About a month ago I received a call from MBCA asking me if I would like to show my vehicle at the Mirage in Las Vegas. I quietly listened as they explained what the event was about. The National Automobile Dealership Association (NADA) and Popular Mechanics were going to Award Mercedes Benz with their Honored Marque Award for 2004. The award is given to an auto manufacturer that has made a significant impact in the US market. Each year automobiles built by the awarded marque are placed on display at the awards luncheon for guests to view. The Chief Editor of Popular Mechanics had chosen 7 Mercedes Benz's that he felt were significant in Mercedes History. The 7 Mercedes chosen included the first Daimler Benz Auto (3 Wheeled Gas Engine), a 540K, a 300SL Gullwing, a 250SE Convertible, a 600 Limo, a 500E and an SL55 AMG. Mercedes Benz Classic provided 4 of the cars and the others were brought in by private owners including me.

For the next two weeks I detailed the interior, engine, wheel wells and exterior to prepare for the luncheon. Luckily Popular Mechanics had agreed to have my car shipped by Flatbed to and from the event at their expense so my efforts weren't wasted.

Saturday Morning 6AM:
The tow truck arrived to pick up my car. My wife and I drove separately in our Honda to the Mirage where the car was unloaded. I spent 2 hours wiping off dust/debris and bugs built up from the trip up. I placed the car in covered parking awaiting the next days event.

Sunday Morning 6AM:
I drove my car to the loading dock where the cars were to enter into the Mirage Event Center. Upon arrival I was greeted by Mercedes Classic event coordinator who gave me the thumbs up on my car. Nearby an 18 wheeler was opening it's rear hatch bringing into view nearly 1 million dollars worth of MB's. It felt surreal being surrounded by all these old cars, all in working condition in one place. I chatted with the event coordinator about the cars trying to learn some history about them. The 540 was previously owned by the Sultan of Malaysia and was unrestored. The car in unrestored condition was worth $500,000. The last car out of the trailer was the SL55 which looked a little out place but still very beautiful.

This is where the fun begins.

Note: Before any vehicle can enter into the building the gas tank has to be nearly empty. Everyone was aware of this and had brought their vehicles prepared for this. Apparently the Mercedes center that prepped the SL55 was not notified and the tank was full! Since I had siphoned gas from my car just three days prior I explained what needed to be done. We spent the next 30 minutes trying to find the right hose to siphon the gas. Finally the coordinator looks over at me and says "want to go for a ride to get the right siphon!" I looked at him as he held the keys to the SL55 and said hell yeah! We jumped into the SL and took off. Now keep in mind it's 7AM Sunday Morning, ZERO TRAFFIC AND THERE'S 500HP UNDERFOOT!!! To say those tires weren't lit up at every traffic light and intersection is an understatement....they were lit up the entire time! You could feel the ESP trying to keep the rear end straight as the engine blew through first and second gear. The power just shoves you back into the seat so hard you can't move, I couldn't believe it. 3 point turns weren't necessary with this car, just turn the wheel, tap the gas and viola! The word I kept repeating to the guy as I struggled to pull my head of the headrest was "Brutal". What an amazing car. So after spending nearly an hour driving around town we finally found a store that had what we needed. The cars were already being loaded into the room when we arrived back at the Mirage.

While an assistant was siphoning gas from the SL I watched the other cars fire up and drive into the building. The 540 was one of the last to enter and before it could go in it had to be driven to burn off the oil/gas in the cylinders. Yeah, I got to go for a ride in the 540 too!!! Sitting in the car looking over this long hood I felt like I had gone back in time. The engine fired up and the sounds overtook the environment. It was soo loud and yet soo smooth. No doubt sound deadening didn't exist back in the day and it was noticeable. But the ride was terrific, it floated over speed bumps and take off/stopping were uneventful. Graceful is a good description for the 540. Seats are very springy in those cars, almost like a mattress.

Back to reality.

Arriving back at the entrance I was asked to drive my vehicle in. Signs were placed near each vehicle with brief vehicle history. After all cars were set up we all needed to head back to our rooms to put on our Monkey Suits as one of the editors of Popular Mechanics put it. Yes both my wife and I were invited to the luncheon which was really cool and unexpected. The awards ceremony was uneventful although I did get several comments on the car and many were very confident when commenting that the 500E will definitely be collectable within the next 8 - 10 years. I did meet one person at the event that was completely unexpected. See photo's below for a picture of him.

Hope you enjoyed the story. Here are some pictures from the event.

Attached Thumbnails

 

__________________
Afshin

Current:
02 C32 AMG

Previous:
92 500E
84 190E 2.3 5 Spd