1990 Mercedes-Benz 500 SEL

Sammlung Sonderklasse - Auction

Lot 034: 1990 Mercedes-Benz 500 SEL

Vehicle description

MOST ELEGANT COLOR COMBINATION

DELIVERED NEW TO GERMANY

FULLY LOADED WITH OPTIONS

ONLY 122,728 DOCUMENTED KILOMETERS

Technical details

Year: 1990

Chassis N°: WDB1260371A577981

Engine N°: 117.965-12-032312

Body N°: 00735

Production N°: 5552473

Paint: 904 MIDNIGHT BLUE

Interior: 261 SOFT LEATHER BLACK

Options

215 HYDROPNEUMATIC SUSPENSION WITH AUTOMATIC LEVEL LOWERING DEVICE AND CONTROLLED DAMPING

221 LEFT FRONT SEAT, ELECTRICALLY ADJUSTABLE

222 RIGHT FRONT SEAT, ELECTRICALLY ADJUSTABLE

245 ON-BOARD COMPUTER

260 ELIMINATION OF MODEL DESIGNATION ON REAR LID

291 AIRBAG FOR DRIVER AND FRONT PASSENGER

300 STORAGE BOX IN FRONT TRAY

310 ANTENNA WITH SPLITTER FOR CAR PHONE NET C, ON LEFT REAR FENDER

326 FRONT ARMREST FOR CAR PHONE WITH KEYBOARD INTEGRATED HANDSET (BDH)

363 INCOMPLETE DELIVERY SLIP (FOR SAS AND KWS)

412 ELECTRIC SLIDING ROOF WITH TILTING DEVICE

440 TEMPOMAT (CRUISE CONTROL)

452 TWO-TONE HORN

471 ACCELERATION SKID CONTROL (ASR)

543 SUN VISOR WITH VANITY MIRROR, ILLUMINATED, LEFT AND RIGHT

580 AIR CONDITIONER/TEMPMATIC

592 HEAT-INSULATING GLASS, ALL-AROUND, HEATED REAR WINDOW PANE (LAMINATED GLASS), DOMESTIC

600 HEADLAMP WIPER/WASHER

611 COURTESY LAMPS FOR FRONT AND REAR DOORS

620 VEHICLES WITH CATALYST TECHNIQUE

640 15-HOLE LIGHT ALLOY RIMS

673 HIGH-CAPACITY BATTERY

682 FIRE EXTINGUISHER

731 WOOD TRIM, BURRED WALNUT ROOT

752 BECKER RADIO MEXICO 2000 VK

810 SOUND PACKAGE (BOSE)

872 ELECTRIC SEAT HEATER FOR REAR SEAT BENCH, LEFT AND RIGHT

873 SEAT HEATER FOR LEFT AND RIGHT FRONT SEATS

Provenance

17/10/1990 UNKNOWN, DE

26/10/2006 VERMOP SALMON GMBH, WERTHEIM, DE

Documents

GERMAN REGISTRATION PAPERS (2006)

ORIGINAL SERVICE BOOKLET

About the model line

W 126

In 1975, Bruno Sacco succeeded Friedrich Geiger as head of Mercedes-Benz Styling. His mentor had taken his leave with the „Car of the Year,“ and by the end of the 1970s it was time to replace it. The task involved nothing less than the flagship of the marque itself: the S-Class.

Where its predecessor had redefined automotive safety, the new generation would add a different priority: efficiency. The oil crisis had left a lasting mark, shattering faith in unlimited growth and inexhaustible resources. Weight had to be reduced, aerodynamic drag minimised and, ultimately, fuel consumption lowered. Even in the luxury-car segment, common sense had suddenly become respectable.

When it came to styling, Bruno Sacco deliberately avoided every trace of gimmickry. Clean lines, expansive glass areas and an elegance that never sought to impress, but instead appeared effortlessly natural. Sacco would later formulate his famous design philosophy that no new Mercedes should ever make its predecessor look obsolete. Few model series embodied his principle of „vertical affinity“ more perfectly than the W 126.

Beneath the elegant bodywork, Mercedes continued along the path it had already chosen. Weight reduction became the order of the day. High-strength steels, aluminium and a structure refined down to the smallest detail shed around 100 kilograms. At the same time, aerodynamic efficiency improved dramatically. With a drag coefficient of just 0.36, the new S-Class ranked among the most aerodynamic luxury saloons of its era. ABS was now standard equipment, or at the very least available across virtually the entire range. During the model’s production run, the driver’s airbag and seat-belt pretensioners also made their debut here, alongside ASR, ASD and a host of electronic assistance systems that would not become commonplace elsewhere until many years later.

The engines reflected the changing times as well. Large-displacement V8s remained the benchmark, but economical six-cylinder models were now an equally important part of the range. After the first series, carburettors quietly disappeared into history. Electronic fuel injection, overrun fuel cut-off and electronically controlled idle speed had become the new order of the day. The 1985 facelift introduced an entirely new generation of lightweight aluminium V8 engines, crowned by the magnificent 560 SEL. Five and a half litres of displacement, up to 300 horsepower and performance that only a few years earlier would have done justice to a thoroughbred sports car. Yet the S-Class remained true to its character. Acceleration was never its defining virtue; effortless authority was. Travelling more serenely was scarcely possible.

Customers embraced the new S-Class with enthusiasm. Statesmen, business leaders, industrialists and diplomats appreciated it just as much as discerning taxi operators. Few luxury saloons defined the streetscape of the 1980s more completely. By the end of production in 1991, almost 900,000 saloons had been built, making the W 126 the best-selling S-Class generation to this day and one of the most successful luxury automobiles ever produced.

The W 126 was not a revolution. Nor did it need to be. Instead, it perfected everything Mercedes-Benz had spent decades refining: safety, quality, comfort and technical excellence. That is precisely why, for many enthusiasts, it remains the definitive S-Class – an automobile that never had to draw attention to itself because it simply did everything a little better.

Auction information

Auction: 07 November 2026, 14:00

Auction house: Humer Granner & Co

Starting price: 4,000 EUR

Reserve: No reserve

Viewing: 05. November 2026 10:00 – 18:00, 06. November 2026 09:00 – 18:00, 07. November 2026 ab 09:00

Location: Gewerbeparkstraße 17, 4101 Feldkirchen an der Donau, AT

Bidding: In person · Online live · Telephone · Written bid

Auction registration: Schriftliches Kaufangebot, Als Telefonbieter, Online - live

Contact: Wolfgang Humer, +43 650 7262524 / Reinhard Granner, +43 699 17127272

About the auction

This Mercedes-Benz is part of the Sammlung Sonderklasse, one of the largest private Mercedes-Benz collections in Europe. The entire collection will be auctioned from 5 to 7 November 2026 in Feldkirchen an der Donau, Austria. All 83 cars are offered without reserve.

The collection also includes around 1,000 automobilia items and several fully furnished rooms, which will be auctioned on 6 and 7 November by Ni-Cola Classics. Please note that if you want to bid on automobilia, you must register in advance at nicola-ac.de. You can also view all lots at https://auction.nicola-ac.de/

The car auction starts on Saturday 7 November at 14:00, and you can bid in person or online. The cars can be viewed on Thursday 5 November from 10:00 to 18:00. Please note that if you want to bid on this car, you must register in advance with Humer Granner at https://hg.auction/auktionen/auktion-november-2026/.

You can order the catalogue at metropole-auction.com. It also serves as your admission ticket for two people. The catalogue does not replace registration with the auction house.

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Auction overview

Auction catalogue