1934 Mercedes-Benz 380K Cabriolet C

Rudolf Caracciola drove a Mercedes-Benz to victory in 1931, adding to the company's prowess of building sporty, reliable and competitive machines. Riding the coat-tails of the six-cylinder Mercedes-Benz S/SS/SSK lineage of the 1920s, the eight-cylinder 380K made its debut in 1933 at the Berlin Auto Show. It wore a design that was led by the young engineer Hans Nibel, who succeeded Ferdinand Porsche as Technical Director of Daimler-Benz AG in 1929 after Dr. Porsche's resignation from the company.

The Type W22 Mercedes-Benz 380K was the predecessor to the 500K and 540K. It was a fast and luxurious long-distance touring car that was purpose-built for Germanys growing road network. The 380K introduced an overhead-valve eight-cylinder engine that came equipped with twin-chock carburetors and force-fed on demand by a Roots-type supercharger. Initially, the engine offered 90 horsepower naturally aspirated, and 120 horsepower when the supercharger was engaged. Its elegant bodies rested on a rigid box-section frame and was suspended in place by an independent coil-spring front suspension (an industry first) and an independent swing-axle rear setup. All 380Ks received their coachwork by the Mercedes-Benz works at Sindelfingen, including three different versions of a cabriolet, plus a roadster, closed four-door, and a coupe.

The 38K was produced in limited numbers with just 154 total examples. 93 examples were built in1 1933 and 61 the following year.

This particular example was ordered new on Kommission-Nummer 9736 with Cabriolet C coachwork on December 29, 1933 and delivered to its buyer in Düsseldorf. Its early history remains a mystery until it was eventually exported to the United States, where it was titled in Arizona during the 1960s. In January 1969, this 380K was titled in Scottsdale to Allan S. Gentry, who sold the vehicle in August 1970 to Annabelle Gruver of Phoenix, Arizona, through whom it passed in April 1971 to Don John Baumgart of Evansville, Indiana. The next documented owner of the 380K was Thoroughbred Engineering of Lighthouse Point, Florida who purchased it in November of 1995. It was later acquired by Rainer Wittich of Harahan, Louisiana who had it displayed at the Mercedes-Benz USA headquarters during his tenure.

Hans-Joachim Vorpahl of MBS Motors in Duluth, Georgia purchased the car in August of 2001. Mr. Vorpahl, who was formerly a Mercedes-Benz employee at Stuttgart during the 1950s and 1960s, maintained the car's restoration and displayed it at the 7th Annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance held in March 2002. The 380K was subsequently acquired by the current caretaker.

By Daniel Vaughan | Sep 2017