The Pro Shop takes viewers behind the scenes and guides them step by step through a restoration.  Over the past eight seasons, Dream Car Garage has filmed the restoration of an impressive selection of muscle cars and exotics--all featuring BASF's Glasurit finishes.

Over the years, BASF has amassed a collection of classic and exotic cars.  BASF bought the 1957 Gullwing a decade ago because the 300 SL is a timeless classic.

BASF's 1957 300 SL is one of only 76 built in the Gullwing's last year of production.  The 300 SL
Gullwing represents a technological and styling triumph that captured the hearts of American car enthusiasts and signaled the rebirth of Mercedes in the postwar world.

This particular Gullwing was shipped to Texas on May 13, 1957, and in the ensuing years went through a number of owners and color changes.  For the past decade, the Gullwing has led a quiet life, cloistered in the lobby of BASF Coatings' Southfield, Michigan, headquarters.

The Gullwing will be restored from its revolutionary tube frame up and finished with BASF's Glasurit line of automotive refinish products.  To maintain the integrity of the restoration, the Gullwing will be finished in an original 1957 Mercedes color, using the waterborne Glasurit 90 Line from BASF.

"The Glasurit 90 Line waterborne basecoat system is undoubtedly the best waterborne system on the market today," said Peter Klut, host of Dream Car Garage.  "The fact that it is used in the original production of ultra-luxury cars such as the Maybach, the Rolls Royce, and the Bentley is a testament to the quality of the system and the confidence that these manufacturers have in Glasurit paint."

Mercedes Benz and Glasurit share a rich and somewhat parallel history.  In 1886, as Mercedes Benz was in the process of inventing the automobile in Stuttgart, Germany; Max Winkelman was on the verge opening a business that sold paints and lacquers that were ultimately marketed under the name Glasurit by the year 1898.

To really embrace the history and spirit of this project, the Dream Car Garage crew traveled to Germany, visiting BASF's headquarters in Ludwigshafen; visiting the home of Glasurit paint in Münster; and finally to the home of Mercedes Benz in Stuttgart.  Expect to see footage from this trip during the 2008 season of Dream Car Garage.

The BASF Gullwing will be restored by Dream Car Garage's sister company, Legendary Motorcar.  The restoration of the Gullwing began with the début of Dream Car Garage's 2008 season on the Speed Channel Feb. 24.

Gullwing History
The Gullwing's official Mercedes name is the 300 SL; the "300" refers to the 3-liter engine, and the "SL" stands for "Sport Leicht" or "Sport Light."  The Gullwing nickname is derived from the car's most distinctive feature, its gullwing doors or Flügeltürer ("wing door" in German) that when open resemble a bird's outstretched wings.

The Gullwing doors are not some mere styling fillip, but rather an ingenious solution to the challenge posed by the 300 SL's spaceframe chassis.  The tubular frame was composed of 25 x 1 mm steel tubes welded to form triangles to create a light (82 kilograms) frame that provided maximum strength and torsional stiffness.

The spaceframe design meant that the tube chassis had to surround the car, resulting in high sills that made normal doors impossible.  Mercedes' chief development engineer, Rudolf Uhlenhaut, came up with a stopgap solution for the original 300 SL race car, an upwardly hinged door that allowed the driver to enter partially through the roof.

The production Mercedes 300 SL was based on the successful 1952 W 194 racecar.  The revolutionary Gullwing coupe won at Grand Prix in Bern, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Nurburgring Sports Car Prize, and the Carrera Panamericana in Mexico.
Mercedes had no plans to put its racecar into production, but was swayed by Max Hoffman, Daimler-Benz's official importer in the USA, who convinced the chiefs in Stuttgart that a street-legal 300 SL would be a hit with his well-heeled clientele.

The Gullwing was rushed into production and made its début at the 1954 New York Auto Show.  Between 1954 and 1957, Mercedes produced 1,400 Gullwings, 80 percent of them going to customers in the USA.