1960 Mercedes-Benz 190SL · Words & Images: Nathan Duff
It Gets Into
Your Veins
Murray Allen has been chasing perfection for fifty years. In a man cave in Melbourne, over homemade biscuits, he explains why he'll never stop.
The wind is up,
the temperature is down.
Murray is in the garage.
He does a quick roll call of the cars in attendance. On his desk: Fangio on one side, Stirling Moss on the other. A snaplock container of homemade choc-chip biscuits. His wife will be watching.
Murray Allen spent his working life repairing marine refrigeration and shipping containers. But his real education happened in the Preston library, as a schoolboy, devouring every motoring book he could find.
'The best driver of all time has to be Fangio in my opinion,' he says, pointing to the framed black and white image of his two heroes duking it out on the track. 'Behind Fangio is Stirling Moss in the 300SLR.'
As an apprentice, Murray couldn't afford a Mercedes. He went to work for Robert Bosch, making electrics for the first Holdens — starters, generators, regulators. When he pulled those components apart, he could see how beautifully they were made. That feeling never left him.
'I've always tried to do things right. It gets into your system, grows into your veins.'
Murray AllenA car doesn't just get
restored. It gets decoded.
From auction find to Motorclassica concours winner
The Car
Found at auction for a reasonable price.
Murray found his 1960 190SL at auction. The price was fair. But once he started pulling it down, he couldn't believe how much rust was hiding inside. 'I have no idea how it stayed in one piece.' All-new body panels had to be made.
Plus or minus 2mm. All over.
He went to Scott Mahoney for the sheet metal work. 'You can't be the expert on everything — you need the best metal guy you can afford, the best trimmer and the best painter.' The original factory drawings allowed a tolerance of 10mm. Murray's car came in at ±2mm.
It's always in the detail.
Murray followed the Pebble Beach judges for a full year before entering. 'Some of the old boys said, have you cleaned it? Well go back and clean it again. And when you've done that — clean it again.' These were men with at least seventeen years' judging experience. He listened.
The 190SL took out the class.
Motorclassica 2010, Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne. Stiff competition — beautiful Porsches and a very rare Ferrari. In the end, the 190SL won the European and British Post-War Classic category. The trophy was presented by none other than Sir Stirling Moss.
Murray and his 190SL — fifty years in the making
"To anyone else it's probably just garbage. But it's memories and my love of the brand."
Murray AllenThe judge becomes
the judged.
What Pebble Beach, Jay Leno and Stirling Moss taught one man about perfection
A Life With Mercedes
Preston library, as a schoolboy
Devouring every motoring book available. Fangio. Moss. The Silver Arrows. A passion takes root.
Robert Bosch apprenticeship
Making electrics for the first Holdens. Pulling apart Mercedes components. Seeing how beautifully they were made.
First Mercedes — a 1960 Roundy
A doctor's car parked under a tree for three years. Everything still there. The collection begins.
The Adenauer 300 — £25,000
No-one brave enough to buy it at Shannons. Murray called the auctioneer. 'Give me 25k and it's yours.'
Pebble Beach & Laguna Seca
Following the judges. Watching what they looked at. Speaking with Jay Leno and Ralph Lauren — 'just car guys when it comes down to it.'
Motorclassica — 190SL wins the class
Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne. Trophy presented by Sir Stirling Moss. 'Makes you proud.'
The 1960 190SL. Designed by Karl Wilfert and Walter Häcker. 1,897cc M121 SOHC. 104HP at 5,700rpm.
Nathan Duff / Retromotive Vol. 8After some time Murray was asked to become a judge for Motorclassica and other events throughout the country. He gains his knowledge from manuals, magazines, books, tomes full of dense specifications. He spends time talking with other judges, and as always pays attention to the details.
'It's understandable that people become very passionate about their cars, but I've had instances when it's almost come to fisticuffs because someone thought my assessment was wrong. A perfect example is chrome-plating a fuel cap that was only ever zinc-plated from the factory — yes it looks beautiful, but that's not the way it was.'
There's a lovely little Merc truck
he's had his eye on.
Read the complete story — Murray's five-car stable, the secrets of concours judging, and why he leans in to whisper the last line.
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'Yes, we've collected many things over the last 25, 35, 50 years. To anyone else it's probably just garbage. But it's memories and my love of the brand.'