1927 Mercedes-Benz Model S

This S Tourer is built on the same chassis as the standard 680S by Sindelfingen, but its exquisite sporting three-door body design is very different from the norm. It is perhaps the only S Tourer in the world with coachwork by Gangloff, a Swiss coachbuilder based in Geneva. It incorporates the famous patented Gangloff door hinges, which allow a much narrower central pillar to be employed, and it has two doors in front and one in the right rear. These doors are rounded at the bottom, in keeping with the fashion of the time. A prewar Mercedes-Benz was among the few prewar cars shown at the first Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, in 1950, and the marque was often represented on the competition field in ensuing years - but it didn't garner the top prize until this 1927 Mercedes S Tourer, shown by Owen Owens, was named Best of Show at Pebble Beach in 1971. Just two years later, a 1939 Mercedes-Benz 540K Cabriolet Coupe, shown by media magnate Otis Chandler, would score another win for the marque, and over time, Mercedes-Benz would be recognized with a total of eight Best of Show trophies. This Mercedes-Benz is now in the care of the Keller Collection.