From August 16–17, at RM Auction 1928 Mercedes-Benz 680S Saoutchik Torpedo will be the best offer among other cars at the 2012 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance at California’s Monterey Peninsula. Considered the fastest sports car in the world at its time, and fascinating provenance, the stunning, supercharged Mercedes-Benz 680S, chassis 35949, is a magnificent example of automotive artistry and the perfect combination of German engineering and French Avant-Garde design.
Mercedes-Benz 680S was originally custom ordered by a Mr. & Mrs. Charles Levine, but they failed to take delivery of the car upon its arrival in New York. Instead, the vehicle was exhibited on the Mercedes-Benz stand at the 1929 New York Auto Salon, before going on display at the company’s New York showroom. It was later sold to its first owner, Frederick Henry Bedford Jr., a director of the Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Company of New Jersey. Following Mr. Bedford’s untimely passing in 1952, chassis 35949 went into storage in the family garage for almost 30 years. It emerged in the early 1980s, when Bedford’s widow commissioned a restoration to bring the car back to life before putting it on display at the Owl’s Head Transportation Museum in Maine, where it remained a prized exhibit for the next two decades. After more than 75 years of single-family ownership, 35949 was eventually sold by the family in 2006 and came into the hands of its current owners in early 2008.
The current owners entrusted the restoration to the firm Paul Russell & Company to complete a comprehensive, body-off restoration of the highly original car. The supreme quality of the restoration was recognized at last year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, where the car was awarded 100 points before going on to claim the coveted Best of Show title. Additional accolades bestowed on the stunning Mercedes-Benz include Restoration of the Year at the 2012 International Historic Motoring Awards and, more recently, First in Class at the celebrated 2013 Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este on the shores of Lake Como, Italy.
“We are truly honored to offer the 2012 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance Best of Show winner at our upcoming Monterey sale,” says Rob Myers, Chairman and Founder, RM Auctions.
