Mercedes-Benz 500K/540K

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Mercedes-Benz 500K
The Mercedes-Benz 500K (W29) is a grand touring car built by Mercedes-Benz between 1934 and 1936. First exhibited at the 1934 Berlin Motor Show, it carried the factory designation W29. Distinguished from the 500 sedan by the "K" for Kompressor (German for supercharger), only fitted to these performance cars, it succeeded the Mercedes-Benz 380 introduced just the previous year. It offered both a larger, more powerful engine and more opulent coachwork to meet customers' demands for greater luxury and performance.
Specifications
The 500K used the same independent suspension as had been introduced on the 380, with a double wishbone front axle, double-joint swing axle at the rear, and separate wheel location, coil springs and damping, a world first. Consequently, it was a more comfortable and better handling car than Mercedes' previous S/SS/SSK generation of roadsters from the 1920s, and offered greater appeal to buyers, particularly the growing number of well-heeled female drivers of the time.
Pressing the throttle pedal fully engaged the Roots supercharger, inducing the five litre straight-eight engine to produce up to 160 horsepower (120 kW) and making the car capable of over 160 kilometres per hour (100 mph), while consuming fuel at the rate of up to 30 l/100 km (9.4 mpg‑imp; 7.8 mpg‑US) as it did so.
Three different chassis and eight bodies were available for customers; the two longer "B" and "C" four-seat cabriolet versions rode on a wheelbase of 3,290 mm (129.5 in), and would later be used on other sedan and touring car models. The short "A" chassis, with a 2,980 mm (117.3 in) wheelbase, underpinned the two-seater models: the Motorway Courier, and the 1936 Special Roadster which offered the highest performance. All models featured such advanced equipment as safety glass, hydraulic brakes, and a 12-volt electrical system sufficient to bear the load of the electric windscreen wipers, door locks, and indicators.
Production figures
Of the combined production of the 500K (342 cars), including 29 "Special Roadsters" during its two years in production, and the later 540K (419 cars) from Sindelfingen, the deliveries were:
70 chassis without body
28 open cars (offener Tourenwagen)
23 sedans with 4 doors (mainly 500K)
29 sedans with 2 doors (mainly 540K)
12 Coupés
6 Autobahn cruisers (Autobahn-kurier)
58 Roadsters
116 Cabriolets A
296 Cabriolets B
122 Cabriolets C
Mercedes-Benz 540K
The Mercedes-Benz 540K (W29) is a car built by the German firm Mercedes-Benz from 1936 to 1940.
History
Introduced at the 1936 Paris Motor Show, the Friedrich Geiger designed car was a development of the 500K, itself a development of the SSK. Available as a both a two- and four-seat cabriolet, four seater coupé or seven seater limousine (with armoured sides and armoured glass), it was one of the largest cars of its time.
It retailed for 28,000 RM (approximately $230,000 in 2021) in 1936.
The straight-8 cylinder engine of the 500K was enlarged in displacement to 5,401 cubic centimetres (329.6 cu in). It was fed by twin pressurized updraft carburetors, developing 115 hp (86 kW). In addition, there was an attached Roots supercharger, which could either be engaged manually for short periods, or automatically when the accelerator was pushed fully to the floor. This increased power to 180 hp (130 kW), enabling a top speed of 170 kilometres per hour (110 mph).
Production figures
Of the combined production of the 500K (342 cars) and 540K (419 cars) from Sindelfingen, deliveries were:
70 chassis without body
28 open cars (offener Tourenwagen)
23 saloons with 4 doors (mainly 500K)
29 saloons with 2 doors (mainly 540K)
12 Coupés
6 Autobahn cruisers (Autobahn-kurier)
58 Roadsters
116 Cabriolets A
296 Cabriolets B
122 Cabriolets C
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The car is now highly valued for its heritage and uniqueness. When cars from the collection of Formula 1 President Bernard Ecclestone - five pre-war Mercedes - were sold at auction in October 2007, his 500K Special Cabriolet brought in nearly £700,000 ($1,450,000)