We look at certain cars as if they are works of art. They appear to be beautiful things born from the best thoughts of beautiful minds. The Mercedes 300SL is one of those cars. They sell for huge money, their doors have been lionized by car enthusiasts everywhere, the racing history is unassailable, and the list goes on and on. But guess what? The 300SL was a car made of existing parts from the Mercedes parts pile as the company got its legs back under it along with the rest of Germany post WWII.
Build from parts of a heavy luxury sedan, it was brilliant conceptually and while it didn’t win the first race it competed in but it won the rest of them, to its own detriment. You’ll understand the rest when you watch this video.
If anything, this history proves the fact that every car is a giant rolling compromise to some degree. Even the ones we think are “perfect”, and maybe they are, came from not only the wants and needs of engineers but the wallets and practical outlook of executives and the accounting department. This rules.
