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Motor Trend
09-07-2025
- Automotive
- Motor Trend
Dancing with the Star: Driving Jay Leno's 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing
[This story first appeared in the Fall 2011 issue of MotorTrend Classic] Everyone has his own particular 'barn find' fantasy of opening the door to an automotive vault (garage/barn/tomb) and finding his dream machine quietly lying in wait. And of course in this fantasy world, the owner no longer wants it and is willing to practically give it away. For some, that dream car is a Ferrari of one stripe or another. For others, maybe a Bugatti, Packard, or Duesenberg. Jay Leno's 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing, is a former race car turned cherished driver rather than a pristine showpiece. Leno appreciates its historic and mechanical significance, enjoying its analog experience and robust performance without plans for full restoration. This summary was generated by AI using content from this MotorTrend article Read Next This story is about another iconic, automotive high watermark: a Mercedes-Benz 300SL coupe, aka the mighty Gullwing. And only a guy like Jay Leno, one of the world's most engaging and best-known motorhead collector/enthusiasts, could find it, buy it, give it a gentle clean up and sensitive mechanical recommissioning, then take it out any time he likes and drive the wheels off of it. 'I found this car locked up in Anaheim,' Leno says. 'It was raced extensively in the '60s, and the guy damaged the engine. He claimed to have sent the engine to Mercedes to be rebuilt and, well, you know how that goes. We opened up the engine that came with the car and saw evidence of fresh parts and assembly lube, so we hoped for the best. On the dyno, it ran great and made good horsepower, and so far so good. 'The car had a wonderful Southern California hot-rod appeal. It was painted this candy red by hot-rod and show-car legend Junior Conway and has a custom leather interior by the late Tony Nancy, another local hot-rod, show-car, race-car icon, plus it has a rollbar of unknown origin. We of course kept all that and cleaned the car up visually and mechanically. It's a joy to drive and runs great. It's fun to take to car shows because I don't worry much about it. People always have lots to say about all the missing hunks of paint, but if their kid bumps up against it, he's certainly not going to hurt it.' Imagine that—a beater Gullwing. Or, more accurately, a driver Gullwing. Leno worked at a Mercedes-Benz dealer when he was a kid, and adds, 'You can't imagine the impact this car had at the time. Just look at the specs: born of a race car, overhead-cam engine, mechanical fuel injection, independent suspension, those outrageous doors. It was every bit as exotic in its day as any Ferrari, Lamborghini, or McLaren road car is now. It's really the first postwar exotic car, if you don't count the earliest Ferraris, which had more cylinders, but weren't any more technically advanced than the 300SL was. And the quality—other cars just weren't built like this back then. Everything is well engineered and beautifully made. 'And, fortunately, you can buy nearly every part on it. Stuff's expensive, but they have it through the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center. Buy a new fender for this car, and it fits with very little work. Buy a replacement panel for an old Maserati, and then the body shop has to get to work trimming and hand-fettling it so it'll come close to fitting. That's the difference with a classic Mercedes.' Jay offers me the pilot's seat. I flip down the steering wheel, then Twister my large frame inside. I sit relatively tall, with short legs, and the Gullwing proves a made-to-measure fit for me. I just have to remember to duck a bit when closing that special door. 'Know how to cold start one of these?' he asks. Of course not—unfortunately, I don't own one. It's simple: First you activate the fuel enrichment via a knob on the dash; ditto the auxiliary fuel pump. A twist of the key, and it fires right off and thrums with purpose. The exhaust system consists of a well-worn muffler and a large thin-wall single tube exiting the driver-side rear of the car. It rasps and bellows in relatively polished, old race car tones. We idle for a minute to warm the fluids, engage first gear, and pull away with no drama whatsoever. This engine feels torque-rich (it's got to be more than 203 pound-feet), and the fuel injection meters in the fuel with relative precision, so it's crisp. After a half mile or so, Jay clicks off the enrichment and aux pump. The engine clears its throat and feels ready for action. I drive conservatively as there's not much temp on the gauges yet, but after a while, Jay points to the far side of the tach and says to give it some revs. Sure, boss, if I must. We find a relatively traffic-free, country-type road not far from Leno's Burbank, California, Big Dog Garage and give the Gullwing some stick. No wonder this car took the world—and most racetracks—by storm in its day. This thing is fast by any standard, even now, although it wouldn't take on a new ZR-1 or its spiritual successor, the SLS AMG 63. No matter. Go deep with the throttle in lower gears and the exhaust system snorts and bellows, the rear end squats a few degrees, and this baby really goes. Most cars of the day didn't stand a chance against it. The view through the curved windshield is breathtaking—the prowed fenders and hood look classic and terrific. You know you're at the wheel of something special. The view out back is good, too, thanks to lots of glass area. I'm keenly aware of every