There is a small group of auto enthusiasts who scout barns, fields, and garages in search of classic cars to restore. These barn finders take pleasure in driving endless miles to the most remote areas to stumble upon a car that has been forgotten for years, sometimes decades.
That is exactly what Rudi Koniczek of Rudi and Company did, except that his find wasn’t hidden in the countryside but in Santa Monica, California. And Koniczek didn’t find just any classic car, he found a 1955 alloy-bodied Mercedes-Benz 300SL.
Mercedes only built 29 alloy-bodied 300SLs, designed to be lighter and faster than a standard 300SL. To cut as much weight as possible from the car, the glass windows were replaced with Plexiglas ones. There were other differences that set the alloy-bodied cars apart from other 300SLs, including a high-lift cam, beefier brakes and a modified suspension.
28 of the alloy-bodied cars were accounted for but the location of number 21 remained a mystery until it was pulled out of a garage by Koniczek and his team.
Why was this Gullwing hiding all this time? The story starts in 1955, when the 300SL was given to its owner by his parents as a college graduation present. He used it as a daily driver until the early 1970s, when the transmission gave out.
The owner put the car up on jack stands in his garage, took the hood and the wheels off and removed the transmission. It sat like that for forty years. As time went on, a large amount of old computers were piled on top of the car, to the point where the car wasn’t visible under the clutter. When Koniczek found it, he had to hire two people to help him clear it out.
With the car finally accessible, Koniczek pulled a magnet out of his pocket to see if it would attract to the body. When the magnet simply fell, he knew he had found the missing alloy-bodied car number 21.
The man who kept it all these years was well aware of the rarity he was harboring in his garage and when he sold it, his wish was that it be restored to its former glory. The car is currently at Koniczek’s shop outside of Victoria, British Columbia and its restoration will begin early next year. Koniczek is no stranger to the alloy-bodied 300SLs: examples one through six were restored by him.
“This is the ultimate garage find and may be one of the great finds ever in the collector car world,” said Koniczek. “It’s amazing to know that the car had been there all those years without anyone knowing about it.”
Koniczek has restored approximately a hundred 300SLs in forty years of business. Customers have sent him cars from as far as Japan, Europe, and South Africa.
References
1.’Classic car mystery…’ view
