This 1997 Mercedes-Benz CL600 was originally ordered via the Bielefeld branch in Germany before receiving extensive modification from AMG in Affalterbach when new. Those modifications include a full AMG body kit, suspension, wheels, interior modifications, a tune and exhaust. Finished in Brilliant Silver Metallic (744), this example was special ordered with Gray Velour (498) from the factory before being completely redone by AMG in over Gray AMG Special Connolly Leather in Affalterbach. Power is provided by an AMG-tuned 6.0-liter M120 V12 engine paired with a five-speed automatic transmission driving the rear wheels. Factory equipment includes heated and multicontour front seats with memory, a power tilt/slide glass sunroof, a fire extinguisher, Bose audio with a trunk-mounted CD-changer, parking sensors front and rear, headlamp wiper/washers, an auxiliary heater, a power rear sunshade, adaptive-damping self-leveling suspension and an onboard trip computer. Partial service history is included dating from 1997 to 2008. Now showing 139k Kms (~86k miles), this CL600 AMG is offered for sale by the current owner in Cannes, France with the original manufacturer’s literature, stamped service booklet, tool kit, and first aid kit. The temporary French registration has been issued in the seller's name with the permanant French registration in the seller's name to arrive within the next two weeks (a.k.a. clean title in transit).
The exterior is finished in Brilliant Silver Metallic (744) and features original AMG body work finished in matching body color including sculpted front and rear air dams and side skirts with ‘6.0 AMG’ badges mounted on the trunk lid. Exterior equipment includes parking sensors front and rear, front and rear fog lamps, headlamp wiper/washers, a power tilt/slide glass sunroof, power door mirrors, a locking trunk lid, dual-pane windows and closing assist doors and trunk. The exterior is in good condition showing no signs of damage or rust.
18” AMG monoblock wheels have been fitted wearing Goodyear tires measuring 255/45 on all four corners. The seller reports that the tires were recently fitted in April 2023. Factory equipment also includes self-leveling hydraulic suspension with an adaptive damping system as well as electronic stability programming.
AMG replaced the factory Gray Velour interior with Gray Exclusive Connolly Leather with contrasting dark gray upper leather, an alcantara headliner and black floor mats with engraved AMG plaques. Burl walnut wood trim can be found lining the center console, dashboard and door panels with a signed AMG badge on the ashtray cover. Both front seats are heated with three-position memory and multicontour pneumatic adjustment. Additional interior amenities include dual-zone automatic climate control, an auxiliary heater, an AMG embossed folding center armrest, an 11-speaker Bose audio system, a trunk-mounted CD-changer, a Becker Indianapolis Pro head unit with navigation, an onboard trip computer, power adjustable side mirrors, and a fire extinguisher mounted in front of the driver seat. The second row features a folding center console with controls for the rear windows and headrests.
The leather-wrapped AMG performance steering wheel frames analog instrumentation including a 260-Kph speedometer, a 7k-rpm tachometer, an analog clock and gauges for fuel level, economy, coolant temperature and oil pressure. The digital odometer currently shows 139k original kilometers (approximately 86k miles) with 3.5k Kms added by the current owner.
This S-class coupe is powered by a 48v 6.0-liter M120 V12 engine which received a tune from AMG reportedly making 440 horsepower and 442 lb-ft of torque. Power is sent to the rear wheels through a five-speed automatic transmission. An AMG engine cover has been fitted in place of the factory unit and displays a ‘6.0’ badge. A stainless-steel AMG performance exhaust was fitted along with twin chrome-tipped AMG exhaust pipes. Original AMG stickers can be seen mounted to the radiator support bracket. Service documents dating between 1997 and 2008 showing regular oil changes are included.
This car was reportedly ordered by a Bayern Munich soccer player who never took delivery and was later sold to a German diplomat in London. The car would remain in London until being sold to an owner in Sweden in 2020 and then purchased by the seller in February 2023. Now in Cannes, France, this CL600 AMG is offered for sale by the current owner with the original manufacturer’s literature, stamped service booklet, original tool kit, and partial service history. The temporary French registration has been issued in the seller's name with the permanant French registration in the seller's name to arrive within the next two weeks (a.k.a. clean title in transit).
