A 1910 Speed-Trap: Mr. Ketchum, of Sandusky, Ohio -- Taken from Harriet White Fisher, "World-Tour in a Motor," 1911

Harriet White Fisher was the first woman to circle the globe in a car, although she did not drive it -- she was chauffeured. "World-Tour in a Motor" is worth looking at from the perspective of an American (elite, white, a woman) describing exotic lands and people. I found the story of Fisher's encounter with a motorcycle cop in Sandusky, Ohio most interesting and amusing. His name was Ketchum, and while the speed limit was 18 miles per hour and Fisher's Locomobile traveling at 12,  the officer pulled the party over and demanded a large fee after asking for "a small renumeration," was rebuffed. A visit to an official only got Harriet even deeper, although she had won the sympathy of many observers of the incident living in Sandusky. In the end Fisher left and wished motorcycle cop an accident in which he would tumble off his wheels. As Fisher subsequently relates, two weeks later Ketchum, now fired, did fall off his bike, breaking a leg and perhaps losing his foot!

 

 

Paul Daimler and the 1886 Introduction of the Motorboat

Advertisement of Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft from 1894 for “Daimler motorboats, several hundred of which are already in operation”, appearing in the humorously illustrated weekly publication “Fliegende Blätter”. (Photo signature in the Mercedes-Benz Classic archives: 1988M154

• 
  
• The high-speed combustion engine as a boat drive was premiered in August 1886
• Motorboat prototypes were tested on the Neckar near Bad Cannstatt
• In the same year, Daimler registered a patent for the motor drive for boats

It didn’t have a sail, nor was it rowed by muscular strength: at first glance the observers on the bank could not tell what was moving the boat, which cruised on the Neckar near Cannstatt so effortlessly in August 1886. Perhaps an electric motor was hidden in the housing in front of the helmsman? No, the little boat had the high-speed combustion engine by Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach working in it. Even before the first drive of Daimler’s first car, the motor carriage, he launched this innovative drive system on water 135 years ago. It corresponded with the mobility pioneer’s vision of motorization “on water, on land and in the air”.

Innovative trio

In the summer of 1886 Daimler equipped three differently-sized boats with the small and powerful one-cylinder engine, which, because of its distinctive shape, was also known as the “grandfather clock”. They offered enough space for between two and ten people. The “Neckar” was the biggest of the three, with the “Rems” in the middle and the “Schwaben” the smallest. The engine, on which Daimler and Maybach had been working since 1882 in Cannstatt and which debuted in the two-wheeled “Reitwagen” (“riding car”) in 1885, proved to be highly successful as a boat drive.

However, there were still reservations from the public over the use of the new engine in vehicles. Daimler therefore wanted to give the impression of an electric drive system. His son, Paul Daimler, reported: “In this [first] boat, which was even fitted with electrical insulators and wires during the day in order to keep the fact that it was powered with petrol a secret, the engine was removed and installed on a daily basis. My father’s explanation for this: ‘It runs on oilectricity’”. This meant the boat from the summer of 1886 was a forerunner for later prototypes in automotive development. After all, their design and technology is also camouflaged during testing.

On 9 October 1886 Daimler registered a patent for his “Device for operating a screw-shaft of a boat by means of a gas or petroleum engine”. The corresponding DRP 39367 was issued on 1 June 1887. Things progressed a little quicker in the United States of America: there Patent No. 361,931 for Daimler’s “Explosive Gas Marine Engine” was issued as early as 26 April 1887. A further revolutionary invention by Daimler was what was known as the reversing unit. It made it possible for boats to be driven backwards and to safely dock at the quay.

Series production from 1888

After the patent was issued the inventors abandoned their reticence vis-à-vis the public: an appearance by Wilhelm Maybach with a compact Daimler motorboat in Frankfurt am Main in the spring of 1887 was guaranteed to be a crowd-pleaser. There the “King of Designers” drew attention at a rowing regatta with his boat that rapidly rattled back and forth. Even the police investigated what this new vehicle was doing on the river Main. It is likely that Maybach gladly took this promotionally effective encounter with law enforcement on the chin in order to raise awareness of the invention. On 13 October 1887, the “Rems” was then presented to selected spectators on the Waldsee lake near Baden-Baden. Daimler also presented his motorised hand car immediately afterwards, which was one of the first rail vehicles to be powered by his engine.

