Mercedes-Benz Ponton Photo Gallery
Type W180 (6 cylinder / sedan / cabriolet / coupé)
Including models: 220a / 220S
1955 Type W180 220a sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
owner: Malcolm Wood / Flintshire, North Wales, UK
Photo submitted: January 27, 2014
The photo was taken in late 2013 at Cholmondely in Cheshire, UK
Additional photos submitted: March 20, 2014
1955 Type W180 220a sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
James B. Graham / jgrahamdmd@aol.com / 1958 220S with Webasto sliding sunroof / Tokyo, Japan / January 18, 2015
Photo submitted: January 18, 20151955 Type W180 220a sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
owner: Humair Malik / London, England
Photo submitted: April 19, 20151955 Type W180 220a sedan
owner: Fred Schumacher / Caracas, Venezuela
1955 Type W180 220a and 1961 Type 180b sedans
owner: Carlos Andrade / Irapuato Mexico
Photo submitted: June 23, 2018
This photo was taken at a friend's wedding in April 2008. This Right Hand Drive (RHD) Ponton came from the factory with maroon paint. The previous owner had it re-painted with reference to the factory two-tone option. The original Becker radio is not working at present. I have only owned the car for six months. I am the fourth owner since new. This car would have been a very brave and expensive purchase in the UK in 1955 as the war with Germany had ended only 10 years earlier. There was a lot of negativity towards German products back then. This attitude no longer prevails today, thank goodness!
Photo submitted: May 1, 2008
Type W180 220a sedan
Photo submitted: July 27, 2014
1955 Type W180 220a sedan
owner: Carlsson Ng / Toronto, Canada
The Type 220a sedans can be distinguished from the 220S by the lack of a chrome accent strip on the front fenders. The rear fenders of the 220a had the same accent strip as the 220S models. Above: Carlsson's 1955 Type 220a before restoration.
June 2003: Carlsson Ng's 220a after an extensive restoration
Autumn 2003: Carlsson Ng's 1955 Type 220a after restoration
text and/or photos updated: December 10, 2002 / June 5, 2003 / January 10, 2004
1955 Type W180 220a sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
owner: Kwanchai Wacharapairoj / Bangkok, Thailand
Photos Submitted: September 5, 2010
1955 Type W180 220a sedan
owner: Moosa E. Moosa / Brookline, Massachusetts USA
1955 Type W180 220a sedan
owner: Franz Rathgeber / Augsburg, Bavaria
franzrathgeber@googlemail.com
Dear Sir,
I am from Augsburg, Bavaria and send you kind regards and congratulations for your excellent mbzponton website. Attached is a photo of my 1955 Mercedes-Benz Type 220a Ponton with full winter trim perhaps being of interest to other friends of our world-wide Ponton community. The car is protected against salt corrosion with Mike Sanders grease and oil so that driving on snowy roads is not too damaging to the car. Otherwise, the nearly four month winter season is not too long for the car and the driver.
With kind regards,
Franz Rathgeber
Photo submitted: August 5, 2009
1955 Type W180 220a sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
owner: Bjerne von Schulman / Visby, Sweden
1955 Type W180 220a sedan
owner: Emilio Castillo Gavira / m146761@yahoo.com
/ Cádiz, Spain
This car was my grandfather's since new. It has more than 1,000,000 km on the clock and I restored it completely ten years ago. I love it because I traveled in it a lot of times when I was a child.
Photo submitted: January 24, 2005
Type W180 220a sedan
Loading a Mercedes-Benz Type W180 220a Ponton sedan in to a cargo plane
Regarding the plane, Dennis Schauber writes, "Judging from the shape of the vertical stabilizer and the American registration, I'd say the it was a Curtiss-Wright C-46 Commando. It's a fairly large twin-engine cargo plane that the U.S. flew over "The Hump" (eastern end of the Himalayan Mountains) in WWII. A lot of them went on to cargo outfits after the war."
Photo submitted: February 21, 2010
1955 Type W180 220a sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
former owner: Marwan Nusair / Cincinnati, Ohio USA
In 2005 Marwan wrote, "From the nostalgia archives, here is a picture of me with the 220a back in the late 1960s. From the appearance of everything I am homing in on 1968 or 1969. Today, car and driver are still together, but with some differences: my hair has not been black in some time, and it is a lot shorter now by choice, there are about 40 extra lbs of me, and the car is in better shape now than it was then."
Marwan Nusair with his Type 220a Ponton sedan in 2007
Photos submitted: November 27, 2005 and sometime in 2007
"My grandfather had a friend of his buy the car during a long visit to Germany in 1955, and then drove it to Jordan with the oval German plate on it. I still remember that since it was so odd to see an oval plate. He gave the car to me when I graduated from high school in 1965."
