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Price |
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Production |
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Engine |
6.8
liter inline-6 |
Weight |
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Aspiration |
supercharger |
Torque |
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HP |
180
hp |
HP/Weight |
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HP/Liter |
26.5
hp per liter |
1/4 mile |
-- |
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0-62 mph |
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Top Speed |
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(from Mercedes-Benz
Press Release) Mercedes-Benz wins Best of Show title at the
2012 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance
• A
Mercedes-Benz Saoutchik S Type receives the coveted award
• Originally delivered in 1928
• Seventh Best of Show title for Mercedes-Benz
Stuttgart – A
Mercedes-Benz Saoutchik S Type has won this year’s Best of Show
title at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. The car, whose
‘torpedo’ bodywork with low windscreen was designed by French
coachbuilder Jacques Saoutchik, captured the hearts of the judges,
who named it the finest vehicle on display at the prestigious event.
The Mercedes-Benz
Classic Archives have information on the winning car to offer. It
was originally ordered by Mercedes-Benz Comp. Inc., New York, for a
Mr. Charles Levine, New York. On 2 August 1928, the chassis was
delivered to Saoutchik in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. The company
manufactured and mounted the sports two-seater body and charged
72,327.25 French Francs (equalling 11,572.35 Reichsmark) to
Daimler-Benz AG in December 1928. The exact date of delivery is not
documented, but it is supposed to have happened in December 1928.
Current owners Judy and
Paul Andrews of White Settlement, Texas, had the car extensively
restored before presenting it to the panel of judges in Pebble
Beach. Before that the vehicle had been kept in storage for around
30 years.
The Mercedes-Benz S Type
– also known as the 680 S because of its 6.8-litre engine capacity –
was launched in 1927 as an evolution of the Mercedes-Benz Model K
super sports car. It established the legendary family of heavyweight
supercharged cars that included the SS and SSK models from 1928. The
cars dominated racing history over the years, but could also be
bought as conventional road vehicles. All vehicles in this family
had a six-cylinder in-line engine with a supercharger to increase
output. Power was also boosted by the dual ignition. Each cylinder
had two spark plugs, one fired by a battery ignition and the other
by a high-voltage magneto ignition.
Exclusive high-performance sports
car
The 6.8-litre engine of
the S Type, the model on which all the others were based, produced
an output of 120 bhp (88 kW) without a supercharger and 180 bhp (132
kW) with the supercharger engaged. This made the S Type one of the
fastest and most sought-after sports cars of its time. Its debut
public appearance at the opening race at the Nürburgring in 1927
ended with a threefold victory for Mercedes-Benz. Rudolf Caracciola
drove his S Type across the finishing line in first place.
Only 146 of these
exclusive high-performance sports cars were ever made, the vast
majority of them sold as open-top four-seaters with a Sindelfingen
body. A select few, however, such as this year’s Best in Show winner
at Pebble Beach, were delivered as a chassis to have their bodywork
made by the most famous coachbuilders of the era. For many years
now, the Mercedes-Benz S Type has been one of the most popular
collector’s cars and also one of the most valuable.
At a Gooding & Company
auction held at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, a
Mercedes-Benz 540 K Special Roadster from 1936 was sold for $11.8
million. “Mercedes-Benz vehicles always achieve top prices at
international auctions,” says Michael Bock, Head of Mercedes-Benz
Classic.
“And the Special
Roadster is one of the most coveted cars among prominent
collectors.” This particular vehicle has an fascinating history.
First bought by an aristocratic Prussian family, it soon passed into
the ownership of Baroness Gisela von Krieger. During the Second
World War, she took the Special Roadster first to Switzerland and
from there to the USA, where it remained unused in a garage for more
than 40 years until her death. The car was then restored to
immaculate condition.
The Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in the USA is among the world’s
most prestigious classic car shows. This year there was a separate
class for the creations of Jacques Saoutchik. Originally from
Russia, the cabinetmaker had emigrated to France and established a
coachbuilding company that enjoyed widespread fame in the 1920s and
1930s. He produced many extravagant designs for Mercedes-Benz
vehicles.
Mercedes-Benz cars have
a very special place on the hallowed turf of the Pebble Beach
Concours d’Elegance, winning Best of Show seven times and collecting
more than 120 First in Class and Special Awards as part of a long
list of successes since 1950.
Did you know ...?
At the Goodwood Revival
(14-16 September 2012) Mercedes-Benz Classic will be represented by
five original Silver Arrows from the 1930s – and is organising a
staged race for them together with Auto Union which will be the
biggest gathering of Silver Arrows for a number of decades.