The series production of motorboats finally began at Daimler in 1888. The young company even built its own shipyard in Bad Cannstatt (Seilerwasen) for this purpose. However, the hulls were provided by boat builders and Daimler fitted the engines and drive system. This production was also responsible for the motorboat “Marie”, built in 1888, belonging to the family of German Reich Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. The boat, with a hull made by Anderssen from Neckarsulm, was richly decorated. The art ore foundry from Stuttgart, Paul Stotz & Co., supplied the splendid decor. With its 1.1 kW (1.5 hp) engine the “Marie” reached a speed of 11 km/h. Today it is part of the permanent exhibition of the Mercedes-Benz Museum in the room Legend 1: Pioneers – The Invention of the Automobile. Its size and the basic concept of its drive system and rudder are similar to the “Neckar”.

Motorboats quickly became a sales hit for Daimler. After further demonstrations in Hamburg, on Lake Constance and in Sicily, customers were convinced and the little boats with combustion engines were delivered to as far away as the Sultan of Morocco. This particularly magnificently equipped boat, delivered in 1892, was disassembled into six pieces and transported on camels to this early VIP customer of Daimler.

Benz & Cie. also produced boat engines. The first Benz motorboat could already be found on the river Spree in 1887. After the merger of Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft with Benz & Cie. in 1926, the then Daimler-Benz AG supplied combustion engines for boat drives well into the 20th century. This included powerful marine diesel and high-speed drives for motorsport on water. A high point of this development were two record-breaking boats belonging to early Daimler-Benz major shareholder Herbert Quandt: at the end of the 1950s they were fitted with the six-cylinder engine of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Coupé (W 198) – a highly exceptional combination.

Today, too, there are intersections of Mercedes-Benz with sporty water vehicles. Since 2010, the designers of the brand, together with selected partners, have been working on the design for products in the areas of mobility, lifestyle and interior decoration under the label Mercedes-Benz Style. In 2016, the luxury cruiser “Arrow460–Granturismo” of Silver Arrows Marine was an impressive result.

Clärenore Stinnes: The First European Woman to Drive Around the World

How A Pakistani Mechanic Resurfaces a Flywheel and Changes an Old Clutch Plate ... Or Making Do with What You Got!

Here is to all those developing nations mechanics with their skill and ingenuity. This video is incredible, as it shows how someone with no life, minimal tools, and no parts can keep a truck going despite a very serious breakdown. These guys were incredible!

Kettering Towne Center Cruise-In, August 21, 2021: A 1967 Dodge Charger

 

Nathan's 383 4bbl. 1967 Dodge Charger and his wife Hannah. Nathan first got this car 10 years ago, then sold it to his brother. He bought it back 4 weeks ago. His plan is to improve it into a Drag and Drive car.

Brief Review of Kevin Clemens' "A Lap of the Globe: Behind the Wheel of a Vintage Mercedes in the World's Longest Auto Race"

 Considering that this book was published twenty years ago, you might say that I am a little late with my review! Actually, I just learned of this book a few weeks ago, and found one of those rare reads that I could not put down. I had been reading on Aloha Wanderwell's around the world drive of the 1920s, and somehow Clemens' book came on my radar. Clemens' journey is far more detailed and substantial than Aloha Wanderwell's. 

This work is extremely well thought out and written. It is a model for those who want to write about an extended road trip, as it has plenty of automotive technology in its contents, an interesting set of character studies, including driver, navigator, and fellow competitors. Clemens starts in London as a part of an organized competitive rally that is mostly for the privileged wealthy -- after all, the entry price is $70,000 and with incidentals, probably totaled $100k. Entitled drivers, vintage and collector cars, and a pompous organizer are all featured. The latter, an unlikable sort, bends the rules to satisfy certain cliques and whiners. He is only out for himself and his business.

