Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing, the most beautiful car in the world

The 60-year-old Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing is one of the most beautiful and innovative cars ever made. The gullwing doors were a practical feature, showcasing the car’s lightweight tubular frame. In addition, the car was packed with innovative technology, such as a tilted inline six-cylinder engine, fuel injection, a lightweight body, and those glorious doors.

Technology born from racing

As with many automotive inventions, the 300 SL’s innovative features came from racing. It all began with the 1952 W 194 300 SL series, which achieved first and second place at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, first, second, and third at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring, and first in the 1,900-mile Carrera Panamericana.

Two factors made the SL so successful. For power, the Germans took the engine from the 300 series sedans and limousines and placed it under the SL’s long hood. They tilted the 3-liter inline-six engine 50 degrees to the left, lowering the car’s center of gravity and maintaining the hood’s low and elegant profile. Chrysler’s famous 225 Slant Six, with a similarly inclined configuration, wouldn’t debut until 1960.

To make every bit of power count, Mercedes engineer Rudolf Uhlenhaut developed a thin tubular structure weighing only 110 pounds. That tubular frame is the reason behind the car’s iconic feature — its gullwing doors. Mercedes couldn’t cut the frame for conventional doors without compromising stability, so they designed the doors to open upwards instead of outwards.

Not just for racing

Fortunately for people who weren’t racecar drivers, Mercedes decided to bring a production version of the 300 SL Gullwing to market. Credit goes to Max Hoffman, the official Mercedes-Benz car importer for the U.S. market. He knew the car would be a hit in the United States and pushed Mercedes executives until they gave in. And so the 300 SL Coupé was born, unveiled at the New York International Auto Show in February 1954, complete with the tubular frame and gullwing doors.

The production car had something the 1952 race version lacked: fuel injection. Mercedes used the system, developed by Bosch, in the 1953 W194/11 racing prototype, and the coupé became the first production car to feature it. Switching from carburetors to fuel injection improved both fuel efficiency and power. The engine produced 215 horsepower, enough to go from 0 to 100 km/h in eight seconds. With a top speed of 230 km/h, the 300 SL was the fastest production car of its time.

Adored by celebrities

Between 1954 and 1957, Mercedes produced 1,400 Gullwing coupés. The automaker noted that this street-legal racing coupé became a symbol of success for the wealthy and glamorous of the time — a dream come true for some and a dream admired from afar for many others.

Pablo Picasso, the Shah of Iran, Perón, Romy Schneider, Baron von Thyssen, Sophia Loren, Gina Lollobrigida, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Clark Gable, and Tony Curtis were among the devoted owners of this gem.

Recently, Adam Levine, lead singer of Maroon 5, sold his 300 SL — with only 82,845 kilometers — at auction for $1,115,000.

Still coveted

Six decades after the first of these cars hit the road, the remaining models routinely sell for six-figure sums. During this year’s Pebble Beach festivities, Rick Cole Auctions sold a 1956 300 SL for $1.6 million, and RM Auctions handed over a 1955 model for an eye-watering $2.53 million.

The original 300 SLs were hard to maintain and a bit tricky to drive, but they sparked an impressive bloodline. The latest is the 2015 SLS AMG GT, a $220,000 gullwing beast with a 6.3-liter V8 engine that blasts from 0 to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds. If you own one, hold on to it — it could fetch much more at auction in another 60 years.

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