Fresh barn find. The 170Sb example, introduced in January 1952. Mechanically sound which allows you to drive it as, or take it to the next level cosmetically. Chassis Number: 04363/52. Engine Number: 1911103709/52. Odometer shows 05861 KM. Car has extra parts, including the door handles, drivers side trafficator, and exterior trim pieces.
The Mercedes-Benz 170 S was a luxury car produced from 1949 until 1955 in various gasoline and diesel powered forms. It initially appeared with a 1.8 liter version of the 1.7 liter inline-four cylinder M136 engine used in the slightly smaller production type 170 V. It was the first Mercedes-Benz to carry in its name the suffix “S” (for Sonder modell (Special model) denoting a superior level of comfort and quality. As such, it was targeted firmly at successful business owners and company directors.
The car appeared in May 1949 initially sharing the chassis number of the W136 170 V, and closely resembled it. However, in several respects it was more directly a development from the six cylinder Mercedes-Benz 230 which the company had produced, albeit in small numbers, between 1938 and 1943.
The first 170 S upgrade occurred in January 1952, being further distanced from the 170 V with its own chassis number W191. Mercedes' introduction a year earlier of the 2.2 liter six cylinder M180 engined Mercedes-Benz W187 luxury 220 model, positioned between the 170 S and the company flagship 3.0 liter Mercedes-Benz W186 Adenauer tourers undermined the four cylinder 170 S's luxury niche.
The Mercedes-Benz 170 S which appeared in May 1949 was 170 mm (6.7 in) longer, 104 mm (4.1 in) wider, and better appointed than the 170 V. The 170 V’s 1697 cc M136 four cylinder gasoline/petrol engine was enlarged to 1767cc, providing a maximum output of 52 PS (38 kW) compared to the smaller car’s 38 PS (28 kW). Performance was correspondingly enhanced, with a stated top speed of 122 km/h (76 mph). It shared the four speed all-synchromesh transmission of the 170 V.
Although the 170 S was promoted as a car for company directors, the soubriquet of “first S-Class Mercedes-Benz” which began to be applied to it more than twenty years later, following the launch of the manufacturer’s W 116 is not one that would have been used or recognized in the 1950s.