Legacy Metrics

1957 Mercedes-Benz 190 SL

121.040.7503335roadGermany
Engine
1.9L OHV inline-four, two Solex carburetors, 105 bhp
Colour
Graphite gray with red interior and red hardtop

A 1957 Mercedes-Benz 190 SL (W121) roadster originally delivered new from Stuttgart to Los Angeles, and remaining a California car throughout its known history. Acquired in Beverly Hills by its most recent owner for a comprehensive body-off restoration completed in 2014 by SSR Restorations in Vale de Cambra, Portugal, the car retains matching numbers and its original Graphite Gray over red interior specification, verified by a factory data card.

Ownership

  1. —Auction sale
    Sold US$209,000

    RM Sotheby's catalogue lot →

  2. 1957 →Factory delivery
    Original Los Angeles delivery recipient
    partial documentation

    Car was shipped new from Stuttgart to Los Angeles in 1957 and remained in California throughout its early history.

  3. Date unknownPrivate sale
    Current consignor
    partial documentation

    Purchased in Beverly Hills and subsequently sent to SSR Restorations in Portugal for a comprehensive body-off restoration completed in 2014.

Competition

No competition history extracted from the catalogue.

Maintenance & restoration

  1. 2014Restoration
    SSR Restorations

    Complete body-off restoration encompassing engine and drivetrain rebuild, suspension, differential and brake overhaul, bare-metal repaint in original Graphite Gray by Mercedes-Benz Portugal, new soft-top, restored hardtop in original M-B Red Fire, and full interior retrim in leather with original instruments retained. Undercarriage detailed to concours standard. Accompanied by comprehensive photographic documentation.

    Workshop located in Vale de Cambra, Portugal, described as internationally recognised Mercedes-Benz specialists. Only test miles accumulated on the rebuilt engine following completion.

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How this record is sourced

Each chassis record is compiled from public auction archives and links to its source material. Ownership, competition and maintenance entries are extracted from those catalogue listings by an LLM, which can make mistakes — please contact us with any corrections. The summary is Legacy Metrics’ own writing; we do not reproduce catalogue text.

“Full” and “partial” documentation labels indicate how well each entry is corroborated in the underlying sources, not an audit of the car’s physical paperwork. Names of recent or living owners are withheld for privacy.