Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing

The 300 SL was built to race and turned into a road car because the American importer saw a market for it. Its spaceframe chassis was so stiff that conventional doors would not fit, so the car received doors hinged at the roof. The 3.0 litre inline-six used mechanical fuel injection, produced 212 bhp and pushed the coupe to 260 km/h, making it the fastest production car of its day. The shape is restrained compared with later Mercedes designs: a long bonnet, a compact cabin and a wide grille with the three-pointed star. Around 1,400 coupes were built. In a collection it represents the moment Mercedes turned racing engineering into a luxury object.