But what a great story. It is of machines and contestants at times pushed to the limits of endurance. Four star hotels may have been promised, but cramped quarters and overflowing toilets were often encountered. The author does a great job of portraying the locals, whether in Turkey, Azerbaijan, , China, or Montana.  Clemens also gets at  the people he is traveling with, in a non-patronizing way, whether it be his own navigator or rivals. He pulls no punches; for example, he vents his  anger at  to a Jaguar driver who did him wrong -- "the bastard."

Clemens'car -- a 1959 Mercedes -- is one star of this narrative. It takes a beating and keeps on ticking. Clemens and his co-driver and navigator dentist Martin are two other stars with flaws and all. To drive the world is quite an accomplishment and this book serves as an inspiration to the readers who sigh to get out of their chairs and experience adventure.

Syllabus for The Automobile and American Life, Fall, 2021, the University of Dayton

    HST 344:  The Automobile and American Life

CAP: Crossing Boundaries: Inquiry & Advanced Historical Studies

 

Class Meeting: TTH 3:35 – 4:50 p.m., Frericks Center 051

Instructors: John A. Heitmann and James Todd Uhlman

 

Office Hours: 

Dr. Heitmann

Office Hours: By appointment (Heitmann)

E-Mail: Jheitmann1@udayton.edu

Blog page: http://www.automobileandamericanlife.blogspot.com

 

Dr. Uhlman (aka, Dr. U)

Office Hours:  T/R 2:00 – 3:00, my office is located in HC 451

E-Mail: juhlman1@udayton.edu

 

Texts:  

John Heitmann, The Automobile and American Life, 2nd Edition, McFarland, 2018, 

978-1-4766-6935-9

 

Jack Kerouac, On the Road, Penguin, 1999

978-0140283297

 

Tom Wolfe, The Electric Kool-Aid Test, Picador, 2008, 978-03124427597

 

William Least Heat Moon, Blue Highways, Back Bay Books, 1999

978-0316353298

 

Gretchen Sorin, Driving While Black, Liveright, 2020

978-1631495694

 

                        

And materials on Isidore.

 

Grades: The final grade for this course will be based on two hour exams, (50%), a review of  Blue Highways (20%),  and final exam (30%). The grade scale is as follows: A 94 to 100; A-  90 to 93; B+  87-89; B 84-86; B-  80 - 83; C+ 77-79; C 74-76; C- 70-73.  A similar pattern applies to lower grades.  Letter grades are assigned a mid-point numerical grade. Additionally, attendance can influence your final grade: if you miss more than 3 classes, one letter grade will be deducted from your grade; if you miss more than 6 classes, a two letter grade reduction will take place.  A good grade for this course is a B.  Grade averages may be influenced by such factors as trends over the time of the course; for example, how you finish is far more important than how you start. Policies for exams strictly follows History Department Guidelines, and make-ups will only be offered with a valid, documented excuse. 

 

Attendance at lectures is crucial if you are to expect a good grade in the course, and I want you to be at every class if that is at all possible. On many occasions the material presented is not covered in the readings, and so many of the ideas discussed central to the development of modern science are complex and often confusing. Your attitude and what you bring into the classroom can make the difference between a mediocre offering and a most positive educational experience. 

 

Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated and offenses will be punished accordingly. A first offense will result in a failing grade for the exam or paper in question; a second offense will result in a failing grade for the course. 

            

Course Purpose:  It has been said that the automobile is the perfect technological symbol of American culture, a tangible expression of our quest to level space, time and class, and a reflection of our restless mobility, social and otherwise. In this course we will explore together the place of the automobile, driving, and the road in American life.  How did it transform business, life on the farm and in the city, the nature and organization of work, leisure time, and the arts. More pointedly, how did it change what it means to be human?   This is a most complex transition that we will study, as the automobile transformed everyday life and the environment in which we operate.  It influenced the foods we eat; music we listen to; risks we take; places we visit; errands we run; emotions we feel; movies we watch; stress we endure; and the air we breathe.

