1930 Mercedes-Benz 770 K Pullman Cabriolet
Built without regard to cost, the W07 Mercedes-Benz 770 was introduced in 1930 as the company’s flagship luxury automobile, intended for heads of state and royalty.
Its 148-inch wheelbase provided the foundation for coachwork of formal, regal proportions, with bodies typically commissioned from outside coachbuilders and fitted to each car’s specific order.
Power came from a 7.7-liter straight-eight engine paired with a four-speed manual transmission with overdrive. Buyers could also specify an optional supercharger (as used on the company’s competition models), which engaged when the accelerator was pressed to the floor and raised output to 200 horsepower (up from 150 horsepower in naturally aspirated form), enough for a top speed of about 100 mph.
Production was limited by design: over eight years, 107 examples left the factory, many ordered directly by state governments. Worldwide conflict claimed the majority within two decades of their creation, and the scarce survivors are held almost exclusively in museum collections.
The 770 established the “Grosser” lineage that Mercedes-Benz would later continue with the 600 and, eventually, the Maybach.
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