Revived Mercedes 300SL Should Have Stayed Dead

The Mercedes-Benz 300 SL, often referred to as “the SL Gullwing,” is one of the most iconic sports cars to ever come out of Germany, so there are plenty of people who would love to see it revived. A French coachbuilder called Saoutchik, which was founded way back in 1906, just came back from the dead to bring back the 300 SL from its equally lengthy hiatus. Maybe the SL should have stayed dead.

Saoutchik’s 300 SL tribute is called the 300 GTC, but it’s not based on the current Mercedes-AMG SL. Instead, the company used the outgoing Mercedes-AMG GT Roadster as the base, likely because that car had an extremely long hood, similar to the 300 SL. We see what the company was trying to do here, but trying to wrap 1950s styling around a car with modern proportions has not worked. This may be a matter of personal opinion, but the results kind of speak for themselves in this case.

You Probably Won’t See One

If there’s one saving grace about the 300 GTC’s – let’s just say “odd” design – it’s that you likely won’t have to ever see one driving around. Saoutchik says it will only build 15 of them, and it’s unclear if any will end up in the US. No pricing was announced, but it’s likely well into six-figure territory.

Saoutchik attempted to replicate a 300 SL on the exterior with round headlights, modified grille, enlarged vents, relocated taillights, and monoblock wheels that look like they came off the Maybach S-Class Cabriolet. We’ve seen that some modern coachbuilt cars can look beautiful, but others, like this SL, just have horrible proportions.

AMG GT Underpinnings

No details about the powertrain were shared, but we can draw a few conclusions based on the images alone. The AMG GT Roadster came in several states of tune, including the base GT, GT S, GT C, and later the GT R.

Judging by the steering wheel, this appears to be a pre-facelift GT, meaning it likely uses the 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 producing either 456 or 550 horsepower. Power goes to the rear wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. The interior looks mostly stock, but there aren’t any detailed images showing it.