Regards,Marwan Nusair
Update: Marwan sold the car in 2012
1956 Type W180 220a sedan
owner:
Igor Huygen /
Zandvliet, Antwerp, Belgium
Photo submitted: November 24, 2013
The chrome trim on the rear fenders is normal for a Type 220a. The front fenders of the 220a sedans should not normally include chrome trim. Also note that the chrome trim for the rear fenders and doors of a Type 220a is not interchangeable with the chrome trim for the rear fenders and doors of the Type 220S. Comparison photos pending (31-dec-2013).
Igor Huygen's 1956 Type W180 220a sedan
The 1953 Esso gas station is near the old Louwman Museum in Raamsdonkveer, Netherlands.
Photo submitted: November 25, 2013
Type W180 220a sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
owner: Nick Thompson / "Somewhere in the U.K." (possibly near London)
Type W180 220S sedan
Iranian Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
Dear readers,
A friend whose relative lives in Iran just sent me this photo. I recall during my childhood in Iran in the late 1950s to early 1960s this car being in service. Every few years they were updated with newer Mercedes-Benz models. Until 1978, all public transportation (bus, ambulance, police, hearse) were Mercedes-Benz – with the exception of double-decker buses, which were from Leyland in England. The writing on the front door indicates it belonged to the police department (DMV) as they are an entity under the city police department.
Hamid Zadeh
Toluca Lake, California
1957 180D
May 25, 2015
Photo submitted: May 25, 2015
1956 Type W180 220S sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
owner: Griff Lambert / glambert@sbcglobal.net / Los Angeles, California USA
Griff writes, "I bought the 220S in 1975 from its original owner – a German Mercedes-Benz mechanic who purchased it factory-new in Stuttgart, and brought it to California in 1965. It has been reliable transportation for me for over 25 years."
Photo submitted: September 22, 2001
1956 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Dag Storm Henriksen / Norway
more photos
Photos submitted: October 12, 2009
1956 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Anthony Bunn Kasemsup / Thailand
1956 Type W180 220S sedan
Indran Rajanathan / Toronto, Canada
1956 Type W180 220S sedan
Andre Zimmermann / Tokyo, Japan
Hello,
When visiting the Ponton Photo Gallery, I scrolled through the list of owners and realized I had not done my part to be included! I purchased this 220S in 1984 in Winterthur, Switzerland. The former owner bought it second-hand from a dealer in Winterthur in 1962. The car is fully restored, and had an electronic fuel pump and air conditioning (A/C) installed. For the A/C, I switched from the original generator to an alternator.Best regards,
Andre
November 22, 2011
Photo submitted: November 22, 2011 / uploaded: January 12, 2012
1956 Type W180 220S sedan
1966 Type 230 Fintail sedan (left), and 1956 Type 220S Ponton sedan
owners:
Elias and Lydia Santos / Orlando, Florida
Dear readers,
We own two classic Mercedes-Benz vehicles, and have lived in Orlando, Florida (fantasy land) for the last 20 years. My wife has owned a 1956 Type 220S Ponton sedan since our college days, and I own a 1966 Type 230 Fintail sedan. The cars have been with us for more than 20 years, and we keep them in the best possible condition. After our daughter used the 220S in college, it was restored � by the M-B book.My 1966 Type W110 230 Fintail seems like it has been with me forever. It's in original condition, and has never disappointed. We drive both cars to an amusement park and shopping/dining complex called Old Town (Kissimmee, Florida) where there is a classic automobile parade every Saturday. We plan to hand the cars down to our children, and hope they are then passed down to their kids. This website is a great place to read about Pontons, and see all the fine examples from around the world. We believe we are part of this history.
Kind regards,Elias and Lydia Santos
santoslydiae@gmail.com
December 29, 2013
Type W180 220S sedan with Golde steel sunroof
Rare photo of a Type 220S Ponton with a steel sunroof made by
Golde.
The canvas sunroof was far more common on the Mercedes-Benz Pontons.
Photo courtesy: Ramzi Saba - Lebanon
1957 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Christopher Craig / Dallas, Texas USA
1957 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Rich Nunes / Gridley, California USA
1957 Type W180 220S sedan
owners: Udo and Frank Mertens / Germany
Type W180 220S sedan featured in Paul McCartney video "Appreciate"
The video of Paul McCartney's 2013 song "Appreciate" features a Mercedes-Benz Type 220S Ponton sedan
Photo and video uploaded: June 13, 2014
1957 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Andres Porta / northern Spain
Hello,
I bought my 1957 220S Ponton sedan in Madrid, Spain in 1989. It has the original period plate number, and I restored the body in the 1990s, but did not complete the interior. I am considering transforming the car into a rally car for regular local events. The idea is to follow the Monte Carlo rally cars of 1955 and 1956, but I had not discovered any reference photos until recently.Best regards from northern Spain,
Andres Porta
porta@yerbero.es
Photo submitted: January 15, 2011 / uploaded: January 12, 2012
1957 Type W180 220S sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
owner: Jeff Bennet / Auckland, New Zealand
I just discovered your website, and think it's great. It contains lots of useful information, which I have been looking for. I am in Auckland, New Zealand and this is my 1957 Type 220S with 238,000 miles.
