Howard Otten was the original owner living in Rancho Santa Fe, CA who was a client of the King family who ran the local Culligan soft water business in Solana Beach. Mr. Autman used to come personally to the office to pay his bill and one time in 1968 he drove this car to the Culligan store at which time Mr. King saw it and was quite impressed. At some point he mentioned to Mr. Otten that if he ever wanted to sell the car, he would be interested in purchasing it. Around 1986 that is exactly what happened. Family lore indicates Mr. King may have purchased the car as a gift for Mrs. King, possibly on a birthday or at Christmas time.
The Kings had several other cars in their collection, so the use of this car remained very light, leading to the currently accumulated 76,000 miles. Being avid car collectors with the needed resources, the Kings always maintained it in top condition, and this is obvious to anyone who examines the car in person or drives it. She drives absolutely textbook, consistent with what Mercedes-Benz cars are known for.
This car is configured to be driven as a roadster, or with the canvas top erected. The mild weather in Southern California and this car’s intended use only on fair-weather days, dispensed with the need for a hard top. Today, hard tops typically sit in garages gathering dust. However, if the new caretaker desires a hardtop, they are readily available.
Besides being a single model year car, this Pagoda is especially rare in that it is nearly all-original. We are using the word, “original,” in the strictest sense, not referring to ‘stock’ condition, but referring to the fact this car has essentially all of its original finishes and soft parts. Finding a 55-year-old car with essentially all-original paint is a quest that usually goes unfulfilled. That said, even the vast majority of cars that are described as being all-original, when inspected by experts, fall short. This car is indeed a very, very special example.
This car was originally appraised and priced by our panel of experts at $150,000, however as the market generally is dominated and driven by folks with a passing fancy for a ‘classic car’ who look for the shiniest car at the lowest price in the current fad color combo, as opposed to true enthusiasts who seek a high level of authenticity, we have recently lowered the price to just under $130,000 making such an authentic car a bargain on the market. The family hopes that someone reading this appreciates a car of this caliber and it finds an appropriate home. Our panel feels this car is an absolute bargain, what do you think?
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