It is probably quite rare that a classic car of such historical importance becomes available for sale at a public auction. Well, that is just what is going to happen at the Scottsdale Auction of Worldwide Auctioneers Vintage Motor Car Specialists on the 17th January 2018 when a car built for Adolf Hitler is to be auctioned.
The vehicle in question is a 1939 Mercedes-Benz 770K Grosser Offener Tiurenwagen that was ordered by Adolf Hitler, the Fuhrer of the Third Reich in Germany and which he subsequently utilized on more than one occasion. It has a 7.7 litre supercharged engine no doubt providing a great deal of power that could have got Hitler out of a tricky situation if called upon to do so as it was capable of reaching a top speed of in excess of 100mph.
Bearing in mind who this car was being built for and despite being a soft top it probably does not come as a surprise to our readers to hear that it has armour plated side panels and underfloor as well as a 30mm bullet resistant windscreen.
The classic, historic car was used at a number of parades such as during the state visit of Mussolini the Italian dictator and in the victory parades when Germany defeated France, Yugoslavia and Greece.
In 1946, by which time the Second World War had ended with Hitler being defeated, it is believed the classic vehicle ended up in the USA. In the 1970s the car was restored. The car had several owners. It has been put on display at a number of museums.
Apparently, 10% of the sale proceeds of this classic car are to be donated with a view to helping to educate people about how and why the Holocaust actually took place as well as helping to avoid such an event happening again at some point in the future. It is interesting that no estimated price is quoted on the auctioneer’s website with an estimate only being made available upon request. It would be interesting to find out how much it would cost to arrange classic car insurance on such an important vehicle.
