The Mercedes-Benz 190 SL (W121) is a two-door luxury roadster produced by Mercedes-Benz between May 1955 and February 1963. Internally referred to as W121 (BII), it was first shown in prototype at the 1954 New York Auto Show, and was available with an optional removable hardtop.
- See Mercedes-Benz SL-Class for a complete overview of all SL-Class models.
Design
The 190 SL presented an attractive, more affordable alternative to the exclusive Mercedes-Benz 300 SL, sharing its basic styling, engineering, detailing, and fully independent suspension. Both cars had double wishbones in front and swing axles at the rear. Instead of the 300 SL's expensive purpose-built W198 tubular spaceframe, the 190 SL's structure used a shortened unitary floorpan modified from the W121 base saloon.[2]
The 190 SL was powered by a new, slightly oversquare 105 PS Type M121 BII 1.9 L straight-four