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  The production version became the dream sports car of the 1950s.

The very first Mercedes-Benz 300 SL no long exists.

It was scrapped during its time with the company. But the second car is still around and has been restored to its former glory by the Benz restoration centre.

This oldest existing SL in the world has been painstakingly restored to mark the 60th anniversary of the car, famous for its gullwing doors. SL number 2 still bears its original registration plates W59-4029.

The restoration of the vehicle took 10 long months but we're sure you'll agree it was worth it. The restoration of the bodywork was particularly tricky, as it is made out of extremely fine aluminium/magnesium sheet metal.

Time had also taken its toll on it in many places. The SL was the first motor racing vehicle to be produced by Mercedes-Benz after the end of the Second World War. It appeared at a time when Europe still lay in ruins.

In 1951 the Board of Management decided to re-enter racing and commissioned the production of the "300 SL Super-Light", as the new car was initially known. The suffix was later shortened to the simple letters SL.

The M 194 engine was derived from the engine used in the Mercedes-Benz 300 prestige saloon, also known as the Adenauer Mercedes. But for its use in the racing car, engineers increased the power output to around 125kW.

The body of this first SL pre-empts certain elements of the later series-production sports car model, with a lower bonnet and the Mercedes star mounted on the grille.

The famous gullwing doors are a characteristic feature of the coupe. They are cut deep into the roof, open upwards and were originally conceived purely as access hatches that opened only as far as the beltline.

During preparations for the 24 Hours of Le Mans the door openings were enlarged, giving the even more pronounced effect. This led to the car being nicknamed the "Gullwing" by the Americans and "Papillon" (Butterfly) by the French.

Lightweight construction was one of the key design priorities for the 300 SL. The frame weighsjust 50kg and is made out of very fine, high-alloy steel tubes designed to absorb tensile and compression forces.

The body is made out of sheet aluminium/magnesium, some of the mechanical components of aluminium or magnesium, while various parts are bored to make them lighter. Another way of improving competitiveness was to make the body as aerodynamic as possible.

The interior is panelled throughout and, unusually for a racing car, exudes an air of comfort. Speedometer and rev counter are perfectly positioned in the driver's field of vision, with the smaller instruments for water temperature, petrol pressure, oil temperature and oil pressure, as well as the car's original stopwatch, located below them.

The well-contoured, bucket seats are upholstered in tartan woollen cloth, while the four-spoke steering wheel can be removed to make getting in and out of the car easier. A total of 10 SLs were built for the 1952 race season.

A successor was also developed but never raced. From 1954 onwards Benz switched to Formula 1. The W 194 was developed further to become the 300 SL series-production sports car (W 198).

The production version became the dream sports car of the 1950s, going on to be awarded the accolade of "Sports car of the century" in 1999.