The Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster (W 198) made its premiere 60 years ago at the Geneva Motor Show from 14 to 24 March 1957. The open-top sports car superseded the successful “gullwing” 300 SL Coupe, which was built from 1954. The North American market in particular provided considerable impetus for an open-top version of the 300 SL. In technical terms the roadster differed from the coupe in numerous details, the latter being derived from the 300 SL racing car.
Readers of the North American “Colliers Magazine” were the first to hear about the new Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster 60 years ago. For the Stuttgart brand gave top photographer David Douglas Duncan the opportunity to showcase a pre-series roadster for the October issue of the magazine in 1956. It was a media coup, and a well-considered one. Because in the United States demand for an open-top variant of the 300 SL was very high.
