The world of 1/43 scale model cars in photography.
Nostalgia from the 1960s, 70s, 80s & 90s.
Mercedes-Benz. By class.
Mercedes-Benz's C-class goes back to the launch of the 1982 190-series, often referred to as the "Baby-Benz". Considerably smaller than any Benz that came before, its development was contested internally within DaimlerBenz. Nonetheless, the car achieved great success and spurred a long lineage of C-class models that remain a popular choice in the small executive vehicle class today. The 190 is usually referred to with the internal designation W201 (model by Maxichamps), whereas the 1993 C-class (Minichamps) and 2000 C-class (Schuco) respectively are designed W202 and W203.
The E-class represents the very core of Mercedes-Benz's model offering and has become synonym for build quality and reliability. Although known as such only since the mid-life facelift of the W124 200/300 series in 1993, the origins of Mercedes-Benz's all-important E-class date back to the W114/W115 series launched in 1968, here represented by a 1972 200D in white by Minichamps. Its successors include the W123 (the yellow 1980 "230 E" by Minichamps), W124 (the red 1987 "300 D Turbo" by Minichamps), the W210 (the burgundy 1995 "E 320 Avantgarde" by Herpa) and the W211 (the dark blue 2002 "E 500 Avantgarde" by Minichamps).
The S-class is the quintessential Mercedes and the saloon with the longest lineage here. The collection starts with the W111, nicknamed the "Heckflosse" or tail fin (the 1959 mustard "220 SE" by Vitesse) that pioneered innovations such as crumple zones and injection engines. Its successors include the W109, here represented by the 1968 copper-coloured 300 SEL 6.3 by Minichamps) and the W116, the first model officially branded "S-class" and included here as 1977 450 SEL 6.9 in red by IXO. Both these top-of-the-range models can be considered ultimate Q-cars, with sports car power but little in the exterior detailing that would give away their performance credentials. Next in line is the W126 S-class introduced in 1979 and included here as a "petrol-green" 560 SEL from 1988 (Minichamps). Perhaps the most controversial in the series is the W140, often referred to as "Der Kathedral" for its sheer, size and weight and pompous looks (red 1991 600 SEL, by Herpa). The most recent S-class in my collection is the W220 (the grey 1999 S-class by Minichamps).
Today's Mercedes-Benz SL builds on a long heritage that goes back to what is perhaps the most iconic Mercedes-Benz of all-times: the 300 SL "Gullwing" with internal product code W198 and represented here by the stunning silver model by Minichamps. Subsequent generations of the SL class gradually became less sports car and more grand tourer: at first the W113 280 SL with nickname pagoda - a reference to the slighly concave hardtop roof (1968 copper model by Minichamps), followed by the R107/C107 (1977 silver 450 SLC by Minichamps), the R129 (1993 500 SL by Gama), and the R230 (2001 silver SL 500 by Minichamps).
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