This Mercedes-Benz was originally purchased by a young doctor in Marin County, California and given to his bride as a wedding present. She drove it for 20 years, albeit with complaints of having to use a stick-shift; eventually the good doctor replaced it for her with a 450SL.

From this ownership it was bought by a gentleman in Mill Valley, California, where he spent four years performing an “over the top” restoration. Although the car was rust-free, the car was completely stripped of all paint and undercoating. He then applied new undercoating and 20 coats of Havana Brown lacquer to all visible sheetmetal. Being a true fanatic doing the work; the car also had three coats of Havana Brown applied to the undercarriage.

The 2,195-cc, 120-hp six-cylinder engine was completely rebuilt and the car received a new four-speed transmission, new clutch, new brakes, new top, new wool headliner, re-chromed bumpers and more. This includes a dashboard that is burled Carpathian elm and is “as fine as you are likely to see.” The restorer/owner bought two additional Mercedes-Benz’ to obtain the leather for the seats he was redoing, and they are now presented in the rare two-tone Palomino and Tan combination. Among the equipment on the car are a Becker Mexico AM/FM radio, air conditioning; power top, windows, steering and brakes.

The current owner has owned the car for 28 years and when he heard of it being for sale, he contacted an appraiser to look the car over. The appraiser was so impressed with the quality of work; he had the restorer/owner work on his own cars. When purchased by the current owner, it arrived in Chicago with 81,023 miles on it – during the ensuing years, it now has a total of 85,110 miles. After driving it 1,000 miles over the first two years of ownership, it now spends most of its time under a car cover in the owner’s garage. It is now mainly used for early Sunday morning drives on Lake Shore Drive, but only if it is sunny weather. This lovely car has never seen snow, and it has never been parked and left unattended in the last 28 years.

The Mercedes-Benz comes with a folder filled with letters and notes from the restorer/ex-owner that includes diagrams on how to oil and grease the car, as well as the locations of tiny drain holes that allow the car to go out in the rain and properly drain any falling moisture. The car is also accompanied by multiple documents, owner’s manual and tools.