The dream of open-top driving is closely linked to the 130-year history of the automobile. Sporty roadsters and luxurious convertibles from Mercedes-Benz play a prominent role in this. At Retro Classics from March 17 to 20, 2016, the brand will be presenting an exquisite selection of open-top vehicles with the three-pointed star. Mercedes-Benz is presenting a journey through time through the fascinating world of the brand's convertibles and roadsters at Retro Classics in Stuttgart. The exhibition ranges from the 300 SL racing sports car from 1952 and the classic 300 SL Roadster from 1957 to the 190 E 2.6 Cabriolet prototype from 1990, the new SL and the recently unveiled C-Class Cabriolet.
The SL legend
The 300 SL racing sports car and the 300 SL Roadster epitomize the successes of the 1950s and the SL legend. In the 1952 season, Mercedes-Benz competed in international motorsport again for the first time since the Second World War with the racing sports car. The vehicle is extremely successful, as double victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Carrera Panamericana in Mexico impressively demonstrate.
The famous production "gullwing" 300 SL from 1954, which made its debut in the spring of 1957 in the open-top 300 SL Roadster version, was also based on the racing sports car. Together with the 190 SL introduced in 1955, the 300 SL Roadster established the tradition of open-top Mercedes-Benz production sports cars with the magical abbreviation SL, leading the new generation of the SL into the future.
The "Baby Benz"
A look back to 1990 shows: The Mercedes-Benz development department was toying with the idea of adding a convertible to the compact saloon. The original prototype exhibited at Retro Classics is the ready-to-drive result of these deliberations. Even though the open-top "Baby-Benz" did not go into series production, the study served as an important decision-making aid for the convertible 124 model series presented in 1991 and is now one of the ancestors of the new C-Class Cabriolet.
"All Time Stars"
The "All Time Stars" from Mercedes-Benz Classic will be represented at Retro Classics with their own stand in Hall 7. The range of high-quality youngtimers and classic cars for sale reflects the brand's wide variety of vehicles from different eras. Basically, it includes all vehicles from Mercedes-Benz and its predecessor brands. The focus is on classics that are fully suitable for everyday use.
