The loneliest Mercedes

In car-loving Los Angeles, red, mid-engined sports cars barely raise an eyebrow. But the one I’m driving is causing a stir.

Burly men in huge pickup trucks goggle through smoked glass windows and make thumbs up signs. At every stop, people cluster round the tiny car. “That’s cute,” says one bystander. Another reckons she’s never seen anything like it.

And she would be right, because the car, a 1935 Mercedes 150H Sport Roadster, is unique. It’s not known how many were built, but it’s between two and 20, and this is the only survivor.

After Mercedes bought the car back from a private owner in the 1950s with just 44km on the clock, it sat in a German museum. Suggestions about bringing it back to life were greeted with stern head shaking by Mercedes management. The car was precious, and taking it to pieces to restore it could damage parts that would be impossible to replace. Apparently, the powers that be were worried that they’d end up with an expensive pile of bits.

Their change of heart represents a startling turnaround. Not only is the car now very much alive, but it’s also being driven on public roads, mixing it with towering yellow school buses and gawking commuters. And, as a huge act of faith, Mercedes invited journalists to get behind the 150’s slim, spoked steering wheel and take it for a spin on Los Angeles’ sun drenched streets.

Valuing the 150H is tough because there isn’t another one to compare it with. But a Mercedes chaperone described it as, quite literally, a million-dollar car. Anyone wrapping it round a mailbox wouldn’t be popular.