The Last Gullwing Ever Made! 1957 Mercedes 300SL | Jay Leno’s Garage

[@GeorgeMoynier]

Just a tremendous automobile .. Thank you for showing and demonstrating this amazing classic ⭐️⭐️⭐️

[@nelsonoliva2119]

Imagine having one of the coolest car collections ever assembled, and people still bring you the best cars in the world to fuss over and then go for a test drive. What a dream life Mr. Leno, cheers

[@darrylcox8267]

Fair comment, but it’s not just Jay’s collection, it’s his enormous knowledge of cars and actually most vehicles with an engine. Lots of Hollywood stars have more expensive car collections, but they know zip about auto history.

[@tomkroebel]

As a car modeler who is currently building a 1/24 scale model of this red 300SL I very much appreciate Jay's videos as he also shows small details which you will never find in the kit's instructions. Keep the great work on!

[@boblacks945]

In 1976, I viewed a red Gullwing in the showroom of an exotic car store in Monterrey, Ca. A beautiful car with the plaid interior. The price then was just $25,000! A great investment for those who are patient.

[@wesleypulkka7447]

Jay, the gear whine gives away it's 68 years on the planet! Even though it has a synchronized tranny there has to some straight cut gears in the drive train to produce that old car sound! Great car and video!

[@tippmannperson]

I was awarded a Citizen watch for my driving record at work last year I think it’s cool Leno is now doing a little watch segment in his videos now.

[@7728abbott]

Beauty. Perfect machine, even today.

[@RMSothebysInc]

An incredible car-we’re proud to have represented it on the show, Jay. It ultimately sold for $2,400,000 USD at the amfAR x RM Sotheby’s auction during the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix.

[@jamesdaniels3699]

I bid $1.00drew😂

[@BubbaSmurft]

Looks like Jay was on the $, your dood was a tad high (with his estimate too).

[@robertrotterdam9]

Only 2,4 million? I do not understand that, I thought I had missed a 0.

[@gallardoo9]

@@robertrotterdam9 prices have softened look at the latest auction results Mecum Barret etc

[@FrankCastle911]

Leno was right

[@williamsherer2580]

Even a non car person knows these are Special. As always Jay's knowledge is equal to the task. Love segments like this.

[@antraxxslingshots]

I love that you seem to intigrate watches into this now. Fits perfectly!

[@ingmarvanderhoek6314]

My favorite car ever, at last!

[@bbb462cid]

Oh, Jay has done a segment on his own. Search here for "1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing Coupe - Ultimate Edition - Jay Leno's Garage"

[@PN_48]

The 300SL… my all-time favourite classic👍

[@JenniferJaws5283]

I can here pebbles singing while watching this! 57 a very fine year! This is one of the most beautiful cars featured on this show! Take my breath away💃 Beauty and the beastie! Rocky& Bullwinkle & Fran

[@perarduaadastra873]

300SL Gear Whine: The Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing, including the 1957 model, did indeed have semi-straight-cut gears in its transmission, which can produce a distinctive whine or buzzing sound that some enthusiasts find appealing. This type of gear cutting, also known as "close ratio" or "straight-cut" gears, was commonly used in performance cars of the era, as it allowed for quicker and more precise shifts compared to traditional helical gears. However, it's worth noting that not all 300SL Gullwing models had the exact same transmission specifications, and the Roadster version of the 300SL used a different type of gearbox with all-synchromesh gears, which produced a quieter and smoother operation. Overall, the semi-straight-cut gears in the 300SL Gullwing's transmission are just one of the many distinctive features that make this car a beloved classic among automotive enthusiasts.

[@ShipReK66]

Wow!!! A beautiful German automobile being presented without a fake German accent.

[@pauliedibbs9028]

Jay looks like he had a lot of fun on this one. Love this channel, thank you!

[@pkstopee]

What an awesome example, with heretige.

[@JeffW77]

My good fortune to sit in a 300SL Gullwing about 25 years ago Once in a lifetime experience.

[@bbb462cid]

Once, before I started inspecting some Chevy 12 bolts being offered for sale at a car storage/parts warehouse, I was asked "hey, want to see Eisenhower's Limo?". I said ....yeah I do...and i was escorted to the third floor of this rambling storage facility, and under a plastic sheet, was...Eisenhower's Limo. In the trunk was a bound book with data. I sat in the back. It was crazy.

[@dennisdose5697]

Early 80s for me. A guy in Fargo, ND, let me sit in his.

[@23nedlog]

Amazing. What a treat to see.

[@mercedes-mark]

Not just the first fuel injected car but Direct-Fuel Injection!

[@Jules_73]

My brother had one of these 30 years ago. What a cool car.

