Introduced in 1963, the Mercedes-Benz 600, internally designated the W100, had few peers apart from the new Rolls-Royce Phantom V. It featured a new 6,332-cc overhead-cam V-8, a dry-sump design with Bosch mechanical fuel injection that developed 245 hp, as well as air suspension for a wonderful ‘boulevard ride’ and a high-pressure hydraulic system that provided every power assist imaginable. Smooth, quiet, and ridiculously comfortable, it was a magnificent machine in every way.

For customers for whom the standard 126-in.-wheelbase 600 sedan was not imposing enough, there was the long-wheelbase, 153.5-in. Pullman model, available with either four or six doors and a ‘conversation pit’-style rear compartment. Just 487 Pullmans were produced through 1981, although only a few were built, all to individual special order, following 1972. Many were delivered new to various rulers and heads of state worldwide, and some of them remain, well-maintained and still highly impressive, in government fleets to this day.

The four-door 600 Pullman offered was purchased by the consignor in 2005 and is beautifully finished in a striking color scheme of Dark Blue over red leather. In the last two years a total of $41,000 in service work was performed, with the entire hydraulic system gone through and any leaks repaired. At the time of its inspection, the hydraulic functions were all working properly, the air conditioning blew cold, and the suspension held even height after sitting for extended periods of time. It would be difficult to find a fully serviced 600 in comparable mechanical condition.

The result is one of the finest of its kind available – and still very much the world’s ultimate automobile, a definitive statement in power, luxury, and superb engineering, after five decades.