A 1928 Mercedes-Benz 680S Saoutchik Torpedo owned by Paul and Judy Andrews of White Settlement, Texas, was named Best of Show at the 62nd Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.
“I’m not sure I can put into words how I feel,” said Paul Andrews, founder and CEO of TTI. “It’s probably the most wonderful feeling I’ve had in my life. It’s the culmination of a lot of hard work by a lot of people. We’re all excited. We’re tickled to death.”
Of his car, he said, “It’s the whole package. There’s not a bad line on this car. It was the sports car, the high-performance car of its era, and then Saoutchik gave it style and grace. It has power and it has beauty.”
Jacques Saoutchik made seven avant-garde Torpedo bodies for the Mercedes-Benz 680S chassis, each differing in their details. The combination of chrome accents and low windshield make this car, shown first at the 1928 New York Auto Show, both a sports car and a luxury touring car.
“This car really has everything,” said Concours Chairman Sandra Button. “It has fantastic German engineering, elegant French styling, and a wonderful restoration by Paul Russell. It’s a car you can imagine racing, as well as touring. It’s just a marvelous embodiment of everything that is Mercedes-Benz.”
Other nominees for Best of Show included a 1935 Duesenberg J Gurney-Nutting Speedster owned by the William Lyon Family of Newport Beach, California; a 1931 Duesenberg J Derham Tourster owned by Joseph and Margie Cassini III, of West Orange, New Jersey; and a 1933 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Gran Sport Figoni Coupé owned by David and Adele Cohen of West Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
