He promised to be one of the stars of a great auction in Paris, in a magical night of classic cars and luxury at the foot of the Eiffel Tower.
However, things did not go as planned for the famous
1980 Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC 5.0, which was
Diego Maradona
's first high-end car
.
The expectation was that the bid would be close to US$250,000, but
the best offer barely exceeded US$100,000
and then it ended up falling for insufficient.
mercedes de maradona
This four-seater coupe went looking for a new owner with the help of the Bonhams house in the 2023 edition of the Grand Marques du Monde, which took place in the Grand Ephemeral Palace of the City of Light.
But the figure –98 thousand euros, just over US$ 104 thousand at today's exchange rate– was so low that
it did not even touch the reserve price
, that is, the minimum for which a seller is willing to part with the lot. Auctioned.
mercedes de maradona
It is not the first time that this Pelusa car has been put up for auction
: in fact, this is how it changed hands less than a year ago, when in Fort Lauderdale, United States, the highest bidder bought it for US$ 34,700 in March 2022 In other words, almost seven times less than what they expected to raise on this occasion on European soil.
The failure of the auction in Paris is strange, to begin with, due to the high symbolic value of the number 10 car: it is, neither more nor less, the one that the fans of Argentinos Juniors gave him in August 1980, and which was
delivered personally by Juan Manuel Fangio
, at that time owner of a car dealership of the German brand with which he was always related.
Diego Maradona's first Mercedes-Benz.
What's more:
it was with this car that on February 20, 1981, Diego began the journey from his house at Calle Lascano 2257, in La Paternal, to La Boca,
where they were waiting for him to present him as a new xeneize player.
That is how important this Mercedes-Benz is even to the history books of world football.
Diego Maradona's first Mercedes-Benz.
The first luxury car of Ten
Maradona had it in his possession for just over a year, until December 21, 1981, thus making official the first of the many removals that the vehicle had;
For example, in July 2011 it was sold in Córdoba for just $17,500, but weeks later, in October, it changed hands again for $50,000,
always with the original property title bearing the star's name.
mercedes de maradona
But it's not just the emotional impact of owning a former Maradona car that could help you comfortably break six figures in US currency: the car itself is a true relic, one of just 1,615 produced by Mercedes-Benz
from This model
, which was manufactured between 1977 and 1980. And it is also in perfect condition.
This is due, they explained from Bonhams, to "having had good maintenance throughout its life and that it was professionally restored by its supplier".
But it also has to do with its scant filming: in March 2022, at the time of the auction in Fort Lauderdale,
the odometer marked only 61,369 kilometers.
Diego Maradona's first Mercedes-Benz.
With regard to the model itself, the Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC has as a particular sign the fact that to reduce weight its body – which retains its original 568 Signal Red color – was armed with aluminum panels.
And that material is also the exclusive protagonist of its 5-liter V8 engine, which associated with a three-speed automatic transmission
delivers 243 hp to achieve a top speed of 209 km/h.
mercedes de maradona
Elegant like all Mercedes-Benz, at the time of its appearance the 450 SLC sought to combine performance with the maximum comfort available, for this reason it is equipped with an air conditioning system, cruise control and electric sunroof, among other elements.
The upholstery of the seats and panels, of course, is in black leather and is also immaculate.
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