1957 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Vitalie / Republic of Moldova
1957 Type W180 220S sedan
Ricardo Alarcón Jiménez / raj1@aljim.com.mx / Mexico City, Mexico
Type W180 220S sedan
Loading into ship's cargo hold
Photo submitted: February 21, 2010
Type W180 220S sedan
Loading into ship's cargo hold
Photo submitted: February 21, 2010
1957 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Mark Kurtz / markkurtz@adelphia.net / Saranac Lake, New York USA
Mark is a photographer with a studio in downtown Saranac Lake. This photo features Whiteface Mountain in the background. On November 25, 2013 he wrote, "I hit a deer with it a few years ago and have been slowly working on getting it back on the road. So, it is sitting in my garage with a new hood and fender but still in primer. I've got the new radiator in the car but I need to finish up the mechanicals and get it running again. Life just gets in the way and so progress has been slow."
Photo submitted: January 13, 2003
1957 Type W180 220S sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
Gustavo Tostes / Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1957 Type W180 220S sedan
Owner: Patrick Garcia / Louisville, Kentucky USA
This 1957 Type 220S sedan (metallic gray, with red interior) underwent its first restoration in 1986 when it was purchased from a gentleman in Washington. The restoration was about a 7 on a 1-10 scale. I purchased the car in the spring of 2004 seeing that it was rusted out in an empty gravel driveway surrounded by trees.
Since then, it spent 1.5 years having other restoration work completed. This car is beautiful, and must be seen to be appreciated! I upgraded the wheel size by two inches. These are 15", and the normal 220S wheel size is 13."
Yours sincerely,
Patrick Garcia
Louisville, Kentucky
JPPG007@aol.com
July 20, 2006
1957 Type W180 220S sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
owner: Omer Komili / Santa Barbara, California USA
Photos submitted: April 23, 2017
1958 Type W180 220S sedan
Photo submitted: December 16, 2017
owner: Carl Klem / Santa Cruz, California, USA
1958 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Luca Fronduti La Loggia / Torino, Italy
This is my 1958 220S Ponton sedan. It has 27,000 km and has been stored in a garage for 27 years. I intend to restore her. In Italy, the car sold new for 3,350,000 lire when most people were making 40,000 lire a month. In other words, it was worth seven year's wages to the average Italian worker in 1958. Today, the Mercedes-Benz Ponton is very rare in Italy. I have been visiting the mbzponton.org site for four years, and it is fantastic!
Photo submitted: September 14, 2009
1958 Type W180 220S sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
Erhard Rex / Braunschweig, Germany
Photos submitted: April 20, 2018
Updated photo submitted: October 5, 2019
Dear readers,
I live in Braunschweig, Germany between Hannover and Berlin. The car was built in 1958 and handed over from Germany to Rome, Italy to a high military attaché from the USA in US export specification. It was a dream of my youth to be the owner of such an expensive car. In 2007, the owner came back to Germany, and I bought it. The photo shows my pretty daughter and myself, and we are fortunate to have this car.Regards,
Erhard Rex
erhard.rex48@gmail.com
1958 Type W180 220S RHD sedan with Hydrak automatic clutch
owner: Robert Pearce / Mothar Mountain, Queensland, Australia
color: 218 Lindgrün (Light Green)
more photos
Photo submitted: September 21, 2016
1958 Type W180 220S RHD sedan
owner: Kiran Parekh / Australia
Photo submitted: April 25, 2015
1958 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Jose Luis Gonzalez Navarro / Lleida, Spain
This 220S Ponton has been restored and runs well. It is a pleasant driving experience. I also have another 220S Ponton pending restoration. I find the Mercedes-Benz Ponton website to be very useful. For additional information you can send me an e-mail.
