The legendary Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing went on sale in the 1950s and quickly became a hit. The few examples surviving to this day tend to sit in private collections and cost seven-digit USD amounts. It therefore shouldn’t be too surprising that this non-genuine example is currently listed in the States for $299,950.
Dubbed the 355 SL, the car was built by Alan Derosier of Radford and Gemballa fame. The designer started with a normal Mercedes SLK55 that you can find for $30,000 or so and set about building a fine example of automotive candy out of it. He fabricated meticulously accurate bodywork in the 300 SL style and didn’t forget about the mandatory gull-wing doors that gave the original its name. He finished the result in a deep glossy black color that Mercedes hardly used seven decades ago.
As impressive as the exterior is, the interior looks almost disappointingly stock. The steering wheel, the dashboard, the console and the trim are the same all around, and only the seats look different. In keeping with the retro theme, they don’t have modern headrests.
Power for the ride comes from a stock 5.5-liter V8 rated at 426 PS (420 hp / 313 kW) and 540 Nm (398 lb-ft) of torque when this SLK55 was still new. The seven-speed automatic transmission was left as is, but Derosier points out new KW coilovers in the suspension, so the steering might be a tad sharper than stock.
The Gullwing replica is currently listed on Signature Autosports with a completely transparent California title and roughly 110,000 km (70,000 miles) under its belt. It looks like the listing has lingered on the website since early June, though, with no buyers in sight. Perhaps asking three hundred thousand grand for a car that started off 10 times cheaper isn’t very viable in this day and age, especially since it offers very little aside from the looks.
