Vendor supplied images

Highlights

Restoration costing £80,000 carried out over last 5 years
First owner believed to be a getaway driver and regular in the Blind Beggar pub
RHD UK car
Only four registered keepers
Documented 29,462 miles from new
Long MOT to April 2025
Highly original and beautifully renovated car
Must be one of the best available anywhere

The Appeal

We’ll wager that this is, if not the best, certainly amongst the best W110 ‘Fintail’ Mercedes-Benz saloons in the world. In the last five years it has had just under £80,000 lavished upon it by its very knowledgeable enthusiast keeper naturally, it looks magnificient. After all that investment, this is clearly a very good one. It has had just four keepers in its 57 years and covered less than 30,000 miles

All of which is merely precursor to why you want one of these stylish cars. Blending sombre Mercedes-Benz aesthetics with a flash of transatlantic pizzaz - most notable the rear fins that gave the car its nickname - these models set the template for the firm’s saloons for decades.

Good ones are exceptionally rare, and examples in the kind of condition you see here are practically non-existent.

It's a car with quite a history too. Registered new in East London in 1967, the first owner was believed to be a getaway driver, and regular drinker in the infamous Blind Beggar pub, an establishment forever immortalised in gangland history after the murder of George Cornell at the hands of the Kray's in 1966. From research our vendor has carried out, it appears that the gentleman was a car dealer, who supplied vehicles to both the police - and the criminal fraternity, while also participating in extra-curricular activities as a 'driver for hire'.
Whilst we can't condone criminal activity of any sort, there's no denying that there is something undeniably cool about a car steeped in gangland folklore. We don't know for certain if this exact car was used for aforementioned purposes, but what we do know is that if this car could talk, it would surely have some stories to tell..

It arrives on the market in jaw-dropping condition and yet entirely factory correct. With a long MOT to April 2025, this is a collector-quality car.

The History and Paperwork

First registered 2nd January 1967
Only four registered keepers
DVLA shows current keeper since February 2011
Vendor advises us that he acquired the car on 1st August 2011
First keeper reported to be a member of the London underworld
He is said to have been a getaway driver and known in the Blind Beggar pub
Regularly serviced during current keeper’s tenure by ‘proper’ mechanics
£80,000 spent on the restoration
Painted by SAS Auto Repairs, Stourport on Severn, both inside and out at a cost of £17,000
Restoration completed by MWS Restorers, Kidderminster at a cost of £30,000 including £10,000 alone on new and reconditioned parts
Original service history from London Mercedes-Benz dealer between 1967 and 1971
Service stamp at 22,731 miles on 29th January 1990 by a local garage
Seller tells us that the service history and history file verify the documented mileage
MOT history also supports this showing 25,981 miles in 2006
MOT to 15th April 2025 with 29,380 miles and one advisory
Now showing 29,462 miles

Summary of recent £17,000 restoration:

Original wings, doors, bonnet, bootlid repaired with new metal
Panels e-coated prior to painting
Floors and sills replaced with new or fabricated panels
Underside painted and undersealed
Wheel arches and sills 'Raptor' coated
Painted inside black and outside 'Artic White', a Mercedes Benz colour
Serviced with all consumables replaced
Brake booster reconditioned
Radiator recored
Engine parts repainted to high standard
Battery replaced
Rear shock absorbers replaced
Returned to painter for inspection and finishing
Detailed and polished by Ant's Detailing & Scratch Repair
New headlining
Hand rails replaced
Carpets renewed
Dash wooden components repainted

The Condition

High quality Arctic White factory-correct paintwork in recently refinished condition
Paintwork and bodywork finished to a very high standard and present virtually unmarked
Many original panels which have been recently refurbished
Close to showroom-condition car inside and out and unmodified
Steel wheels with body colour chromed hub caps in very good order
Black MB Tex interior in factory-correct and freshly refurbished condition
Blaupunkt AM factory stereo with electric aerial, all working
Modern inertia reel seatbelts fitted to front seats

The Mechanics

1,988cc M121 4 cylinder engine
4 speed manual gearbox with column shift
Runs very well according to seller
One minor advisory on current MOT
Extensive history file summarised above
Regularly serviced by a local trained mechanical
Extensive mechanical overhaul detailed above
Low mileage documented and verified by history file

The vendor tells us:

“I love its character, rare and unusual design being an attempt at 'Americanisation' of a European car and its quality of build. Wherever we go people want to photograph it, even when we're sat at the traffic lights!”

BEFORE YOU BUY

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✓ The seller is registered as a private seller which means consumer rights stemming from EU consumer protection law do not come into effect. However, you are still covered by Car & Classic’s own Terms and Conditions..

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