Best regards,Jose Luis
Photo submitted December 28, 2009
1958 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Bambang Witono Angkawijaya / Indonesia
1958 Type W180 220S sedan (RHD)
owner: Gordon Evans / oldmerc@yahoo.com / London, England
Photos submitted: March 29, 2009
owner: Martin Putnam / msputnam@yahoo.com / Oakland, California USA
Photos submitted: January 20, 2002
1958 Type W180 220S sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
Owner: Bob Bush / Louisville, Kentucky USA
Bob and his bride, Virginia on their happy day / April 17, 2004
Photo submitted: January 14, 2005
1958 Type W180 220S sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
Owner: Frank Stahlhut / Muenster-Westfalen, Germany
1958 Type W180 220S sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
owner:
Thomas P. Klose /
Halstenbek, Germany
Paint Color:
DB516 Medium Red
1958 Type W180 220S sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
owner: James B. Graham / jgrahamdmd@aol.com
San Antonio, Texas USA / Tokyo, Japan
/ Columbia, South Carolina USA
Paint Color:
DB169 Stone Gray Light
Photo submitted: June 22, 2009 / Enlarged photo added April 8, 2015
1958 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: John Aartsen / British Columbia, Canada
Photo submitted:
February 26, 20071958 Type W180 220S sedan (RHD)
owner: Jan Naude / Somerset West, South Africa
Photo submitted:
January 4, 2009Type W180 220S sedan
Photo taken on September 9, 2002 / Suresnes, France (outside Paris)
Photo submitted: September 14, 2002
1958 Type W180 220S sedan
Mom and Pop / Washington, D.C. USA (circa 1960)
Current owner: Peter Williams / Marietta, Georgia
Photo uploaded: March 14, 2018
Current owner: Peter Williams / Yesterday and Today / Marietta, Georgia
Photo uploaded: August 4, 2019
Left: current owner Peter Williams (circa 1964) / Center: Peter's sister (circa 1962) / Right: 220S in August 1962)
Photos uploaded: February 23, 2020
The Williams sisters (circa 1968) / Washington, D.C.
Photo uploaded: April 29, 2020
1958 Type W180 220S sedan
Former owner: David van Duzer / Arlington, Virginia USA
David bought the car in 1970 for $395 and owned it for 28 years.
1958 Type 220S sedan
owner: Kevin Kuhn / Malvern, Pennsylvania USA
1958 Type 220S sedan
owner: Emil Kuschke / emilk@sintec.co.za / Pretoria, South Africa
Photo submitted: November 11, 2005
1958 Type 220S Ponton sedan
owner: Brian Glusovich / glus@charter.net / Cambria, California USA
Mercedes-Benz Club event (1996) at the Point Sur Lighthouse
Photo and .PDF file submitted: October 20, 2009
1958 Type 220S sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
owner: Craig Semple / aegeanfoods@gmail.com / Sydney, Australia
Photo Submitted: March 22, 2003
The car is in Sydney, Australia, although I currently work in Turkey. This 1958 Type 220S has a Hydrak automatic clutch. I am the second owner. The first owner (now deceased) drove the car from new until 2002. It has done 101,000 miles and is in fairly original condition. I believe it was repainted at some time — in the original DB 157G (grey beige). The interior is original red leather, with no rips or any major marks. It was supplied with all the original books, and sales brochures.
Kind regards,Craig Semple
1958 Type W180 220S sedan (RHD)
owner: Craig Semple / aegeanfoods@gmail.com / Sydney, Australia
Photo Submitted: July 21, 2013
I bought another 1958 220S with Hydrak automatic clutch. It has 129,000 miles. Color code is DB 218 (light green). The car is in Sydney, Australia, although I currently work in Turkey.
Enjoy the photos,Craig Semple
1958 Type 220S sedan
owner: Chris Williams / Marion, New York USA
1958 Type 220S sedan
1958 Mercedes-Benz Type 220S Ponton rallye sedan. In this photo, the 220S is participating in the "Albis Bergrennen" (hill climb) near Zürich, Switzerland, which was held on July 19-20, 2003. It is an old traditional race, revived again in 2003 after a long break. On a hill climb, you try to drive up a hill as fast as possible. Typically, you have a few trial runs, and then a few race runs. The best two of your race runs count. Modifications: The engine is a Type 130.920 from a W108 280S, front disk brakes, roll cage, race seats and harness. Planned modifications are: fuel cell, suspension upgrades, limited slip differential.
Best regards,
Stefan Fallet (driver)
October 17, 2003
1958 Type W180 220S sedan
March 2004 / Saint-Cloud (Paris), France / more photos
1958 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Kevin van Slooten / Santa Fe, New Mexico USA
1959 Type W180 220S sedan with Golde steel sunroof
Photo submitted: July 21, 2014
Chassis Number: 180.010-10-9502328
Tom
Christian Vikør / Norway /
more photos
1959 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: Osman
Kilic / Istanbul, Turkey
1959 Type W180 220S sedan
owner: John Brady / Richardson, Texas USA
more (restoration) photos
Photos and restoration story submitted / uploaded: June 3, 2019
1959 Type W180 220S sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
owner: Dick Hartt / Pasadena, California USA
Photo: 2011 Christmas card. Dick and his wife have owned this beautiful sedan since
1965.
Photo submitted: February 29, 2012 / uploaded March 6, 2012
Rear view / The enlargement (click photo) details the Ulonite 105 reflectors
Photo submitted: January 27, 2003 / uploaded March 6, 2012
Huge Webasto sunroof and DB190G Graphite Gray paint
Photo submitted: January 27, 2003 / uploaded March 6, 2012
