by A 1934 Mercedes-Benz 500 K Cabriolet has been put up for auction at Gooding&Company in the USA. The car belonged to Adolf Hitler’s deputy in the National Socialist party, Rudolf Hess. This was reported by Focus.
Rudolf Hess decided to buy the Mercedes-Benz 500 K at the end of 1934. He ordered the cabriolet with a rare four-seat Offener Tourenwagen body from the Sindelfingen workshop. Of the 342 Mercedes 500 K produced, only five had this configuration.
The high-ranking Nazi used the Mercedes sports car until 1941. As is known, he then fled to Great Britain supposedly for peace negotiations, where he was arrested.
In 1945, Rudolf Hess’s car was confiscated by the American military and soon ended up in the USA. There, the Mercedes 500 K Offener Tourenwagen changed hands several times, with one owner keeping it for 50 years.
The car has never been restored, so scratches and rust can be seen on the body in places. Nevertheless, it has won several awards at retro shows. The price of the Mercedes 500 K is substantial — they plan to get from 1.25 to 1.75 million dollars for it.
Rudolf Hess’s car is equipped with a 5.0-liter supercharged eight-cylinder engine with 160 hp and a 4-speed manual transmission. The Mercedes-Benz 500 K Offener Tourenwagen cabriolet is capable of reaching 160 km/h.
By the way, a Hitler’s car – a rare Maybach cabriolet – was recently put up for sale in Ukraine. The proceeds will go to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