 

There are two teachers in this course and two focal points. Heitmann will center his presentations and readings on the evolution of the automobile as a system of technology and the complex relationship between the engineers and other professions who were responsible for the manufacture, design and marketing  of automobiles and the consumers and users. Car culture will be one handle tgo explore this symbiotic relationship. To that end he will often refer to his textbook, The Automobile and American Life, which is required reading. Uhlman will focus on inner and outer automobile journeys, drawing on the other books listed as required for this course. 

 

 

 

SCHEDULE OF LECTURES AND ASSIGNMENTS

 

 

Week 1/August 24

Class Topics:

Introduction: What our cars tell us about ourselves. The car in everyday life: the automobile age and its contradictions

 

America’s first Transcontinental Road Trip.

                                                            

Readings and Films:

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Introduction. 

Film-“Horatio’s Drive.”

 

 

 

Week 2/August 31

Class Topics:

Automotive Pioneers. The Glidden Tours. Speed.

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Chapter 1. 

Article-James Flink, “Three Stages of Automotive Consciousness” (Isidore)

 

 

Week 3/September 7

Class Topics:

Putting America on the Road

Automobiles and National Parks Tourism

The Marriage of Automobiles and Film

 

 

Week 4 September 14

Class Topics:

The Work and Legacy of Henry Ford

The Automobile Conquers the World

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Chapter 2. 

Film: ” “With Car and Camera Around the World” (1929)

 

 

 

Week 5/September 21

Class Topics:

The Rise of General Motors

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Chapter 3

Film: “Master Hands”

 

 

Week 6/September 28

Class Topics:

On the Road; Discussion of Kerouac, On the Road

 

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Chapter 4

Book-Kerouac, On the Road 

 

 

 

DUE October 5:  EXAM #1 You will be tested on Keroauc

 

Week 7/ October 5

Class Topic: Religion, Courtship and Sex

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Chapter 5

Film-Clip from “It Happened One Night.”

 

October  October 7 

NO CLASS: MIDTERM BREAK 

                                                            

Week 8/ October 12

Class Topics:

The Interwar Years: The Great Depression

Aerodynamics, and Cars of the Olympian Age

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Chapter 6.

Film-Clip from “Grapes of Wrath”

Film-Clip from “Master Hands”

            

Week 9/October 19

Class Topics:

World War II:  Detroit, the Arsenal of Democracy

The Post War Industry and Technological Suppression

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Chapter 7

Film-Clip from “Tucker: The Man and his Dream” 

Film-Clip from “Detour”

 

Week 10/ October 26

Class Topics:

Speed during the 1950s: Chrome Dreams

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, pp.149-168

Book-Wolfe, The Electric Kool-Aid Test (begin)

Film-Clip from “To Please a Lady” 

Film-Clip from “Rebel Without a Cause” 

Film-Clip from “Hot Rod”

 

 

 

Week 11/12 November 2/9

Class Topics:

The Rise of the interstates. 

Discussion of The Electric Kool-Aid Test.

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, pp.

Book-Wolfe, The Electric Kool-Aid Test (complete)

Film-“Divided Highways”

            

DUE: November 11, Exam #2 -- you will be tested on the Wolfe  book at this time

 

Week 13/ November 16 

Class Topics:

People of Plenty; The Prosperity Decade of the 1960s

The Rise of the American Muscle Car, Counterculture

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Chapter 9

Book-Least Heat Moon, Blue Highways (begin)

Film-“Two Lane Blacktop”

 

Week 14/15November 23 & 30

Class Topics:

Nervous Breakdown: Oil Shock I & II

Japan, James Bond, and Mobile Lovemaking

Discussion of Blue Highways

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Chapter 10

Book-Least Heat Moon, Blue Highways (complete)

Film-“Thelma and Louise”

 

DUE:  November 30, Review of Blue Highways is due

 

Week 16/ December 7

Class Topics:

The Automobile World Upside Down, 1980s to the Present. Disruptive Technologies. 

Discussion of Sorin Book.

