Created by engineer Rudolf Uhlenhaut and styled by Friedrich Geiger, the legendary 300 SL Coupe, sold as a production car at the request of US importer Max Hoffman, was the first model with which Mercedes-Benz found significant success in the American market after World War II. Its elegant bodywork and striking roof-hinged doors refined the designs of the 1952 racing models and borrowed from the streamlined shape of the earlier competition-oriented 300 SL "Hobel” prototype. It was the first Mercedes-Benz production model to utilize direct fuel injection. 

This 300 SL was a prototype built in late 1953 to test designs for series production. Louvered backrest panels, a fixed steering wheel, and lowered side rails—built to house extra fuel tanks—distinguish it from the production coupe. After use as a Mercedes-Benz promotional vehicle, it was converted for racing. In 1955, Werner Engel drove it to victory in the World Rally Championship.