Gooding and Company will be holding their annual Amelia Island sale on Friday, March 9, 2018 at 11:00am. Cars are available for preview the day before and for a few hours the morning of the sale itself. This nicely presented 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 Sb Coupe will be there. Full event details are below the car description.
Good looking from any angle, the 300 S and Sc coupes from 1951 – 1958.
Lot 057 – Mercedes-Benz 300 Sb Coupe
Estimate: $475,000 – $550,000
Chassis: 188.011.5500041
Engine: 188.920.5500040
- Dark Grey (DB 164) w/ light grey leather
- Numbers matching
- Floor shift manual transmission
- Fitted luggage
- Tool kit and manuals
- 2010 service and ‘cosmetic freshening’ at Paul Russell and Co.
Think of the 300 Sb as a ‘face-lifted 300 S’. Produced for just two years in 1954-55, it incorporated several changes from the 300 S, most visibly notable, the front vent windows. These models are not differentiated from earlier S models in production figures found in most price guides and they lag well behind the later fuel injected Sc models in price.
This car is described as having been “the beneficiary of an older, comprehensive high-level restoration” although exact dates and craftsmen are not listed. The printed auction catalog admits that ‘much of its early history is unrecorded’ showing provenance starting with a Houston, TX based collection in 2005, however, the online auction catalog mentions a file of documents dating back to the 1960s is with the car and available for inspection.
Extras like fitted luggage and a complete tool kit are things potential buyers like to see.
Tracking down the history of a car is always an adventure, so is getting a car ready for a high profile auction. Whether the history file was overlooked when the car was originally consigned or whether the file is a recent discovery, any potential buyer would be smart to view those documents to help complete the story of this very handsomely presented 300 Coupe. These cars really do have a presence like few other post-war Mercedes and they cost more than a 300 SL when new.
A somewhat unknown early history and largely undocumented restoration will keep this car from reaching its full potential as a serious blue chip collectible example, but considering what one must pay for a restoration of a car like this, it should still bring strong money. The color combination and overall presentation (did you have a look at that engine bay) will help the consignor’s chances as will the extras included with the sale. My sale prediction is $445,000. These cars do appear fairly regularly at auction, but not in great numbers, their prices are notoriously difficult to predict. Case in point, Bonhams sold a 1953 300 S coupe (lot 177) at their 2015 Scottsdale sale for $511,500 against a pre -sale estimate of $250,000 – $300,000. How often does an auction company under-estimate a price by that much?
Gooding and Company – Amelia Island Auction
March 9, 2018
Location:
Racquet Park, Omni Amelia Island Plantation
6800 First Coast Hwy
Amelia Island, FL 32034
(1 mile south of Amelia Island Parkway)
Viewing:
Thursday, March 8 – 9:00am – 6:00pm
Friday, March 9 – 9:00am – 4:00pm
Auction:
Friday, March 9 – 11:00am
Admittance:
Admittance – $30, admits one to all events
Catalogue – $75, admits two to all events
Cash or credit card only.
Children under 12 free.
Bidder Registration:
$200 includes a catalogue, admission for two to the viewing and auction with two reserved seats, subject to availability.
On-Site Contact Information:
Telephone: 310.899.1960
Fax: 310.526.6594
Email: info@goodingco.com
Shuttles:
Shuttles will run round-trip from the Gooding & Company auction site to the Ritz-Carlton resort entrance on Amelia Island Parkway, 8:30am to 6:30pm on Thursday, March 8th and Friday, March 9th.
All photos courtesy of Gooding and Company.
2 comments
[…] is one of two cars (the other is the 1955 300 Sb Coupe) at Gooding and Company’s Amelia Island sale that I created separate, in depth analysis […]
[…] ’55 300 Sb Coupe – G – Lot 57 – $473,000 / Prediction: $445,000 / Diff: -$28… ’55 300 SL Coupe – RM – Lot 155 – $1,077,500 / Prediction: $1,050,000 / Diff: -$27,500 ’56 190 SL – RM – Lot 201 – $137,200 / Prediction: $148,000 / Diff: +10,800 ’57 300 SL Rdstr – RM – Lot 156 – $1,094,000 / Prediction: $1,100,000 / Diff: +$6,000 ’58 220S Cab – RM – Lot 157 – $212,800 / Prediction: $188,000 / Diff: -$24,800 ’58 300 SL Rdstr – G – Lot 26 – $1,072,500 / Prediction: $1,100,000 / Diff: +$27,500 ’58 300 d Sedan – G – Lot 45 – Withdrawn ’58 190 SL – B – Lot 197 – $72,000 No Sale / Prediction: $82,000, if sold / +/-$74,500 est. hammer / Diff: +$2,500 ’68 600 SWB – G – Lot 43 – $110,000 / Prediction: $126,500 / Diff: +$16,500 ’68 280 SL – RM – Lot 191 – $114,800 / Prediction: $125,000 / Diff: +$10,200 ’69 280 SE conv. – B – Lot 153 – $138,880 / Prediction: $180,000 / Diff: +$41,120 ’71 280 SL – G – Lot 5 – $66,000 / Prediction: $72,000 / Diff: +$6,000 (click here for our preview profile of this car) ’71 280 SE 3.5 Conv. – G – Lot 18 – $330,000 / Prediction: $313,500 / Diff: -$16,500 ’71 280 SE 3.5 Coupe – RM – Lot 180 – $156,800 / Prediction: $144,000 / Diff: -$12,800 ’82 380 SL – G – Lot 9 – $26,400 / Prediction: $35,000 / Diff: +8,600 ’87 560 SL – B – Lot 106 – $39,200 / Prediction: $33,000 / Diff: +$6,200 ’88 560 SL – RM – Lot 109 – $95,200 / Prediction: $77,000 / Diff: -$18,200 ’02 SL 500 Silver Arrow – G – Lot 42 – $48,400 / Prediction: $34,000 / Diff: -$14,400 ’09 SLR McLaren Rdstr – RM – Lot 193 – $320,000 No Sale / Prediction: $388,000 if sold / +/- $353,000 est. hammer / Diff: +$33,000 ’14 SLS AMG Black – RM – Lot 126 – $434,000 / Prediction: $440,000 / Diff: +$6,000 […]