For Sale 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing

The Lord’s Gullwing

According to a copy of the factory supplied data card as well as its factory issued Zertifikat, this special order 300SL ‘Gullwing’ Coupe was completed by Mercedes-Benz on July 20^th 1955, delivered new as it presents today in DB 534 Feuerwehrrot paint (Fire Brigade Red) with an interior consisting of a fawn vinyl dash and seats trimmed in fawn vinyl affixed to L2 Gabardine red plaid seats. Unlike most 300SLs, this car was not destined for the US market, but rather, on July 26^th of 1955, it was delivered new to Great Britain and the UK Mercedes-Benz agency in London, England. As a special order vehicle not intended for dealership lot display, this 300SL Coupe was fitted with instruments in English, a 3.42:1 rear axle ratio and came with export license plates. All of these dates and records are neatly documented on the copies of the factory build sheets and the Mercedes-Benz Classic Zertifikat contained within the car’s history file.

This Gullwing was delivered to its first owner, The Right Honourable Lord Terence O’Neill, Baron O’Neill of the Maine. Lord O’Neill, the 4^th Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, owned the car for a time and sold chassis 5500545 to a Mr. Lee, also residing in the UK. Mr. Lee then traded the car to another resident Englishman by the name of Mr. Handel. In the 1970’s the Gullwing set out on a journey to the United States, where it made its way into the possession German native Mr. Max Spitznagel of Los Angeles, California. Spitznagel would later sell the car to a fellow German, Mr. Friedrich H. Wegener, a classic car enthusiast from Downey, California.

In 2004, Scott Grundfor purchased chassis 5500545 from Wegener and shortly thereafter sold the car to William J. Kling of Malibu, California. At this point the Gullwing was still remarkably original and and still painted red with the factory interior still intact but noticeably tired. Though re-restored again in the past several years to refine an already very nice 300SL Gullwing, an initial restoration was performed by Scott Grundfor Company soon after the purchase and subsequent sale to Kling in 2005 with the goal of transforming chassis 5500545 into a top level driver car with handsome cosmetics. New paint and a new interior were fashioned by Scott Grundfor along with cleaning of the engine bay and the undercarriage as part of the restoration process. Photos taken prior to this mid-2000’s restoration work are present in the car’s history file, showing just how original and complete the Gullwing was. From about 2005 to 2007, Scott Grundfor Company went through most aspects of the car, notably addressing all mechanical components for high level usability purposes, and re-finishing the cosmetics to a high standard in the as-delivered livery noted on the factory-issued Data Card.

The entirety of the 300SL’s original drivetrain, including the matching numbers engine, was rebuilt to function as originally intended providing reliability, and, because the car was in such remarkably original condition to begin with, the body was never required to be removed from the chassis, thereby not disturbing the integrity of the coachwork. William Kling, client of Scott Grundfor Company for whom the car was restored, would go on to own 300SL Gullwing chassis 5500545 until 2015 with regular service and maintenance work having been performed by Rene Luteraan’s well-known Van Nuys Sports Cars during his ownership tenure.

In 2016, Scott Grundfor Company would again be tasked with brokering the Gullwing to a good new home, eventually selling chassis 5500545 to a collector of exceptional racing and sports cars based out of San Rafael, California. Said collector, not satisfied with merely owning a top class, all matching numbers, original colors 300SL Gullwing, decided he wanted to “up the ante” on his newly purchased Gullwing in all respects. He thus enlisted the services of expert Mercedes-Benz specialists to refine an already superb W198 coupe via cosmetic work performed by Don Mertz Restorations of Sun Valley, California and further mechanical work by Van Nuys Sports Cars as well as Phil Reilly Company. Between 2012 and 2024, over $300,000 was spent on an array of upgrades to chassis 5500545.