car around me, and how close it is to our position. I'm worried for the welfare of Big Red's fabulous fenders, even if its owner isn't overly concerned. The Gullwing is a wonderfully analog car. There's no computerized inter-ference. You know the throttle pedal is connected to the intake system and the engine, and that the four-speed manual transmission's shifter is moving actual mechanical gears in the transmission, which sits just below it. There's no asking some computer for permission to drive fast. The brake pedal actuates the brakes. This is not only a car, it's a machine. And a refined, sporty one. The SL has a wonderfully supple ride quality—never mushy, always in control, with no danger to your dental work on less than butter-smooth roads. One contributing factor is the relatively high-profile rubber, from when tires were more than glorified O-rings wrapped around an oversized wheel. Leno points out this example's factory steel wheels and hubcaps, which look absolutely right on this car. 'A lot of Gullwings were factory-fitted with Rudge knockoff wheels, and many have since been retrofitted with them. The knockoff aspect is cool, but did you know they're actually heavier than these?' Jay knows his stuff, and appreciates the steelies-and-caps' lower unsprung weight, if less racy look. The suspension is nicely calibrated for controlled compliance rather than hair-trigger responses. Because of the SL's prodigious power, it's not only easy to make speed in this car, but also to carry it. The steering is linear and true, with meaty weighting, no kickback on rough stuff, and meaningful feedback from the road surface. There's a bit of body roll, but once the car takes its set, it tracks true and consistent. There are plenty of brakes, even though they're drums. (I need to go to Florida in a few weeks—wonder if Jay would let me take the Gullwing? This is a superlative machine for covering big miles when you have lots of time, and especially when you don't.) 'I wasn't really lusting after a Gullwing,' says America's most popular late-night talk-show host, 'because the car always looked heavy to me. I didn't realize how quick they are until I drove one.' Unlike some high-strung exotics, the SL proves a vice-free, yet thrilling drive. It's precise yet forgiving, and completely and properly Germanic. 'That's one of the things I love most about old cars: The driving experience among them is so different,' Leno explains. 'Drive a new BMW or Audi or whatever big luxury sedan, and if you couldn't tell the difference visually or by the badges, you may or may not know which was which. They're all pretty quick, quiet, smooth, comfortable. They all have the same gadgets on them now, and the differences in driving experience has been largely homogenized out of them. You want to try something really unique, drive a steam car or a turbine—that's different!' With a 300SL Gullwing, every drive is an occasion. And let's not forget, its beauty inspires a shortness of breath in most serious car fools, including your author. Will Jay ever 'restore' and repaint and replate this car back to pristine original or concours levels of finish? Who knows? He says it's not part of any current plan; too many other projects in the shop at the moment. We bet it'll stay just as it is. Because Jay Leno likes it that way. And so do we. Ask The Man Who Owns One Jay Leno, big-game car and motorcycle collector; host of 'The Tonight Show' on NBC. Why I Like It: 'It really is the first postwar exotic road car. Look at the specs and the quality. There was nothing else like it back in the day.' Why It's Collectible: Same stuff Jay said just above. An all-time high automotive watermark, a landmark design, born of racing, yet elegant and functional as a road car. Alloy-bodied versions and those with racing provenance or mega-celebrity ownership are worth even more, and trade hands privately, quietly, and expensively. Restoring/Maintaining: Bring money. Everything is available. Beware: According to Michael Kunz of the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center, Gullwings are tough and relatively vice-free cars. Watch for a lack of or improper maintenance records, hobbyist repairs, improper shade-tree improvements, frame damage, body/door fit (accident damage), fuel in oil (need for injection-pump rebuild), rear axle leaks. Make sure the engine is a proper injected 300SL and not a later junkyard replacement out of a mid-'60s Mercedes sedan, installed as a cheap quick fix for a blown factory 200SL engine. Expect To Pay: Concours ready: $685,000; solid driver: $500,000; tired runner: $375,000 Join The Club: Gull Wing Group International; Also check out the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center Our Take Then: 'Docile enough for daily driving, yet possessing phenomenal power and roadability, the Mercedes-Benz 300SL may have what it takes to create a new concept in motoring the world over.' —Gunther Molter, MotorTrend, April 1954 Now: Few postwar cars in the world are more desirable, and a good one will score you a front-row invite to nearly any car show or serious concours. An all-time blue-chip collectible classic that'll happily keep up with modern roads and traffic. Our thanks to Jay Leno. Tour his garage, car, motorcycle, and automobilia collection, and lots of other fun stuff, at
Auto Blog
03-07-2025
- Automotive
- Auto Blog
One Of 19 Ferrari F40 LM Supercars Gets Sideswiped In Highway Hit-And-Run
