The King of Egypt's Mercedes-Benz Is Up for Sale (10 photos)

In January 1938, the 17-year-old King of Egypt, Farouk I, received a Mercedes-Benz 540 K convertible with a 180-horsepower supercharged engine as a wedding gift from the German government and Hitler himself. For world leaders, this was a fitting opportunity to establish ties with the ruler of a country through which the strategically important Suez Canal passed.





The car, of course, was no ordinary car. It had previously been displayed at the Berlin Motor Show, even in the rare Cabriolet C body style, of which the company only produced 32. It featured a massive rear three-layer roof (waterproof fabric on the outside and leather upholstery on the inside, with wool and horsehair sound insulation in between), creating a private atmosphere for the rear passengers. The interior was upholstered in hand-stitched beige leather, and the role of pre-war multimedia system was performed by an extremely expensive and technically sophisticated Telefunken multi-band radio with a powerful antenna.

Another unique feature of the gift was its dark burgundy exterior color—aimed at royal taste. Farouk I had issued a decree banning all Egyptian citizens, including even foreign diplomats, from purchasing, importing, or repainting cars in shades of red. This color was reserved for the royal convoy's cars, so that police could quickly clear their path upon sighting them from a distance.

In 1952, as a result of a swift military coup, Farouk I was overthrown and fled the country on a yacht. His vast estate, including his unique fleet of vehicles—dozens of expensive cars, typically custom-built with custom bodies—was sold off at government auctions. The same fate befell the gifted Mercedes, but it was lucky: due to difficulties servicing the supercharged V8 engine and a shortage of spare parts in Egypt, which had embarked on a course of building socialism, it was practically never driven.

Incidentally, the new leader of the country, Colonel Gamal Abdel Nasser, was not a collector, and used limousines and show convertibles of American make as his official cars, primarily Cadillac Fleetwoods, which were regularly purchased in the United States.

In 1988, Egyptian collector of Armenian descent Nerses Papazian bought the royal Mercedes at a closed auction in Cairo and immediately shipped it to France. Its new owner was Albert Esder, a well-known car collector and owner of a restoration studio. Over the course of five years of painstaking work, its specialists managed to preserve over 90% of the original body panels and metal parts, making this example one of the most authentic pre-war 540 Ks.

Since the second half of the 2000s, this masterpiece of the German automotive industry has repeatedly shone at various classic car shows on both sides of the Atlantic, changing hands several times for seven-figure sums. It appears it's ready to change its address this time, as an ad for its sale recently appeared on a specialized website. The price will be disclosed to actual customers upon direct contact.