1930 Mercedes-Benz 710 SS Sport Four Seater

The high-performance Mercedes-Benz SS (Super Sport) was primarily intended as 'Grand Tourismo' - a sporty, exclusive touring car. Based on a shortened and lowered Type 630 chassis, the Mercedes-Benz Type SS Super Sports was the supercar of its day. The SS was built between 1928 and 1933 and was incredibly agile with a powerful Rootes-type supercharger and a low center of gravity due to the revised suspension. Its inline six-cylinder engine produced 118 kW (160 hp) from 7.1 liters of displacement and up to 147 kW (200 hp) with a supercharger. The Type SS followed the Type S (Sport) in the W06 series. Later, the SSK (Super Sport Kurz) and in 1931 the SSKL (Super Sport Kurz Leicht) were added, reserved exclusively for racing. The Type SS made its debut as a racing car with up to 184 kW (250 hp) in June 1928 when Rudolf Caracciola won the hill climb on the Buhler Hoha at the Baden-Baden Car Tournament from June 27 to July 1, 1927. Numerous other racing victories were to follow. A total of 111 examples of the Mercedes-Benz SS were built between 1928 and 1933.

This 1930 Moel SS was first shown at the 1930 Paris Auto Show, per Mercedes-Benz Museum archival materials. At the time, the body was gray, the fenders and chassis were champagne, the seats were upholstered in leather, and the interior wood trim was burr walnut. Chrome-plated wheels were provided as an extra. Thereafter, in preparation for delivery to its first customer, the car was converted from left- to right-hand drive, then it was shown once again, at the 1931 Berlin Exhibition. The vehicle was delivered in April 1931 to Karan Singh, the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir, who specified not only right-hand drive, but also deviating headlights, an additional lamp on the engine hood, and different tires. His family kept the Mercedes until 1972.