The Alloy Gullwing boasts a special, competition-bred configuration, which differs in many ways from the
standard steel-bodied production car. These incredibly rare and historically significant Alloy coupes were
purpose-built for competition and the changes resulted in an overall weight reduction of 209 pounds, thus
making the Alloy Gullwing especially competitive against the best of the competition. The cars also featured
race-bred, high-performance NSL engines tuned to deliver in excess of 215 horsepower. Rudge center-mount
wheels came standard, as did special vented front brake drums. Finally, the suspension was revised with
exclusive springs and shocks, which provided better high-speed handling. Mercedes-Benz commenced
production in 1955, and factory records show just 29 examples were made available to private customers.
A RARE SURVIVOR
The car offered in Arizona is the 13th of the 24 Alloy Gullwings produced in 1955. Chassis number 5500332
was ordered by official Mercedes-Benz agent Joseph F. Weckerlé of Casablanca, Morocco. It was fitted with
all the requisite lightweight equipment and finished in Silver Gray Metallic (DB 180) over a blue vinyl/blue
gabardine fabric interior (L1). Additional factory specifications include a full complement of desirable features
such as the high-speed 3.42 rear axle with uprated metric 270-kph speedometer, Becker radio, and standard
glass windows (as opposed to Plexiglas). It was the only Alloy example commissioned by Weckerlé, and as
such, the sole specimen delivered new to Africa.
Early in its life, the “Weckerlé Alloy” was imported to the United States. By 1975 the car was in the hands of
Jack F. Bryan Jr. of Dallas, Texas. Bryan immediately submitted the car to the world’s foremost 300 SL
restoration facility, Paul Russell and Company in Essex, Massachusetts (then operating under the name
Gullwing Service Company in nearby Topsfield) for a complete restoration. Notably, damage to Alloy
Gullwings is remarkably common as the aluminum is notoriously thin, and most examples were raced
extensively in-period. Further, the bodies are known to deteriorate at the mounting points where the aluminum
meets steel. As a result, almost all lightweight examples have been reskinned or repaired at some point,
though notes from this car’s 1975 restoration illustrate only minor aluminum stress repairs inside the engine
bay. The quality of Russell’s work was immediately substantiated when the car was named the “Best
Gullwing” at the Gullwing Group’s 1980 National Meeting.
The car was then acquired by Hyatt Cheek, then the director-at-large on the Mercedes-Benz Club of
America’s National Board. He was soon elected national president of the MBCA (1984-1986) and a
well-known owner of many fine examples of Mercedes-Benz’s best model. He regularly drove it to MBCA and
Gullwing Group events all over the country and completed several iterations of the famous Colorado Grand and
Texas 1000 road rallies, in addition to those driving tours organized by the MBCA and Gullwing Group. After
three decades of storied ownership by one of America’s foremost marque enthusiasts, this Alloy Gullwing
was acquired by the consignor in 2014. Cheek’s longtime stewardship is, indeed, par for the course for these
special cars and a much-confirmed sentiment of this incredible model’s supreme usability and exhilarating
performance.
Chassis number 5500332 retains its original lightweight body and numbers-matching 3.0-liter NSL engine and
currently exhibits significant attention to factory-correct features throughout, befitting its provenance and
near-exclusive maintenance by Paul Russell’s famous workshop since 1975. For the discerning collector, it
would be difficult to find a more desirable example than this numbers-matching car. Unquestionably one of the
most sought-after and rarely seen Mercedes-Benzes in the world, this exceptional automobile is estimated at
$7,000,000 - $9,000,000.
RM Sotheby’s Arizona auction will take place at The Arizona Biltmore, 2400 E Missouri Ave, Phoenix, AZ
85016 USA, on Thursday, 27 January. Preview will take place on Wednesday, 26 January.
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