[@donmacquarrie9161]

yes they're stunning cars - I hope he didn't take it to the smash up derby! lol ;)

[@andymelendez9757]

I’ve always loved this car

[@samuelbarboza9792]

Jay Leno The walking Automotive Encyclopedia!

[@ksingh587]

@@samuelbarboza9792 u get it 🎯🍻💪🏽

[@AlpoMartinez88]

What a wonderful machine

[@sageskeleton]

I love the gear whine for some reason!

[@dennisdose5697]

At a tiny car show in Fargo, ND, in the early 80s, I got to sit in one. I remember the steering wheel flipping down. There was not many people around, and the guy could tell that I was a real enthusiast so he invited me to get in. I expect if there was a crowd he couldn't have, because he would have 50 people wanting to jump in. The iconic Mercedes. 😎

[@CannonMusic05]

I want one of those cars so so badly ever since the first day I saw one they are just beautiful vehicles

[@natechrisman5333]

That’s an awesome car love it❤

[@Tonyclifton-q4f]

The Netherlands Hilversum my Opa had retired and wanted hes own special car ,it came down to two first being a 55 300SL and a newer model called Glas 1700GT it was only 18 months old at the time and he chose the Glas ,he cherished this beautiful lil car and when he went to heaven he donated the car to hes mechanics son ,2025 i think the Mercedes is quite a bit more valuable than the Glas

[@michael61985]

This is the only Mercedes car I've ever liked its so different and unique

[@icare7151]

Awesome x 1000000 Well done! Thank you for sharing.

[@sergio_81]

Best Mercedes ever built

[@bobschenkel7921]

As a person of German descent, this car makes me very proud. And that is RED, no mistake. Just an amazing piece of real engineering, nothing like it on the road at the time. As Jay said, like a spaceship.

[@Tonyclifton-q4f]

thats a really nice comment Bob ,born and raised in The Netherlands most working class all drove Mercedes as they were built to last ,our families last model before we emigrated to Australia was a black with red interior 1967 230S ,WUNDERBAR

[@marcusbrutus1999]

Ever heard of the 1957 Jag XKSS? That was faster, had a proper rear suspension and disc brakes my friend!

[@Tonyclifton-q4f]

@@marcusbrutus1999 remind me my friend how many were built?

[@Cycle.every.day.]

@@marcusbrutus1999 Not a production car , 1400 to 16 isn't a comparision

[@roberturibe3150]

As a person from planet earth it makes me proud of being a human being from this planet

[@modernemod123]

70's/80's Las Vegas Don Gibson had several at his shop. He sold me complete 220 D rebuild parts at cost. Great times.

[@Thomas-dz4eg]

Thanks Jay!

[@frankthatank02]

Just a beautiful car..

[@rcmakingtracks18]

Stunning work of art...

[@alexzeyos]

The Citroen DS had front disc brakes , in 1955 .

[@andyhamilton8940]

Jays Walmart watch must be in the shop😮

[@selectooldave]

Knowing Jay's luck he'll find another one in some garage lol. Would be interesting to take in how many valuable cars were lost in the LA fires. The number may be shocking.

[@kkeithf]

For anyone wondering that dude's watch is worth about 15 grand and jays watch is worth about 40 grand. Though he's in a gullwing so there is a chance it's a rarer special version of the rolex, in that case it would be a bad trade for him and not Jay.

[@davidkarr214]

It would look good in your collection, Jay!!!

[@donmacquarrie9161]

I could tell he was thinking about it

[@P.Galore]

Look at the beautiful three glass wraparound rear windows...this is what Mercedes SHOULD have done on the SLS Coupe.

[@ethanmaxfield4709]

Straight cut gears 🤙🏽

[@gymshoe8862]

I am pretty sure the fog lamps are not M-B--they look old alright but came from somewhere like JC Whitney or maybe MG Mitten. It was something done long ago back when it was no sin to add them, and they're still there because of the holes drilled in the bumper. I'm not complaining, its just an observation. I am only a few weeks younger than Jay.

[@budgetaudiophilelife-long5461]

👋 JAY AND MATT 🤗 THANKS FOR SHARING THIS GULL WING ,IN MY FAVORITE ❤️ COLORS IN AND OUT 😉🤩🤩🤩

[@peterdelia1814]

You could easily make the argument this is the best car ever made. I like the Jaguars and Ferraris many models are beautiful but this car still looks modern and I think in its simplicity of design it beats them all.

[@Matnrach2-mf9qr]

I bet Jay has a stunning watch collection as well. Would be good to see it

[@eoinoconnell185]

Yep. First thing I looked up. www.vacheron-constantin.com/it/en/collections/historiques/82035-000r-9359.html

[@donmacquarrie9161]

Great idea - He has great taste tempered with practicality......so he probably has an amazing collection

[@brokensmilephoto]

Someone check on Tyler Hoover. You know he's watching this!

