Beschreibung:

Formerly the property of Dr. E. Beeh, President of the German Mercedes-Benz Supercharged Club + 1937 MERCEDES-BENZ 540K SUPERCHARGED SPORT CABRIOLET A COACHWORK BY DAIMLER-BENZ SINDELFINGEN Chassis No. 154084 Engine No. 154084 Sandbeige with tan leather interior and black soft top Engine: straight eight, in-line, overhead valve, 5,401cc., 115bhp or 180bhp with supercharger engaged at 3,400rpm; Gearbox: four-speed manual; Suspension: independent coil spring suspension front and rear; Brakes: four wheel drum. Left hand drive. At the end of the 1920s, the magnificent old Mercedes S, SS and SSK models still enjoyed enormous success both as road and racing cars, notably at the German Grand Prix and the European Hillclimb Championship which went to Rudolf Carraciola's SSK in 1930. But plainly something was needed to revive the regular German motor industry, where the eighty-six different firms in 1924 had dropped to seventeen in 1928. Mercedes-Benz responded by transferring production from the old Benz factory to Stuttgart-Untertürkheim and developing new smaller models, of which the 170 and rear engined 130 are best known. The large luxury cars were now selling in very small numbers, but prestige demanded that both these and a racing program should not be ignored. The redoubtable Silver Arrows were the result of the commitment to racing, while the eight cylinder 500 which appeared in 1933 was the first of a new breed of exotic grand touring and formal motor cars. A supercharged version of the 500 soon arrived, but even so sales were extremely limited and in 1935 accounted for only 190 cars. Top speed was 160 km/h and new chief engineer Gustav Rohr, well known for the advanced Rohr cars of the era, progressively improved the car. He was also involved with the awesome Mercedes-Benz racing cars of the time, which saw Hermann Lang, Manfred von Brauchitsch and Rudolf Caracciola sweep virtually all before them. An enlarged 5.4-liter version was developed in 1934/5 and made its first appearance at the Paris Salon in October 1936. Daimler-Benz was without doubt very proud of their latest achievement and their publicity material sums up the aura of the model: The name conjures up visions of breath-taking exploits of racing cars and drivers of international fame, but also of superlative comfort and coachwork of exquisite beauty, fine paintwork, brightly polished metal, the finest hardwoods and leather - massive and yet outstandingly attractive bodies - in short: the car for the connoisseur. The eight cylinder 540K engine developed 115bhp, or 180bhp with the supercharger engaged, giving the car a top speed of approximately 170km/h. Other improvements over the 500K included chassis refinements, uprated suspension and a better braking system. Factory records indicate that some 419 examples of the 540K were produced between 1936 and 1939. However, only 32 of this particular Sports Cabriolet A version were produced in 1936 and 1937 and only 12 are known to survive. Chassis number 154084 is a quite magnificent Sports Cabriolet A that was ordered early in 1937 with internal order number 1390882. Its bodywork was finished at the Mercedes-Benz Sindelfingen factory on April 9th, 1937. On the same day that the body was completed, it was transported from the Sindelfingen coachwork department to Untertürkheim where it was joined to the chassis. On July 24th, 1937 its proud new owner, Dr. William Walter Birge, collected the finished car from Untertürkheim and drove it home to Paris. Following the Second World War, 154084 was bought by an American enthusiast in Baltimore who had a large collection of important European classics. In 1980 the car returned from the US to Europe via a well known classic car dealer and went to the Mercedes-Benz Supercharged Club President, Dr. E. Beeh in Stuttgart, Germany. Dr. Beeh, who has been the President of the Supercharged Club since it was founded, enthusiastically used his 540K on many European events such as t