Offered exclusively as a pair from Scott Grundfor Co. after more than 40 years of single-collection ownership, the 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300 Sc Pininfarina Coupé and the 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300b Pininfarina Coupé bring together two exceptional expressions of post-war custom coachwork — among the rarest categories in all of Mercedes-Benz history. In the post-war era, Mercedes-Benz almost never released a chassis for outside coachbuilding, with documented one-off coachbuilt post-war cars numbering in the single digits. These two Mercedes-Benz factory-documented luxury tourers, created in consecutive years and dispatched from Sindelfingen specifically for bespoke coachwork by Carrozzeria Pininfarina in Turin, are among that select few and represent the pinnacle of post-war custom coachwork for the marque. Both of these rare Italian Mercedes-Benz cars are mulitple-time participants and former Best in Class winners at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, with the 300 Sc notably receiving the Mercedes-Benz Star of Excellence Award as the most significant Mercedes-Benz car of the 2026 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, where both cars were shown together once again.
1956 Mercedes-Benz 300 Sc Pininfarina Coupé
- A genuine one-off — the only fuel-injected 300 Sc documented for bespoke custom coachwork
- Fully matched factory numbers — chassis 188 014-65 00088, fuel-injected engine 199 980-65 00087, and body A 188 014-65 00041
- Rare, two-part delivery to Turin — bare chassis and loose trim kit dispatched 14 April 1956; primed body components with finished interior dispatched 11 June 1956 explicitly “nach Turin.”
- Bespoke commission — ordered new by Dr. C. A. Pastor of Aachen through the Mercedes-Benz Aachen branch under special order SA 352 186.
- Award-winning at Pebble Beach — winner of the Mercedes-Benz Star of Excellence Award for the most significant Mercedes-Benz car at the 2026 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.
- Concours and touring ready — presented in striking sea blue-green livery with green leather interior, combining coachbuilt rarity with fuel-injected performance.
Standard-production 300 Sc cars are themselves quite rare, numbering only 98 coupés, 53 roadsters, and 49 cabriolets. The Pininfarina Coupé stands alone as the only 300 Sc chassis with bespoke original coachwork. Through subtle and bold custom body work by Pininfarina, this luxurious and stately fuel-injected 300 Sc transforms the production 300 Sc model into a more overtly grand-touring form, lower and more purposeful, with its three-liter inline-six particularly well matched to the coachbuilt body. Its companion one-off, the 300b, is a complete reimagining of the Mercedes-Benz 300 platform, with fully bespoke Pininfarina bodywork and custom interior design. Together, the pair sit at the very top of the post-war Mercedes-Benz rarity scale and offer an unmatched combination of luxury and grand touring style that cannot be replicated.
1955 Mercedes-Benz 300b Pininfarina Coupé
- One-off coachbuilt Mercedes-Benz — the only W186 300b chassis documented as a bespoke two-door coupé, rather than a catalogue Adenauer saloon.
- Datenkarte factory-to-coachbuilder history — Sindelfingen to to F.A. Saporiti in Milan, to Turin, all dated January 1955.
- Mercedes-Benz Datenkarte records Fahrgestell-Nr. 186.010-55-00044 as a primed structure, for complete custom Pininfarina body and interior
- Notable press and show pedigree — cover Road & Track, November 1955, definitive 1993 retrospective by Dennis Adler in The Star Magazine.
- Concours-ready and continuously documented — awarded First in Class at the 1992 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, and shown again at Pebble Beach for the Pininfarina 75th Anniversary.
- Recently shown together with 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300 Sc Pininfarina Coupé — shown for a 3rd time at the 75th Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in August 2026.
The contrast between the two cars accentuates their value and rarity as a paired offering, and is central to their appeal. The 300 Sc retains the familiar Mercedes-Benz grille and three-pointed star within a distinctly Italian silhouette, with novel front and rear lights built directly into the shape of the body. The 300b, by contrast, is a more radical transformation: its pillarless two-door body and fully bespoke interior design bear little resemblance to the production saloon, giving the familiar Mercedes-Benz underpinnings an entirely new identity. Their individual histories reveal how these two very different interpretations took shape.
The 300 Sc Pininfarina Coupé
Commissioned by Dr. C. A. Pastor through the Mercedes-Benz branch in Aachen, the 300 Sc is documented in unusual detail by its original Datenkarte file. The records identify a left-hand-drive Typ 300 Sc Coupé, with the chassis signed off as complete on 13 April 1956.
Two separate rail shipments followed, each under its own commission number. The bare, primed chassis left Sindelfingen on 14 April 1956 with a loose-parts kit for the coachbuilder to fit. Then, on 11 June 1956, the primed body parts were dispatched, explicitly “nach Turin.” The second delivery record specifies green leather 1078 upholstery piped with black leather 953, a steering wheel bearing the Mercedes-Benz emblem, an ivory gear-shift knob under special order SA 352 186, whitewall Dunlop 6.50-15 tires on welded 5K x 15 wheels, and a fixed rear bench seat. The Sindelfingen delivery department signed off with 106 km recorded.
