1958 MERCEDES-BENZ 190SL Registration Number: 601 UYN Chass...

Hammer

£52,000

1958 MERCEDES-BENZ 190SL

Registration Number: 601 UYN
Chassis Number: 121.040.8500635
Recorded Mileage: TBA

“Very few new sports cars have been so eagerly awaited or so long in coming as the moderately priced SL version of the Mercedes-Benz.” Road & Track magazine.

Alongside its hyper-expensive race-bred sports car – the 300SL – Mercedes-Benz offered the less exotic but no less refined 190 SL. Announced in 1954 and based on the 180 saloon whose all-independently-suspended running gear it used, the 190 SL entered production in January 1955. Mounted on a detachable sub-frame along with the four-speed manual gearbox, front suspension and steering, the power unit was a 1,897cc overhead-camshaft four – the first such engine ever to feature in a Mercedes-Benz. Breathing through twin Solex downdraft carburettors, the M121 unit produced 105bhp at 5,700rpm, enough to propel the 190SL to 100km/h in 13 seconds, and onto a top speed of 170km/h. The fact that the 190’s ride was more boulevard than sporting, and that many contemporary sports cars could out-perform it while costing a good deal less, did nothing to deter buyers. The model was a big hit in the USA, where many of the 26,000-odd vehicles produced between 1955 and 1963 found homes.

First registered in 1958, the earlier history of this example is not known, however by the late 1990s the 190SL was appraised and traded by specialist dealer Fraser Dante of Atlanta, Georgia to its next owner in Virginia. According to the 1998 valuation letter the 190SL was said to have enjoyed a bare metal bodywork restoration and partial retrim between 1996 and 1997, and around the same time fitted with twin Mikuni PHH carburettors.

In 2015 the Mercedes-Benz was purchased by a British enthusiast, who imported the car and kept it for a further two years until ownership passed to our current custodian. In current ownership the 190SL has been treated to a top-end engine rebuild, a suspension and brake overhaul, engine servicing and tuning of the carburettors. The history file contains recent bills for over £5,000 for parts acquired. 

The SL presents well in Fire Engine Red with a tan interior and convertible roof, with room for minor improvement to the interior as and when convenient. The history file contains a UK V5C and copy of the older Virginia title, an older MoT certificate, bills and valuation letter from the United States dating to the 1990s, and many recent parts bills. With the benefit of recent mechanical attention, 
we feel this is an eminently sensibly estimated example in the current market.