William K. Vanderbilt Jr.


On March 14, 1902, the fifth 40 hp Mercedes-Simplex was handed over by DMG in Cannstatt to William K. Vanderbilt Jr., an American billionaire and car enthusiast who already owned a 35 hp Mercedes. He started out straightaway on a 600 kilometer trip to Paris where he arrived on the evening of the next day. On May 3, he successfully established a speed record over one kilometer with a flying start on the road between Ablis and Chartres: his Mercedes-Simplex reached a top speed of 111.8 kilometers per hour.



Participation in long-distance races - popular events at the time - and repeated record runs in Europe and America were a sporting pastime for Vanderbilt Jr. Besides, these events consolidated the legendary reputation of the Mercedes - and its driver - and provided DMG with a growing number of prominent customers.

The 40 hp Mercedes-Simplex of William K. Vanderbilt Jr., model year 1902, is by all accounts the oldest existing Mercedes and one of the few surviving cars from this model series. Its history can be traced back completely.



It was bought in 1923 by a German race car mechanic who had emigrated to America and ran a Mercedes workshop. "Mercedes Joe" first and foremost serviced the cars of movie stars, using his Simplex as a replacement part carrier. In 1930, the car was sold to the Scripps family, rich newspaper publishers from San Diego. Well worn but indestructible, the Simplex served as a learners' car for the Scripps family's children until the early forties. It was then transferred to the family farm where it was eventually parked for good in a barn.



In 1960, the Scripps family sold the car to Bill Evans Sr. who displayed it in his Bahia Hotel, built in 1953, in San Diego. His research revealed that he had indeed acquired a1902 model. Reliable proof is provided by the front axle made of a single tube and the leaf springs which were flexibly suspended on the front end of the frame only on this 1902 model.
Today, almost 100 years after its delivery, Vanderbilt's 40 hp Mercedes still boasts impressive performance and turns no fewer heads than it did in March 1902.

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