R&T decided to test a Gullwing 300SL in 1968 to see how it compared to contemporary cars. It had been the leading edge sports car of its time, but time stands for no car, especially back then, when automotive evolution ran a bit faster.
The 300SL may have been the fastest production sports car in 1955, but the 1957 Corvette with its new fuel injected 283 V8 easily spanked it in all of the performance stats. The Corvette clicked off the 0-60 run in 5.7 seconds, compared to 8.2 for the 300SL; in the 1/4 mile, the ‘Vette ran a blistering 14.3 seconds to the Gullwing’s 16.0. Of course the Corvette’s engine was about 50% larger in displacement, but then it also cost about 50% less. Obviously the Corvette’s refinement was not in the same league, especially when the road got a bit rough. The 300SL’s direct injected 3 liter six was rated at 240 hp; the 283 at 283 hp (both SAE gross ratings).
As to top speed, the 300SL was touted to do 146 mph, but back in 1955 when R&T tested one, they only got it to 134 mph. Since we’re also looking at the Corvette, it managed 132 mph with very steep 4.11:1 rear axle gears. With the right gears, it could do 150.
The 300SL’s four wheel independent suspension with swing axles on the rear rode firmly, but was not jarring, and would compare well with current GT cars, better than some over rough roads. Its handling was deemed to fall short of 1968 standards though. The steering was quick, but the swing axles made themselves known, and “you’d better be ready for it”. The camber changes combined with the narrow wheels and tires resulted in “miserable low cornering power”; a turn that the the 300SL might get through at 35 mph a Lamborghini Miura might do at 50 mph. The tires alone were a big factor.
The giant finned drum brakes weren’t too bad, but obviously not up to 1968 standards for world-class sports/GT cars.
The driving position was considered to still be quite good, but the cockpit heat was excessive, which resulted in the not-uncommon practice of its owners driving around town with the doors open. Seriously.
I’ve never liked the idea of gullwing doors. What if the car flips over on its roof? How do you get out？
Through the broken windows? As valid as the rollover criticism seems on the surface the same problem can exist for conventional doors with thick integral window frames as most modern cars use and especially aircraft style doors such as the C2 Corvette where the frame partially wraps into the roof. With the roof caved in and/or the roof partially compacted into soil the weight of the vehicle will be resting on them and inhibit the door from opening as well
Now if R&T could peer into the future I think they would a stroke at what that Gullwing is worth. It beats the 57 Corvette by a factor of 10.
When I was a kid, my mother’s uncle had one of these gull-wings, a silver one. I think that I only saw it once or twice. His other car was a Mercedes 300D Adnauar(sp?) hardtop sedan.
He would go on to own several semi-exotic and exotic foreign sports but the gull-wing was the car his relatives remember most.
I do remember my mother’s uncle and aunt arriving at a wedding reception driving that car and my mother’s aunt remarking how uncomfortable a ride they had had (of several hours) because that car did not have air conditioning and apparently the flow through ventilation was inadequate as well. Definitely NOT a warm weather car.
It must be a sweatbox in the summer especially if it has black or red leather seats. But hey, I`ll STILL take one!
Mention of a 630SL wasn’t wholly fanciful. The factory did build a 6.3 litre W113 for testing.
https://nihilistnotes.blogspot.com/search?q=Gullwing+%26+Gull-wing
IMO, one of the most beautiful cars ever.
I was about to post the same. I still have my Tootsietoy 300SL bought in a five and dime store back in the 1950’s. I’ve loved its looks all these many decades. I followed this one for several blocks in downtown Santa Monica traffic a few years ago. The sight and sound of it: thrilling. Every once in a while they appear on the streets and freeways of SoCal.
If they would have compared 1968 cars to the later 300SL roadster that car (last model year 1963) would have been more admired.
The rear suspension in the roadster was changed and improved; tires were better. Handling was therefore more palatable and now, with roll down windows in conventional doors, the interior comfort was greatly enhanced.
Handling was said to best in a MB gullwing with a full tank.
I never was much of a Mercedes brand fan but I was fairly mesmerized by the 300SL as a little kid, I had a 1:18 scale model by either bburago or Maisto that I abused to death, I’d skid that thing around the house with the gullwing doors up as if I were joyriding the real thing. I kind of take them for granted now, I’ve only seen a handful in person in my life but they’re so familiar from childhood toys and books I’d probably sooner gravitate towards a C1 Vette amongst 50s sports cars.
The gullwing preceding the roadster long confused me, it seemed like the trend with sports cars was the other way around where the mandatory open top would spawn a closed top successor, but other than the C107 the ragtop was mandatory on the SL successors.
Saw this fine example at the European classic car show in Calgary this July.
Yes, door was kept open as he moved it around.
An iconic car, and for good reason.
I remember leaving for vacation one time, 10-20? years ago from the proverbial Northern California Wine Country and seeing one. Then another. And another. I don’t know how many I saw, 8-10-15? I’m just blathering to my wife, there’s a MB 300SL. And another… Those things are worth a fortune. It was obviously an enthusiasts run, a little surprising with the value of them even then, but I was just dumbfounded.
Now this part is a little off. I remember my Dad, who was not a car guy, reading a magazine ad aloud from 63-64 about a MB that claimed to do 150 MPH and you could take it back if it didn’t. I’m not a MB expert, but I’ve got to think it was the 300SL, but the timing is off just a little bit. Dunno.
A masterpiece of beauty and engineering who’s sum is far greater than its parts.
Styling wise I’ve always thought these overrated.
The clumsy fairings over the wheel openings.
Bulging body colour hubcaps (we are spared those here)
The radiused corners on the the door and rear side windows.
Thick pillars. Hello thin pillar sedans and coupes, this isn’t 1950.
Only a true capitalist could afford such a car. With only 2 cubic feet of space, only a brief case would fit. Also, filling a 34 gallon gas tank with premium with each visit to the pump is beyond mer mortals.
I would prefer a 6 volt Beetle cabriolet or Ghia from the same timeframe; just as much fun at a pittance of the cost factor.
When I was a growing up near Vancouver in the early 1970s, our next-door neighbour had one of these. He was a German restaurateur, with a house that resembled a Swiss chalet.
I was friends with one of his sons, who would open the garage and let me sit in the car. I remember the wheel which flipped up, and the aerodynamic door latches, but never got to ride in it. It did pass our family Datsun on the road once, and the sound is forever engrained in my memory.
I saw it for sale in the Road & Track classified ads at some point later – I think the asking price was about $7000. But I was still a pre-license teenager, so buying it was never an option.