1926 Mercedes-Benz 24/100/140 PS Model K (by Saoutchik)
Ferdinand Porsche’s engineering brilliance shines through in the Mercedes-Benz 24/100/140 PS Model K, one of the most formidable luxury automobiles of the 1920s. This supercharged masterpiece delivered 100 horsepower naturally aspirated, but could unleash 140 horsepower when its compressor engaged with a distinctive screech that struck fear into other motorists. The numbers in its designation told the story: 24 represented taxable horsepower, 100 the standard output, and 140 the supercharged peak.
Introduced by Daimler in 1924 and surviving the 1926 merger that created Mercedes-Benz, the Model K (later renamed Type 630) represented technical superiority over competing luxury chassis. Porsche arrived from Austria in 1923 to complete development of this flagship model, creating a mechanical tour de force that dominated both specification sheets and real-world performance. With only 572 chassis produced through 1929, the Model K commanded extraordinary prices and attracted the world’s wealthiest buyers, who commissioned exclusive coachwork from prestigious builders like Jacques Saoutchik to create truly exceptional automobiles.
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