Once upon a time in America
10/25/2020
The RM/Sotheby's auction of the so-called "Elkhart Collection " took place in Indiana, USA, over the last two days. During the first auction day on Friday, a 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300 c (lot 1201) and a 1967 Ford Bronco (lot 1202) went under the hammer one after the other.
1432 examples of the luxurious Mercedes saloon were built in the 1950s, all of which had the straight-six engine under the hood, which also powered the 300 SL in modified form. Such a luxury four-door cost DM 22,000 in Germany, for which you could buy two Alfa Romeo Giulietta or almost three Borgward Isabella Cabriolets. For a 300 SL Gullwing you would have had to pay just DM 7,000.
Right after this Mercedes came a first-generation Ford Bronco from 1967. Of the 1967 model year alone, 14,230 were sold, making this the worst production year of all, with the exception of 1975, up to and including 1977, when the second generation was announced. And yes, a Ford Bronco was not cheap, but of course it was still much cheaper than the successor to the Mercedes-Benz 300, for example.
Two cars could hardly be more different than the Mercedes-Benz 300 and the Ford Bronco and yet they competed with estimated values at almost the same level. However, while the Ford Bronco was slightly cheaper, the bids went up to USD 55,000, while the Mercedes-Benz was knocked down at USD 53,500.
A story that could probably only happen in the United States of America ....
We have already analyzed and summarized the results of the RM Elkhart auction in a comprehensive article.
