540K

Yes, but there is still a lot of misinformation out there. I picked up a book for two bucks the other day called Great Marques - Mercedes-Benz by Roger Bell published in 1980. It has a photo of what appears to be a high door, long tail Special Roadster with 4 side windows like a Cab B and a small back seat. There appears to be a rumble seat lid, but it's not open. No trim on the fenders, vent screens are wrong, bumpers are wrong, wire wheels look chunky, tops of the seat are wrong - and that's just from a single profile photo. The caption is "1934 500K Special Roadster with all-independent suspension and a six cylinder 5-litre supercharged engine." This is wrong on so many levels. My best guess is that this is one of the Sbarro replicas, but this car gets a two-page spread in a book purporting to be about real Mercedes-Benz cars. The Sbarro cars bring about $200,000 I believe, but in a private sale someone might think because of this book they were buying a real Mercedes if they have not done their homework and act in haste before someone else gets the "deal of a lifetime."

I don't know anything about 1942 productions, but modern movies just use mock-ups of classic cars when they're "flogged" like that. I know the staff cars in Raiders of the Lost Ark probably had no Mercedes parts/panels on them at all. Is it just me or do they look like American cars with Mercedes radiators? Filmed entirely in California, I suppose they could have had a few vintage Mercedes available, but maybe crying is not necessary! I love the chase sequence -- squealing tires on dirt roads (which Hollywood still does), and doing everything but drifting (not that they didn't try)! Thanks for both posts!

I guess there are a lot of rebodied cars being sold as original, regardless of the body style. My car is rebodied, but I would never try to pass it off as anything else. It won't be allowed on the "hallowed lawns" but I'll have more fun going to shows where people never get to see anything like a Special Roadster. I'll be watching the Auctions America sale July 18 where a rebodied Special Roadster will be the star of the show. Artcurial failed to sell a similar car in Paris in January, despite an alledged bid of $1.9M. Maybe the owner of this car will have a more realistic reserve, though I suspect it's at least $1.7M. I don't think Auctions America is where I'd try to sell this car, regardless what incentive they may have offered. There is absolutely nothing else in the 300-car auction in the same category as a Special Roadster - rebodied or not. The only other cars estimated at a million or more are a couple of Ferrari's and a 300SL roadster. Good luck attracting the right bidders. I hope it sells for $2M, but I predict it goes back home with the current owner, even though it is the most accurate rebodied Special Roadster you can buy. I dispute that the paint is one of Mercedes' colors as touted by the catalog. I've never seen a 540K of any body style with pearlized paint. That's what is giving it the pink hue in the sunlight. It's beautiful, but wouldn't be (and isn't) my choice. At least he didn't put whitewalls on it! http://auctionsamerica.com/events/feature-lots.cfm?SaleCode=CA15&ID=r0215&Order=alphabetical&feature=&collection=&grouping=&category=vehicles

no longer for sale

Please find me one of these central lubrication junctions at the show.

That's been on their website for several years.

I guess any publicity is good publicity, but I wonder how many high-end collectors are trolling eBay. After only drawing bids of $522K, they have relisted and upped the price another $300K to $2.2M. That would be a $900K profit in 2 years, but maybe that's what they're worth now. It needs $500K or more in restoration, and that would put the buyer at about $3M. BTW, my post #957 includes a 380 Cab A in this year's sales. The larger engine Cab A's sold this year have both been about $3M.

1938 540K Cab A with covered spare sold for $2,996,255, within the pre-sale estimate, but quite a bit above the Cab A average over the past several years. I have the average Cab A from 2010-2014 at $2.1M, avg of the three that have sold in 2015 is $2.5M. The rare 770 Cab D sold for $2.5M. Beautiful car in its own right.

That burgundy Cab A that sold for $1.3M a couple of years ago has found its way onto eBay for $1.9M, and it still needs at least half a million in restoration.

The Cab A sold for $3,025,000, nearly double the last sale (that I know of) of this car in 2006. RM's estimate seemed to be closer to reality than Bonham's were earlier this week. Ferarri's continue to hit it out of the park.

Agreed as to most non-Sindelfingen bodies, but I don't think the Erdmann & Rossi bodies would suffer in value. There was also a Saoutchik that might command a premium, the Mayfair roadster (not to be confused with the plain tourer) is stunning, and the Vanvooren coupe falls narrowly short of the Sindelfingen coupe with the rear spats. But you are right, I can't think of another factory that was consistently as good as or better than the premium coachbuilders. Rolls-Royce farmed their best stuff out, didn't they? It always irks me when journalists write about the great coachbuilders and completely overlook Sindelfingen just because it was a factory operation.

I agree re RHD. The Mayfair just sold 7 months ago for $825K in Monterey. Did they really think they would get more at Amelia Island? Crazy. I watched parts of the auction. There were a lot of no sales and cars that sold well under the low estimate. Just my opinion from watching the majors for the past several years, but I don't think Bonham's auctioneers are nearly as good as RM and Gooding at keeping bidding going. RM's "Maximum Max" is probably the best, and it doesn't hurt he speaks several languages. Bonham's will get two more shots in Stuttgart - yet another Cab A, and a 770 Cab D.

I believe the last three supercharged Mercedes at auction have all been unsold, including the Mayfair roadster this afternoon.

My understanding is the "low door" Special Roadster is rebodied from a limousine, which I thought would have been called a 500K, but maybe the put a 500K body on a 540K chassis? They have a Cab B and Cab C I know. What are the other two 500/540K's there?

Have never liked the tourers with the big flat unraked windshield.

There are so many incorrect aspects I wouldn't know where to start. It is better perhaps than the old Marlene and Thoroughbred kit cars, but my opinion is he does a fair job just shooting from the hip based on photos.

It is not a 500K or 540K

Yes, but high water raises all boats. Gullwings went up first, and then the roadsters went with them. Why aren't more of the B/C owners trying to capitalize on the high prices?

I have found evidence of the following sales since the mid-1980's: 33 Cab A's, one didn't meet reserve (includes two coming up for sale next month) 11 Cab B's 12 Cab C's 12 misc Cabriolets, either unknown style or one-offs 20 roadsters and special roadsters (4 rebodied from Cab's; one didn't meet reserve). About half the roadster sales are since mid-2011. They only made about 1/3 as many Cab A's as other Cab's, and yet they have appeared on the market as many times as all the other Cab's put together. I realize these numbers include multiple sales of the same cars, but why do you suppose the B/C's aren't changing hands?

The Sindelfingen long-tail Spezial-Roadsters had only one tail pipe, not two like many of the other body styles, including some of the one-off roadsters. I believe this is supported by photos, and is correct according to Jim Friswold. The Prahl car has two tail pipes, probably because that's what it had from the factory as a Cab B.

News reports do not reflect that the 540K sold. The reserve must have been nearly 3X the most recent sale of a rebodied roadster. Given the mistakes in the restoration (no central lube system, too many tail pipes, too few hood handles, no distributor cap cover), I think the bidding was more than fair.

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.

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.

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.

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).