a bid over $1.5M. That would be 50% more than the highest auction sale of a rebodied roadster.

Looking at the photos of the Franz Prahl-rebodied Special Roadster, I see some things that are not correct. Some of the interior trim looks too heavy. No Willy Vogel lubrication pump on the left side of the firewall, so probably no central lube system at all. The distributor cap is wrong. There should be two hood handles on each side, not one. The hood hinge looks too big or sticks up too high - could be optical illusion. There is supposed to be only one tail pipe on these cars, not two. There is no slide-out writing surface under the passenger side glove box. Beautiful car, and looks straight as an arrow, but not the best Special Roadster recreation.

The most recent rebodied special roadster auction sale I know of was 2006 and $836K. I predict the errors in this car will keep the bids under $1.5M and unsold, but I do not have a good track record predicting auctions - I've been low almost every time.

True to form, I predicted low. The rebodied 540K Spezial-Roadster went for $2,172,000, assuming it met reserve. The auction staff told me a week ago they were trying to get the owner to lower the reserve, but I don't know what it was, and with the auction conducted in French, I couldn't tell whether it sold or not. I'll look to see when the official results are posted. The 380 Cab A went for $1.5M.

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