 

Reading and Films: 

Book-Heitmann, Auto and American Life, Chapter 11 and Epilogue. 

 

FINAL EXAM, Friday 

The Wanderwells Split, and Scheme "The Million Dollar Wager." Walter Takes on a Ford Model T in 1921 with Rajo Accessories.

View of Walter Wanderwell and two members of Wanderwell expedition crew at Niagara Falls. Wanderwell stands behind movie camera on tripod. Handwritten on negative: "Camera crew, car #2, Niagara Falls, USA, 1921." Handwritten on sleeve: "Local culture: scenic spots, Niagara Falls. North America, USA, New York, 1921. Detroit Public Library.

What ever the Wanderwell Expedition was beginning in 1919, it was certainly not the kind of exploration adventures that Water and Aloha would experience during the mid-to-late 1920s in Africa and Asia. Nell would later describe what she and Walter did as "vaudeville." It was a self-supporting travel endeavor in which printed material sales, supplemented by film presentations in booked theaters, paid the travelers way. In the late spring of 1921 Nell and Walter went in two directions, and headed two different enterprises that were linked by a so-called "Million Dollar Wager" publicity scheme of who could rack up the most miles over a set period of time. At the beginning Nell stuck with the old Hanson (who knows what happened to the Moon car driven in Los angles in 1920?). Walter would take on a modified Food Model T, designated Number 2, ideal for transcontinental travel because of its ruggedness and availability of parts.

The year 1921 started with the announcement of "The 4th World Journey." As far as I can tell, Walter, and Nell, after their split into two ventures, never got out of the United States through 1921. A central episode to their last ride together took place in early April, 1921, after they traveled from Phoenix to Albuquerque with a side trip to Mexico during which Walter crossed the border without proper passport credentials. The party was arrested in Albuquerque for sales of promotional materials without a license. On April 10, 1921 Walter was bound over for a federal grand jury in El Paso. At his side was a woman he claimed to be his wife by the name of Exia Wiles. On April 20 the Grand Jury failed to turn in an indictment, and Walter wasted no time in "hitting the trail," later claiming it was his status as a a 'German" that led to all this problem.

Nell and Walter had had history of marital troubles, and as far as I can ascertain it was due to the steady stream of other women who had entered Walter's life for short periods of time. After Walter's murder Nell was. extensively interviewed about their past, and in a December 14, 1932 article in the Belvidere Daily Republican (Belvidere, IL), p.1. she claimed that "Assassins and lovesick girls brought terror and perturbation into the life of the late Captain Wanderwell...."  Nell recounted that before her divorce in 1925, "One night...we were setting on a houseboat deck [probably in Miami, FL] at Miami when a pistol slowly came into view over the rail. The would-be killer, shrouded in shadow, took careful aim at Walter's heart when Walter let out a scream. The gun lowered and the man went away, either relenting or to await for a better opportunity. He never had any idea who he was.... "As Nell would conclude after telling the tale of a lover who attempted to drown her, that "Walter had lights-of-love all over the world."

Getting back to 1921, things between Walter and Nell boiled over on May 1 after the two fought over Nell's choice of a chauffeur in El Paso. According to the Amarillo Daily News,  "Wandering Walter took no fancy to the new driver his wife had chosen and decided to pick his own chauffeur for the rest of the world tour. A court date over this followed, as "Mrs. Wanderwell gave a part of her personal opinion of Wandering Walter, who decided to let the officials know exactly what he thought of her. A proposition to sell the car and let each go his and her way is being tried by the police department at Amarillo, and if the Wanderwells don't patch up their grievances, the car will be sold at public sale."

In the end Nell, got the car, and the photographs of Walter and his Ford cover the second half of 1921 when he was on his own. Nell ended up with the car, a companion in Peggy Harnett and a mechanic Al Reed. By mid-May, 1921, she and her party were in Oklahoma, where it was strangely claimed that the car was a "specially built Velie." It was a small town vaudeville act, with beautiful Nell showing travel film and photographs on stage,  moving from one side of the screen to the other. 

