
Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing
Reference — shown, never scored
Why 6.0: Mechanical fuel injection, unassisted steering and doors nobody's forgotten — genuinely one of the great pre-modern drivers' cars, docked only for the swing-axle rear that period testers warned could snap at the limit. Seven-figure values now keep almost every survivor on a lift, not a road.
Market value
Median asking price, good condition · $350k (2000) → $1.5M (2026), trending up · illustrative data
The long version
The buyer pool is museums, blue-chip collections and a shrinking number of families who never sold grandfather's car — at seven figures, entry is by wire transfer, not enthusiasm. What driving happens is ceremonial: concours lawns, the occasional Mille Miglia retrospective, a climate-controlled trailer both ways. The mechanical fuel injection that made it a legend is now a specialist-only service item, which suits owners who measure use in appearances per year. It wears Garage Queen with historical justification — most survivors have been trophies longer than they were ever transportation.