[@donmacquarrie9161]

😂 trade in the Bugatti!

[@Ruben-Mazereeuw]

As a kid, I had a scale model of this amazing car (Bburago 1 : 18), and I was very proud of it. Exactly this red color😎 ❤👌🏻

[@adamfrbs9259]

Dang over a decade and i never missed an episode, almost forgot today. Whew.

[@ksingh587]

@@adamfrbs9259 that's gonna cost you five lug nuts next time🧐

[@scootermann83]

Went for $ 2.4 M, Mr. Leno was damn close with his guess!

[@laistab1916]

What a machine :o

[@radioqso]

DB534 Fire Engine Red was available from 1958 to 1960.

[@jefflemon7382]

Jay, as a TR3 owner you should know TRIUMPH introduced front disc brakes on a production car in September 1956. Other than that, the Gullwing is a bit more advanced than my TR3

[@christopherbrown6697]

Crosley introduced disc brakes in 1949. They were Goodyear/Hawley airplane units that didn't do well with frequent application, so Crosley eventually went back to drums.

[@guyvanbrussel9772]

And as usual Jay knew a lot more about those cars than the other guy,...Jay even almost guessed the auction price right ! By the way, the engine of this car has DIRECT fuel injection, which makes it even more remarkable but it was sadly not mentioned. Nor was mentioned that sir Stirling Moss won the 1955 Mille Miglia in a 300SL and an anecdote he told was about the brakes that were rather weak, so he couldn't lock up the wheels, which was a good thing at the end. This footage could have been so much more interesting,....

[@ToddtheLoneDroner]

How can Jay Leno afford such a nice watch LOL

[@stevenslater2669]

I’ve loved the 300SL since I saw my first one in Road & Track magazine. I was about 12 years old. In 1960 my twin brother got to drive a 300SL Roadster. Our friend’s mother owned it. She had almost purchased a Gullwing, but found it very difficult to get in & out of with those wide sills and the gullwing doors. How did my brother Dan like the Roadster? Meh. He said the quality was terrific, but it was kind of ponderous around town. Off the line, no match for our best buddy’s 270 hp 1960 Corvette, but the Merc seemed to feel faster the faster you drove it. Dan said the Mercedes was just hitting its stride at 130 mph. We used to take our dad’s Chrysler out on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and peg the speedometer for miles. We clocked the Chrysler at 125 against the mile markers. He took the 300SL out on the same route and it probably would have run 140 mph but traffic didn’t allow it. That’s when we came to the conclusion that driving that fast, even on the turnpike was gonna get us killed. Speed limit was 65 mph back then and we were passing cars like they were standing still while we were going 65mph. If a driver being overtaken misjudged our closing speed bad things were going to happen. I don’t know how we survived those early years. 🤔

[@JamesAllmond]

and Jay lets the not so subtle sale pitches role off... but a matching set would be cool!

[@tomschnabel6146]

my dad had a 300 SL with the fitted luggage. my mom didn't like it because it was hard to get in and out. Plus there was the petrol smell in the cabin. i wish my dad had kept it and given it to me!

[@mooslionheart]

Jay - you really need to bid and buy this as a companion piece to your original unrestored survivor race car. Side by side it would be the good and evil twin … but which is which?🦊

[@carlosoruna7174]

an exelent example of top shelf 50s technologies.. too bad a new golf gti smokes it ..

[@shawoo]

What’s the insurance cost just for the drive that’s filmed in this video? I’d be terrified to drive this thing, so many bad drivers out there. Gorgeous car

[@donmacquarrie9161]

I think Jay can afford it...though I kept thinking of the hemi under glass episode while he was driving this

[@AxLWake]

I think Jay wants to start a watch youtube channel. He's referring watches in all episodes now.

[@donmacquarrie9161]

He should show more of his motorbike collection too!

[@mfc4591]

I am a fan of the W123 series and love the 300D, BUT THIS is top of the pile no contest

[@whtmmat]

Jay, it is the first "direct" fuel injection car. Not just fuel injection.

[@10zoll]

Thats just not true... The Goliath GP700 was 1952 the very first Car with "direct" fuel injection. Mercedes joined the "direct" fuel injection club in a production car 1954.

[@whtmmat]

@10zoll I guess I should prefixed it as the first four stroke car. Never the less Jay compares it to the Chevy indirect or port fuel injected cars.

[@1hundredz]

Is called Henna Red. It was also used on the 82-83 BMW 320is and the 1gen BMW M3

[@sayrerowan734]

Can't believe that guy didn't know the fuel capacity.

[@gymshoe8862]

He is only there for Jay to talk to--not the owner, maybe not the most hardcore enthusiast either.

