1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster

This W198 chassis Roadster was purchased new by John Ebell of Woodland, California in late 1957. According to Ebell, a member of the Mercedes-Benz Club of America, Sacramento Section, he purchased the car new via The Electric Garage Co., a Studebaker dealer founded in 1906 based out of Woodland, California, after seeing the 300SL Roadster on display at the November/December 1957 San Francisco International Auto Show. While John Ebell owned chassis 7500176 (1957 – 1972), the car was used frequently in driving events such as local parking lot time trials and races, and in 1963, the car received the now iconic California black and yellow plates it retains to this day.

According to an original bill of sale contained in the history file of 300SL chassis 7500176, John Ebell would sell the Roadster he bought new in 1957 to Desmond and Elaine Bonnington of Fair Oaks, California on July 31st, 1972 for a price of $4,800.00. According to documentation also in the Roadster’s history file, John Ebell placed a ‘for sale’ ad in the MBCA Sacramento Section’s July 1972 newsletter offering his Silver Roadster to potential suitors. The Bonnington’s, Desmond Jr. and Elaine, also members of the MBCA Sacramento Section, responded to the ad and were invited to inspect the car at the Ebell’s home in Woodland, California.

Chassis 7500176 was kept in a four-car garage at the home of John Ebell, complete with service pit and servicing equipment along with three Ferrari’s. John Ebell told the Bonnington’s that the car was at the Mercedes-Benz display at the November-December 1957 San Francisco International Auto Show and that he had bought the car off of the stand through The Electric Garage Co, a Studebaker dealer in Woodland. Ebell further noted that the cost of air freight from Germany had been added to the price of the car, to his surprise. After much discussion between buyer and seller, the sale to the Bonnington’s was agreed upon and was to be completed in the next couple of days. However, the day after the agreement was made to the sell the car for $4,800, the Bonnington’s received a phone call in which Ebell pulled back from the deal.

Approximately a week later, Mr. Ebell called and told the Bonnington’s that if they were still interested in the car they needed to get the money to him before he changed his mind again. Ebell said that he had just driven the first street-legal Ferrari Daytona and was buying it, with his wife telling him that he had too many cars and needed to sell one, thus he chose to part ways with the 300SL. On arrival, with a check in hand, the Bonnington’s were met with a “bait and switch” attempt by Ebell towards his idea to sell them one of the Ferrari’s in Ebell’s garage instead of selling them the 300SL.

Undeterred by Ebell’s antics and following more discussion, the sale of chassis 7500176 to the Bonnington’s was finally agreed upon and actually completed, thus the 300SL left Woodland for a new home in Fair Oaks, California where it would remain for the next 50 years! Notably, as passed along from original owner John Ebell to The Bonnington’s, were two 1963 issued California black plates designated “AUD 005” along with a license plate holder from the original selling dealership, The Electric Garage Co., all of which remains with the car today.

During Desmond and Elaine Bonnington’s 49 year ownership tenure (1972 – 2021) of chassis 7500176, the car participated in many Gullwing Group and Mercedes-Benz social driving events such as the MBCA Western Caravans at Monterey/Laguna Seca and Ontario Motor Speedway; the Solvang Swing rallies on President’s Day; and many Gullwing Group annual conventions in places such as Monterey, Santa Barbara, San Diego, Portland, Lake Tahoe/Reno and Victoria, British Columbia. Several modifications were made during the Bonnington ownership including a modern electric ignition which has since been converted back to original and a new distributor installed with the original parts retained. Cosmetically, the most noteworthy thing to occur under the half-century of Bonnington ownership was stripping the car to bare metal and repainting it in 1998 in the original color of DB 180 silver grey metallic and to a very high standard as seen today.

In 2021, Scott Grundfor Company privately brokered the sale of this superb lifetime California black plate 300SL Roadster to a discerning Mercedes-Benz collector in the Eastern US where the car has been driven sparingly and toured locally on the East Coast to the tune of about 500 miles, bringing the total mileage of chassis 7500176 to a little over 80,000 miles from new. During this time, the car was serviced and cared for diligently in a collection of top-quality, highly authentic Mercedes-Benz classics.

Today, this early production 300SL Roadster is in superb condition throughout, sporting iconic Mercedes racing team silver and blue livery while retaining rarely seen, superbly maintained notes of originality throughout. The impressive and beautifully patina’d original 979 steel blue Roser leather interior, and the well-paired original blue and grey German square weave carpets, speak to the care the car has received since new. The fit and finish of the exterior paint and chrome is very much ‘as original’ throughout, presenting as precisely as a new 300SL would in period and featuring an exceptionally straight, all original metal body. All stamped numbers on the car match the factory data card including chassis (176), body (075), engine (211), transmission (210), front end (201,207) and and rear end (205), while all factory installed original tags on the car also remain in place including body (interior), firewall data plate, chassis frame tag and engine tag.

A wonderful, quite rare level of originality is seen in many facets of chassis 7500176, but of particular note is the presence of the body number “75” as found on the underside of the original seat cushions, written in chalk by Mercedes-Benz technicians in 1957. Also, the same number “75” is seen written in red-orange paint on the bottom side of the metal tonneau that covers the soft top, an unusual factory note seen only on the most original early production 300SL Roadsters. In the engine bay, the original cylinder head with a compression ratio of 8.5:1 stamped into it matches that same numerical ratio stamped into the original engine block, while further accents of originality are to be found on examination of the chassis. Underneath the car, one finds original yellow and red factory painted ‘witness marks’ still present on much of the original hardware, a reminder of the day when all such components were snugly tightened down at the factory in 1957. Mechanically, the car is superb on the road, running and driving as originally intended and wanting for nothing, as one would expect of such an original, never disassembled 300SL Roadster.

With only two long term owners in California from new until 2021 and just three owners in total, this superbly cared for, very original early production 1957 300SL Roadster presents today in its original color of DB 180 Silver Grey Metallic paint over an amazing factory original 979 Steel Blue leather interior. The 300SL comes with Mercedes-Benz Zertifikat document, original US specification headlights, 1963 issued California black plates, original Electric Garage Company license plate holder, black soft top, original books, tools and jack, an extra set of blue hub caps and a copy of the factory data card. As pure and authentic as 300SL’s come, with fully known history from new and an original feel that few other examples can properly imitate, this quintessential Silver & Blue W198 convertible is ready for preservation showing and regular touring use.