Chassis No. 29118

Engine No. 48218

1926 heralded the arrival of the Mercedes-Benz, a product of the merger of the respective firms of Karl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler. Both men had already been at it for some forty years since 1886 developing their automobiles. In 1921, Daimler became the first manufacturer to adopt supercharging on production models with the introduction of the Mercedes 6/25/40 PS and 10/40/65 PS. In 1924 Daimler introduced the supercharged Mercedes 15/70/100 PS which had an inline six-cylinder engine and it was offered in a variety of body styles or as a chassis only for custom coachwork. After the merger in 1926, this model was sold as the Mercedes-Benz 15/70/100 PS and from 1928 onwards it was sold as the Mercedes-Benz 15/70/100 PS type 400 until production ceased in 1929.

The offered motorcar is a remarkable "barn find" Mercedes-Benz 15/70/100 PS that was recently discovered in Japan. This car's journey is partially documented via a copy of its factory Commission Book entry. The Commission Book confirms that it was built as a 15/70/100 PS model with a Pullman sedan body, completed in December 1926 and destined for delivery in Tokyo, Japan, where it was delivered on 2 February 1927.

Factory documents record that '29118' was one of three cars ordered simultaneously for the Japanese Finance Ministry, and is noted to have been ordered through Rudolf Ratjen, a German based in Tokyo. The company Rud. Ratjen & Co, headquartered in Tokyo, represented various German companies in Japan at that time including Mercedes-Benz.

While its subsequent history may have otherwise been lost, noted Japanese automotive journalist and historian, the late Shotaro Kobayashi, penned a letter to Motorsport magazine which appeared in their August 1990 issue, referencing this very car. Kobayashi recounted that the factory limousine coachwork was converted for ambulance use during WWII, and after the war appeared in yet another iteration, this time as a hearse featuring ornate Buddhist shrine style coachwork, visible in a period photo within the car's history file. To be sure, this was not your average pre-war supercharged Benz!

The Mercedes-Benz in its hearse form remained in active use until as late as 1968, when it was reportedly taken out of service, not due to the age of the vehicle but, according to Kobayashi, because no one felt confident enough to "sit behind the huge (and apparently very heavy) Mercedes steering wheel". Thought to have been scrapped during the 1970s, instead it seems the Mercedes-Benz survived by being parked in a shed, though its ornate hearse rear coachwork was removed.

Today, the Mercedes-Benz awaits its next life, having recently left Japan for the first time in 95 years. It retains its original DMG engine #48218, features wooden artillery wheels, and Mercedes' signature vee'd radiator shell topped by its three pointed star. Its bodywork, which according to the consignor, is original from the fire wall or bulkhead forward, has been modified into its present open tourer configuration complete with a rear seat. This fascinating 'blown' Mercedes-Benz presents a unique subject for further study, and an exciting project for restoration, whether back to its original specification or to be used as the basis for a supercharged pre-war Mercedes "special".