[@philpernice4722]

Aprox 26 gallon gas tank 100 liters

[@tinorosmg9374]

SSK Conti trossi first and best supercar 😊

[@shawnbradford2243]

His dad has a gull wing, he has had a hard life 😂

[@donmacquarrie9161]

I'll start the bidding off with ONE MILLION DOLLARS!......now I can tell my friends I almost bought a 300SL gullwing once!

[@jgould6321]

Shoutout Matt!

[@davidcook1622]

In my 84 years of observation, many cars have used gullwing doors. The only car commonly referred to as a Gullwing is the Mercedes 300SL Ignorance creates foolish questions and statements.

[@scootermann83]

Likely for multiple reasons; it's an easy way to differentiate between the roadster and coupe in conversation. It's one of the most iconic cars to have the gullwing doors, and most produced as well. And if not the first, it must have been an early adopter

[@inlangford]

84 years of observation....? 😂

[@pic18f452]

You started observing from day one? That is impressive sir

[@notDonaldFagen]

Great screenshot. Can't wait for some slob named Gary to tell us about one of finest cars to ever grace the road.

[@RickHealy-r9c]

👍

[@marcusbrutus1999]

Another classic episode from JLG. It has already been mentioned that the Brits led the way with disc brakes and while the XK140 had them as an option, the first production car to have disc brakes as standard, was the Triumph TR3 in 1956. Therefore, to still be producing the Gullwing with drums in 1957, is completely unacceptable. Added, the troublesome rear suspension, and let’s face it, this Merc is a magnificent machine, but not quite as good as Jay and his guest Matt Malamut, are saying it is. Give me a 1957 Jag XKSS anyday over one of these. That most certainly had disc brakes. By the way Mr Malamut, as a Brit, we know we have had reliability issues over the years, but we also produced some bloody good cars too and as a Yank, you are in no position to talk about unreliable cars being produced elsewhere. The USA too has produced some great cars, but you’ve also made some pretty forgetful cars too! Also you Repubs out there, don’t forget, without Obama and Biden in 2009, you would not have any car industry left to talk about!

[@toddclark332]

The first fuel injection car too did you get you one Jay I would love to own it 😂

[@BubbaSmurft]

Jay's got one. Same colour. Look it up and watch him put a huge scrape in it.

[@fingerlakesdiet560]

Great video. Soo Shell Oil sent 100 octane gasoline to the UK in world war 2. The Germans never knew what hit them. They could not figure out why the British planes were so fast!

[@mikem2179]

That looks like Hemi Orange to me

[@zenithseven]

Silly thing that I'm not understanding. How can this specific car be the last one produced and also be a show car at the same time? Cars are displayed at shows to create the orders for that car line. Do they instead mean it was the last of the line and not the actual last physical car built?

[@czukarpathian6621]

Quick, make a restomod out of it

[@joelsanfordphoto]

Hell no.

[@kfrerix9777]

​@@joelsanfordphotohumor is a thing.

[@WatchingMamut]

Why is the gearbox whining so bad? It cant be steaight cut gears is it?

[@sergioderiu2261]

That’s a lot of noise coming from either the gear box or diff.Is this normal?

[@kfrerix9777]

Straight cut gears, I bet.

[@sergioderiu2261]

Makes sense

[@jerrybushman]

What about the DeLorean

[@johnjayalves6843]

Google says 26 gallon fuel tank capacity

[@kfrerix9777]

And Google is correct.

[@UberLummox]

Can Lummox has it?

[@ochayethegnu2915]

Budget tyres on the last ever 300SL? Seriously?

[@LUIS-633BANK]

👨🏽‍💻👍🏽

[@joshua2814]

Anyone know what it sold for?

[@hondaracer888]

“Portion of the proceeds” aka tax write off

[@howardsportugal]

Jay Leno for 28! Why not?

[@mediaprducr]

I gave you a thumbs up on the video, but I can't stand the guy that owns the car.

[@ochayethegnu2915]

“Scottish plaid cloth”. You mean tartan?

[@fitter70]

How does this car sell 2.4 million yet one in a junkyard sells for 10 million doesn't make any sense.

[@mindeloman]

Because it was one of only 29 "Alloy" 300SLs produced that had a special light weight body for racing. Super rare.

[@bobbates7343]

When it comes to red paint on an automobile Mazda wins .

[@Sockpoppet]

People either have 10million to spend on a used basketball jersey.. or no money at all. 😔

[@marcom2248]

Mercedes lost their Mojo. Sad, but true.

[@gallardoo9]

in the 70s you could pick these up for less then 20 grand they were not that reliable and needed a lot of work to keep going hence so many sitting around not running I looked at a few but never bought one, that gear box whine...yikes

[@kfrerix9777]

I don't remember that. They made less than 1500 of these.

[@P51]

of course Germany used direct injection in their WWII aircraft, not us yanks.