Considered by many to be the precursor to the famed Mercedes-Benz S-Class lineage, the 170 S was longer, wider, and better equipped than the Stuttgart marque’s best-selling 170 V of the day. A 52-horsepower output was achieved from an enlarged 1,767-cc version of the V’s M136 four-cylinder engine and was delivered via a four-speed manual transmission, which featured synchromesh on all forward gears.

While the vast majority of these early post-war Mercedes-Benz were completed wearing saloon coachwork, between 1949 and 1952 some 2,433 convertibles were built. Compared to the four-seater Cabriolet B offering, a mere 830 examples of the more attractive Cabriolet A model were produced.

Among that small pool, the Cabriolet A—distinguished by its two-seater layout and corresponding two side windows—offered here is attractively finished with two-tone black-and-white paintwork over a retrimmed red leather interior. Although its complete ownership history is not fully known at present, chassis number 136.042.11534 has most recently resided alongside other prominent Mercedes-Benzes as part of The Willy Michiels Collection in Belgium.

The car is offered with three pieces of fitted luggage, a jack, further to a wheel nut spanner.