By signing up I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . You may unsubscribe from email communication at anytime. View post: Amazon is selling a 'powerful' $200 electric pressure washer for $100, and shoppers say it 'gets the job done' Trucker Allegedly Performed PIT Maneuver There are few things scarier than losing control of your car unexpectedly, and when it happens in a car that is notoriously tricky to drive, on a busy highway, it's downright terrifying. It's an ordeal that well-known (but anonymous) Utah-based car collector @supercar_ron reportedly underwent on Saturday, June 28, at around 9:58 PM, while driving his Ferrari F40 LM. In a post on Instagram (embedded at the bottom of this article), he claims that a dark-colored semi-truck pulling a large tanker 'essentially performed a PIT maneuver' on him. 'I was focused on controlling the car and staying alive,' he wrote. 'As a result, I wasn't able to get the name of the company on the side of the truck.' 0:07 / 0:09 Walmart is selling an 'amazing' $47 tire inflator for $25, and shoppers say it's 'portable and efficient' Walmart is selling an 'amazing' $47 tire inflator for $25, and shoppers say it's 'portable and efficient' Watch More Very Little To Go On His posts reveal that the carbon-fiber-and-Kevlar body has been ripped on the driver's side, from roughly halfway down the door and side skirt, all the way to the tail of the car. Parts of the rear bumper have been torn away, but the most severe damage to the drivability of the car is at the left-rear wheel, which has been heavily mangled inside the blown tire. There does not appear to be any obvious paint transfer from the offending vehicle, and all we know is that 'Ron' was traveling 'southbound on I-15 near 1600 North on the border of Orem and Lindon.' With no other details available, @supercar_ron is offering a reward for information leading to the identification of the truck and its driver. It's Certainly Worth Fixing This Rare Supercar Whatever figure the insurance company gets, the costly repairs will certainly be worth carrying out for an icon of this significance. While a 'regular' Ferrari F40 is worth anything from $1.4 million to over $3 million, depending on condition, mileage, and provenance, the rarest and most revered F40 LM can fetch as much as $6 million. This particular example won't have been worth that much, but even at half the value, it's an always appreciating classic that will doubtless be sent to Ferrari's Classiche department at some point. More importantly, 'Ron' loves driving his cars and sharing them with people – 'It's gonna rust, it's gonna fade, but the memories you make are gonna last forever,' he says – so he's definitely going to want to get back behind the wheel again soon. Autoblog Newsletter Autoblog brings you car news; expert reviews and exciting pictures and video. Research and compare vehicles, too. Sign up or sign in with Google Facebook Microsoft Apple By signing up I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . You may unsubscribe from email communication at anytime. About the Author Sebastian Cenizo View Profile
Top Gear
23-05-2025
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Want a 1,000bhp V8 Le Mans car for the road? You want the new Glickenhaus 007s
First Look A car that'll sail through Eau Rouge and then pootle along to the shops for milk Skip 11 photos in the image carousel and continue reading You don't need a 6.2-litre V8 and lots of downforce to manage a run to the supermarket, but it certainly helps. Especially if you suddenly decide, 'I fancy a crack at Eau Rouge, off to Belgium we go!' If you want a car capable of both, you want this: the new Glickenhaus 007s, a road-going version of the car that scored pole positions at both Monza and Spa – Proper Tracks – as well as finishing on the podium at Sebring and a little place called 'Le Mans'. Advertisement - Page continues below 'This is not just a road-going replica,' said TG hero Jim Glickenhaus, the man whose name adorns this butterfly-doored monster. The film producer, car collector and stone-cold racing nut is adamant his newest creation isn't just a facsimile of the racing car. It's been tested so that it 'glides effortlessly through urban traffic and summer heat', despite featuring motorsport-spec double wishbone front/pushrod rear suspension, adjustable anti-roll bars and a dry-sumped 6.2-litre V8. You might like A V8 that'll happily send 1,000bhp and 737lb ft to the rear wheels via a seven-speed automated manual gearbox. But while the aero is 'Le Mans Hypercar inspired', the wheels centre-locking forged aluminium items and the weight a racecar lithe 1,550kg, it's… easy to get in and out of thanks to hydraulically actuated doors. It can handle speed bumps because there's a nose lift. And it's got a 'powerful' air conditioning system. Advertisement - Page continues below Jim tells us setting the thing up for track use is as simple as: use the onboard air jacks to raise it, swap out the road wheels for slicks, adjust the adaptive damper settings, ride height, aero configuration and engine map, deploy copious right foot and hold on tight. We may have added that last bit. Largely because 'the result is a significant performance transformation: increased downforce allows the 007s to operate at the limits of grip on racing slicks'. When you're done, changing it back is the work of 'minutes'. 'The 007s isn't just about arriving at the circuit and taping over the headlights,' said Glickenhaus, 'it's about redefining the track-day experience: more accessible, more exhilarating, and more rewarding.' Will also redefine your run-to-the-supermarket experience, one suspects. Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Look out for your regular round-up of news, reviews and offers in your inbox. Get all the latest news, reviews and exclusives, direct to your inbox.
