1963 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster
- Engine
- Alloy-block inline-six with Bosch direct fuel injection and sport camshaft
- Colour
- White Gray (DB 158)
Chassis 003188 is a 1963 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster, the 139th of only 210 examples built with both four-wheel disc brakes and an aluminium-alloy engine block, making it among the most technically advanced production variants of the model. Delivered new on 5 August 1963 to the US market in White Gray over red leather, the car was later imported to the Netherlands before returning to Germany, where it underwent an exhaustive six-year concours-level restoration by renowned marque specialist Kienle Autotechnik of Heimerdingen, at a documented cost of nearly €430,000.
Ownership
- —Auction saleSold US$2,095,000
- 1963-08-05 →Factory deliveryUnknown early US-market owner(s)partial documentation
Car delivered new to the US market in August 1963; early ownership details are not documented.
- 2005-04-01 → 2010Private saleBerlin-based Mercedes-Benz collector and former rally driverpartial documentation
Purchased via a German specialty automobile dealer; the owner participated in the German Oldtimer Rally shortly after acquisition and drove the car enthusiastically for several years before consigning it back to the dealer.
- 2010 → 2010Private saleKienle Autotechnikfull documentation
Acquired from the importing dealer for their sales inventory; Kienle determined the car needed a full restoration to their standards before sale, which was offered as a condition of purchase.
- 2010 →Private saleRepeat Kienle client from Oestrich-Winkel, Germanyfull documentation
Purchased with the commitment that Kienle would perform a comprehensive restoration; nearly €430,000 in documented work was carried out over roughly six years, returning the car to concours condition in its original color scheme. Fewer than 300 km were driven after restoration completion.
- Date unknownAcquisition unknownNetherlands-based owner(s)none documentation
By the late 1990s the car had been brought to the Netherlands; a full restoration to Medium Red over black leather was carried out around this period, prior to the car's re-export.
Competition
- 2005German Oldtimer RallyDriver: Berlin-based Mercedes-Benz collector and former rally driverCompleted without incident
The approximately 2,000-kilometer event was completed shortly after the Berlin owner acquired the car; described as entirely trouble-free.
Maintenance & restoration
- 2010RestorationKienle Autotechnik
Complete nut-and-bolt disassembly and concours-level restoration to original factory specifications, covering the tubular chassis, steel bodywork, and every mechanical and cosmetic component; numbers-matching alloy-block engine and rear axle retained; gearbox of correct type but later fitment; car returned to original White Gray over red leather specification. Client-specified additions included a bespoke Kienle fuel injection pump, unleaded fuel conversion, red leather trunk lining with matched luggage, floor mats, battery isolator, enhanced firewall insulation, hazard lighting, 12-volt socket, and an uprated clutch diaphragm spring.
Work spanned approximately six years and was documented by invoices totalling nearly €430,000 (~$475,000), retained on file.
- —Restoration
Comprehensive repaint and re-trim carried out shortly before the car left the Netherlands, refinishing it in Medium Red (516) over a black leather interior with matching soft top.
Date is approximate — photographic evidence places the work immediately prior to the car's re-export to Germany around 2005.
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