1976 Mercedes-Benz 450SL

History

Easily one of the most iconic vehicles in Mercedes-Benz history, the SL series has been in continuous production for just shy of 70 years. Short for Sport Light, this roadster has historically been a highlight reel of the German automakers’ best and brightest engineering.

The 1976 450SL model up for auction today traces roots to the legendary 300SL Gullwing that arrived in 1954. That car was an immediate hit amongst wealthy performance car enthusiasts during an explosion in luxury car buying post-World War II. The Gullwing kicked off an SL family tree that would continue to bear the finest Stuttgart fruit for decades to come. SL series’ generally run for long stretches between new generations and the R107, of which today’s car is a part of, was the longest of them all.

It arrived in 1971 strutting a modernized interpretation of the famed W113 “Pagoda” style and would go on to sell some 237,000 vehicles over 18 years. It was the first SL to boast a burly V8 power plant, a defining feature of these grand tourers from there on out.