The Drive
20-05-2025
- Automotive
- The Drive
This Plymouth Superbird Sold for $1.65M in 2022. It Just Brought $418,000 at Auction
The latest car news, reviews, and features. In 2022, car collector Bobby Knudsen bought a 1970 Plymouth Superbird—you know, the one with the massive rear wing—for a record-breaking $1.65 million (after buyer's fees). Unfortunately for Knudsen's family, its value took a massive nosedive when they sold the numbers-matching muscle car at the Indy Mecum Auction over the weekend without reserve, as its new owner only paid $418,000 for it. Knudsen passed last December, so his family sold off 25 cars from his collection, including a few racing Pontiac Catalinas, a 1959 Nash Metropolitan, and, of course, the aforementioned Superbird. I'm not sure I've ever seen a classic car drop in value as much as Knudsen's Plymouth, but that could be because he massively overpaid for it three years ago. Even in its incredible unrestored condition, with 33,085 original miles, and rare automatic transmission (only 77 of these came with autos from the factory), this Superbird wasn't worth the $1.5 million Knudsen bid on it. At the time of his July 2022 bid, the priciest Superbird was $990,000, according to Hagerty. During the auction, this Superbird looked like it was going to sell for around $1.1 million, when Knudsen jumped up to $1.5 million to seal the deal. It's doubtful that the car realistically leaped half a million dollars in value during those six months, but he wanted his badly enough to knowingly overbid for it. Knudsen's Superbird wasn't the only one to sell at this past weekend's Mecum auction in Indy, though. The other sold for $550,000, with just under 21,000 miles on it. His family seems to have gotten the fair market price for his car, which proves just how far values have fallen in only three years. Mecum With its short-lived NASCAR pedigree, monstrous 426 cubic-inch Hemi V8, and iconic tall wing, it's easy to understand why the Superbird is so desirable. Still, this car's story is a painful reminder that everything has its fair price, no matter how desirable it may be to someone. Got tips? Send 'em to tips@ Nico DeMattia is a staff writer at The Drive. He started writing about cars on his own blog to express his opinions when no one else would publish them back in 2015, and eventually turned it into a full-time career.
News.com.au
16-05-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
South Yarra: Five-car garage home that's an entertainer's paradise revs up buyers
A South Yarra house with a five-car garage is on the road to a $6.4m-$6.9m sale. The four-bedroom pad at 61 Tivoli Rd was built circa-1885 and renovated by its owners two years ago. Period features including leadlight windows, high ornate ceilings and an arched entrance hall have been retained at the double-fronted home. Marshall White Stonnington director Nicholas Brooks said one of the owners was an avid car collector and that other vehicle collectors have been attending inspections of the home, attracted by the amount of garage space that's something of a rarity in South Yarra. The abode's kitchen is fitted with Gaggenau appliances including a steam oven, integrated Liebherr fridge and freezer, two dishwashers, a marble island bench and combined butler's pantry and home office. The open-plan living and dining room leads to a paved outdoor terrace with a barbecue, solar-heated pool and large spa. Mr Brooks described the impressive set-up as much like a resort. 'The rear outdoor entertaining space is a big space with a beautiful built-in barbecue and pool,' he said. 'The first time I walked in, I could tell it was an entertainer's home and that all the guests would congregate there.' The residence also features a library and study with a marble fireplace and a main bedroom with its own marble fireplace, ensuite and built-in wardrobes. In the basement level, there's a home theatre, the fourth bedroom with wardrobes and an ensuite, a laundry with two drying cabinets and a wine display area. Other highlights include a video intercom, hydronic heating, underfloor heating, airconditioning, heated bathroom floors, indoor and outdoor speakers and a powder room. Mr Brooks said that Tivoli Rd was one of South Yarra's most sought-after streets. 'It's quiet street but with easy access to Chapel St,' he added. Expressions of interest close at 3pm on May 26.
