300 SL

I can remember exactly where and when I saw my first 300 SL. It was in the small Norfolk town of King’s Lynn in 1955. A crowd had gathered around the car. At the time I had only a vague interest in cars, but I knew about the 300 SL. It was like something out of those artists’ projections of the future where monorails criss-crossed cities and everyone wore nylon.

As always, there was a guy who could explain that the wheel was hinged because of the high sills, something that had led to the gullwing doors. We had all heard about the doors after Mercedes-Benz won Le Mans in 1952.