More on the rest of 1921 to follow. Images of Walter in Florida and Niagara Falls antedate his trip to Europe at the beginning of 1922. And it will be in 1922 that Walter will have an encounter in Nice with 16 year old Idris Hall, later known as Aloha. Nell will stay in the U.S. for the most part and just continue and extended vaudeville tour with a number of assistants to 1928. Walter will make Aloha famous, or perhaps we could say that Aloha would make Walter an almost daily item in the news.

View of Walter Wanderwell and member of Wanderwell expedition standing with car no. 2 on dirt road in Florida. Handwritten on negative: "1921, #2 car in Florida." Handwritten on sleeve: "North America, USA, Florida, 1921.

View of Walter Wanderwell and members of Wanderwell expedition crew posing with car no. 2 on street. Buildings in background. Handwritten on negative: "USA, 1921." Handwritten on sleeve: "Cap by #2. North America, USA, 1921."

View of Walter Wanderwell and members of expedition crew in car no. 2 en route to Florida. Rifle and flag displayed on automobile. Handwritten on negative: "1921, USA, en route Florida." Handwritten on sleeve: "En route to Florida. North America, USA, 1921."

View of Wanderwell expedition crew posing with car no. 2. Handwritten on front: "Stripped down T, 1921, tripod & sirens & #2. 2 crew, Detroit, 1921." Handwritten on back: "1921."

View of Walter Wanderwell filming Seminole Indian women standing in front of Wanderwell automobile. Handwritten on sleeve: "Local culture: people, Seminoles. North America, USA, Florida, 1921."

View of Walter Wanderwell and members of expedition crew posing with car no. 2 in Florida en route to Europe. Buildings and palm trees in background. Handwritten on negative: "En route Europe, #2 car, Florida." Handwritten on sleeve: "En route Europe. North America, USA, Florida, 1921.

Close-up view of engine for Wanderwell car no. 2. Stamped on engine block: "Made by Rajo Motor Co." Handwritten on negative: "USA, 1921, #2 engine." Handwritten on sleeve: "#2 engine. North America, USA, 1921."

Kindness and Peanut Butter Sandwiches Found On the Road!

From Ed --  

Yesterday morning I drove my Toyota Hybrid to the Lake Erie area to visit an old mentor -- a long retired United Methodist pastor who lives in the Lakeside compound.  On the way home, my GPS led me back south through a town in North Central Ohio, on Ohio Route 4 (the straightest road you can imagine).  As I then entered the town, I found myself following a relatively new Honda minivan that said, on the rear window: The Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Man.

A mile or so later the driver pulled over into a residential area and given my inquisitive mind, I had to know what this was all about.  He stopped, I stopped, and he opened the side of his van which said on both sides:  

Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches - Always Free.

About a half dozen little kids rushed to the van.  I chatted the man up.  He told me that since he retired about ten years ago his hobby was getting up early and making 100 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, each sliced in half, and placed into individual zip lock bags.  

He then would drive around neighborhoods where he knew there were children out playing, mostly in low-income areas; stop and hand out sandwiches.  He has done this every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday during the summers for the last six years or out of the goodness of his heart.

The interesting things one encounters in small towns when one gets off the Interstates!

Ed

Mercedes Sl Cars at 70th Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance

 It could hardly get more exquisite than this: at the annual Monterey Car Week in the grounds of the Pebble Beach Golf Club, the most exclusive and spectacular classics in motoring history are presented, admired, awarded prizes and sometimes even auctioned off for record-setting sums. Mercedes-Benz will also be present with several vehicles this year (August 12 – 15, 2021). The focus will be on the history of the Mercedes-Benz SL. Examples of several generations of these fascinating sports cars will be on display at Pebble Beach – ranging from the 300 SL racing sports car from 1952 and the legendary 300 SL Roadster from 1957 to an SL 55 AMG of 2003. The SL tradition lives on: The latest all-new SL generation (R 232) will come soon.