In Turin, Pininfarina’s treatment of the 300 Sc combined a light, airy greenhouse with a carefully tapered rear, giving the one-off coupé an elegance distinct from the standard factory body. The bespoke silhouette is balanced by the mighty Mercedes-Benz grille and badge, preserving the car’s marque identity within an unmistakably Italian flair in design. Where the 300b expresses Pinin Farina’s early post-war fascination with visual lightness and elegant proportion, the 300 Sc advances that theme into a more overtly grand-touring form, its fuel-injected engine particularly well matched to the coachbuilt body.
>The definition of rarity as a custom coach built post war Mercedes-Benz, with factory records showing a particularly rare two-stage preparation and delivery to Turin specifically for custom coachwork.
Following its early-1990s restoration by Scott Grundfor, the 300 Sc won Best in Class at the 1994 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. In a full circle moment, a return to Pebble Beach in 2026 occurred, where it received the Mercedes-Benz Star of Excellence Award as the most significant Mercedes-Benz car of the entire show. Presented alongside the 300b Pininfarina Coupé, it brought renewed recognition to a pairing preserved for decades.
The 300b Pininfarina Coupé
The earlier of the two one-off commissions, the 300b Pininfarina Coupé, followed a different route to Turin. Built on a Mercedes-Benz Typ 300 b Fahrgestell “Innenlenker links,” Baumuster 55, under Kommissions-Nr. 682 988, the 1955 car was supplied new to F.A. Saporiti, the Mercedes-Benz dealer in Milan. Its original Datenkarte records completion in Sindelfingen on 8 January 1955 as a primed, untrimmed structure and rail consignment to Turin on 17 January. This paper trail supports the account of Saporiti forwarding the rolling chassis to Pininfarina, where the body and interior were conceived and built from scratch in under a year.
New… from Italy – Pinin Farina applies his artistry to the Mercedes-Benz 300b, a 4-seater Berlina.
– Road & Track, November 1955
The completed coupé appeared on the cover of the November 1955 issue of Road & Track, introduced as a four-seater Berlina. Its light roof, slim pillars, and flowing fender lines gave it an identity far removed from the Adenauer saloon. It subsequently toured European shows, showcasing Pininfarina’s interpretation of the Mercedes-Benz flagship.
Beneath this transformation, the Typ 300b running gear remains, with Fulda 7,10 x 15 tires on 5K x 15 wheels matching the Datenkarte specification. Beyond the drivetrain, however, the coupé bears little to no resemblance to the production model: both its body and interior design are fully bespoke Pininfarina work. The cabin incorporates the original 300 dashboard and instruments within a specially designed arrangement of seating and trim, creating an unusually airy and spacious interior.
By 1956, Pininfarina had refined the exterior with additional chrome moldings, extended fender fairings, and a revised two-tone scheme. These details remain part of the car’s presentation today, preserving the evolution of its design under the Italian coachbuilder’s watchful eye rather than merely its first appearance.
Rediscovered in the United States decades after its original European show-circuit days in the 1980’s, the car underwent a comprehensive restoration by Scott Grundfor, documented in Dennis Adler’s January/February 1993 feature article “Pinin Farina 300b Coupé” in The Star Magazine — still the definitive modern reference on the car. In 1992 the restoration was honored with Best in Class at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, and the car later returned to Pebble Beach as part of the Pininfarina 75th Anniversary celebration where it was photographed alongside Sergio Pininfarina and the 300 Sc sister car on the lawn. In 2026, further attention fell upon the 300b as it graced the lawns of Pebble Beach for a 3rd time alongside the 300 Sc.
Sindelfingen to Turin
Preserved together for more than 40 years, this unique pair of Italian coachbuilt Mercedes-Benz cars offers the collector in search of ultimate rarity something special on many levels: the opportunity to own the pinnacle of post-war Mercedes-Benz custom coachwork, a level rarity difficult to overemphasize given the German outfit’s penchant for outsourcing nothing; and also the ability keep two complementary, significant Pininfarina commissions united. Their factory records, period coverage, restoration histories, and concours recognition give this paired offering a depth that extends well beyond visual appeal and pedigree, straying well beyond unique into the category of singularly rare.
Both of these spectacular Italian bodied Mercedes-Benz Coupés certainly stand alone as individual cars sitting at the very top of the post-war Mercedes-Benz collectibility ladder. Offered exclusively as a pair from Scott Grundfor Co., they tell a rich and unique story of Stuttgart engineering, Italian design, and sustained private stewardship. Two one-off Pininfarina coupés, one unrepeatable offering.
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