The birth of the SL sports car: Mercedes-Benz sports cars have a very close connection with the USA. Back in 1953, American Max E. Hoffman was convinced that a sports car from Mercedes-Benz would be successful on the American market. Hoffman, the brand’s importer for the eastern United States, travelled to Untertürkheim to promote his idea for extending the model line-up. The minutes of a board meeting on September 2, 1953 showed: “In the USA, people expect Mercedes-Benz, a company with a particularly good name in that country, to offer under all circumstances a sports car which alone can provide a basis for the existence of the dealer organisation.” These discussions resulted in two models, the 190 SL (W 121) and the 300 SL (W 198). Hoffman was proved right: in 1954 and 1955 alone, no less than 85 percent of the 996 300 SL Coupés built were exported to the USA. Throughout the entire production period, Mercedes-Benz delivered more than half of all its 300 SL to North America. The subsequent SL model series continued this success story. Many of the best kept specimens can be seen regularly in Pebble Beach.

Mercedes-Benz Classic in Pebble Beach: Mercedes-Benz Classic is presenting six cars from its SL heritage collection in connection with the Concours d’Elegance.

• Mercedes-Benz 300 SL racing sports car (W 194) #5: It was in this very car that Rudolf Caracciola, three-time European Champion of the Silver Arrow era from 1934 to 1939, took fourth place in the 1952 Mille Miglia. Hermann Lang, European Champion in 1939, finished second in the Carrera Panamericana in 1952 in this 300 SL.
• Mercedes-Benz 300 SL (W 194) #11: the racing prototype further developed for the 1953 season – a true one-off.
• Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster (W 198), 1957
• Mercedes-Benz 280 SL “Pagoda” (W 113), 1969
• Mercedes-Benz 380 SL (R 107), 1982
• Mercedes-Benz SL 500 (R 129), special model for the USA, the “Silver Arrow Edition”, 2001
• Mercedes-Benz SL 55 AMG (R 230), 2003

Mercedes-Benz in North America: Mercedes-Benz Classic will not be the only presenter of valuable classics from the brand with the three-pointed star during the Monterey Car Week – numerous enthusiasts of the brand will present exceptional models from their private collections. These models are expected:

• Mercedes-Benz S Tourer (W 06), 1927
• Mercedes-Benz SS Armbruster Cabriolet (W 06), 1927
• Mercedes-Benz 680 S Saoutchik Torpedo (W 06), 1928
• Mercedes-Benz 680 S Gangloff Sport 4 (W 06), 1929
• Mercedes-Benz S Barker Tourer (W 06), 1929
• Mercedes-Benz SS Erdmann & Rossi Roadster (W 06), 1930
• Mercedes-Benz SSK “Count Trossi” Roadster (W 06), 1930
• Mercedes-Benz 38/250 SSK Roadster (W 06), 1931
• Mercedes-Benz 500 K Special Roadster (W 29), 1936
• Mercedes-Benz 540 K Special Roadster (W 29), 1937
• Mercedes-Benz 540 K “Autobahnkurier” (W 29), 1938
• Mercedes-Benz 300 S Coupé (W 188), 1952
• Mercedes-Benz 300 SL “Gullwing” (W 198), 1954
• Mercedes-Benz 300 SL “Gullwing” (W 198), 1955
• Mercedes-Benz 230 SL Pininfarina Coupé (W 113), 1964

Concours d’Elegance celebrates its 70th anniversary: the competition for outstanding automotive elegance has been held every year since 1950 on the Pacific coast of California. The only exception was 2020, when the event had to be cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. This is why the 70th Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, featuring 200 breath-taking cars and exquisitely and elegantly dressed ladies and gentlemen, will take place on Sunday, August 15, 2021. Around the 18th hole of the golf course, cars will be awarded prizes, including the classic “Best of Show”. On the Thursday before the Concours, around 150 historic cars will take part in the Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance, a scenic trip of approximately 75 miles, which will demand a great deal of skill from the drivers due to its topography. Monterey Car Week events also include classic car auctions from some of the world’s top auction houses. In a typical year, around 100,000 visitors from all over the world come to this exquisite event.