A cold start video has been provided by the seller below.
Before being fully acquired by Mercedes-Benz in 1999, AMG offered a collection of bespoke aftermarket equipment for Mercedes cars ranging from body kits and wheels to full engine overhaul packages. This facelift C140 was reportedly ordered by a Bayern Munich soccer player who sent the car to Affalterbach to receive modifications. A full body kit including sculpted front and rear bumpers and side skirts was fitted along with performance modifications including an ECU tune and a stainless-steel exhaust. After several months with the German tuner, the original owner lost interest and the car was sold to a German diplomat living in London where the car spent the majority of its life. Given the exorbitant price tag, this example is believed to be one of only a handful of CL600’s to have received original modifications by AMG in Affalterbach. Sporting highly unique features from the factory including parking sensors, an auxiliary heater and an onboard trip computer, this car already separates itself from the pack as a well equipped flagship coupe. The sharp lines of the AMG body kit and monoblock wheels accent the factory styling and Brilliant Silver Metallic paint adding to its presence. As pre-merger AMGs continue to climb in interest and price, this example presents itself as a unique opportunity to acquire a true piece of AMG history.
Open Transit:
Enclosed Transit:
The winning bidder will receive an email with the quote and option to proceed with shipping.
Get the best of The MB Market directly in your inbox every day. Subscribe for a curated list of our top market listings and articles!
42 Comments
CaliforniaCongrats Where is it goingSeller did a great job representing a wonderful example that did well. Most new Mercedes are so odd and I foresee little collectability as their tech lacks redundancy and i'm sure MB will not support any new cars after 6 years. This 1990's era was the best and the V12 Coupe represents peak Bruno/M120 greatness.@Hovo1 On MB Market you've two types of auctions : with or without reserve. on the top of the screen you have 1) Auction 2) no reserve I've chosen Auction with reserve price to preserve the amount I would like minimum for my car . I've paid MB market for this option. I'm sorry for you but my lowest reserve price was 50K$ . Thanks very much for your biddings. Norbert@Vlad600sel Good shotProbably 50WHAT WAS THAT RESERVE PRICE?????? DIDNT SEE IT AT ALL ANYWHERE!!!Not too far from my reserve price. Sorry.$45,000 bid placed by @Hovo1
$44,500 bid placed by @MVernon
$43,500 bid placed by @Hovo1
$43,000 bid placed by @MVernon
$42,000 bid placed by @Hovo1
$41,500 bid placed by @MVernon
$40,500 bid placed by @Gesso
$40,000 bid placed by @MAISOUIjk
$39,500 bid placed by @Gesso
I wished I had some save up money This kind cars don’t come along too often Gl$39,000 bid placed by @MAISOUIjk
$38,000 bid placed by @MVernon
$36,500 bid placed by @MAISOUIjk
$36,000 bid placed by @Gesso
$35,000 bid placed by @MAISOUIjk
$32,500 bid placed by @Gesso
$30,000 bid placed by @MAISOUIjk
@Pizdets4u Hi depending of the company you hire to do the shipping (in a protected container) between 5 an 10k $ (the last figure is for the ultraprotected luxe shipment) with insurance everything included . Normally for the import of such car aged more than 25 years this one is 26 frol 1997 you don't have any taxes in USA. B.R. NorbertWhat would the fee be to bring it to the states (taxes, customs, transportation, applications) ext..,?@zein or from foreign countries +33684707629@zein NO PROBLEM call me Norbert0684707629Your car is simply stunning, the best generation of the S-Class, the coupe, the V12, and the special sauce from AMG. I love it! It so happens that I have the opportunity to be in the French Riviera for a few days. Is there any chance to see the car in Cannes before the end of the auction?@Boatymcboatface Ready for the auction !!!!!!Images from the original AMG brochure have been added to the gallery.Thank you seller. Thanks for the reminder about the Sultan of Brunei. He was the main customer of many firms such as AMG and other coachbuilders throughout the 1990's providing them with a massive amount income for what would have been a researcher and development budget for a larger company pursing his automotive dreams. I'm sure there are several old engineers that know of some wild stories, but are still contractually unable to speak of the wild creations sent to the Sultan as much was done in secrecy for he by many firms - especially Rolls-Royce/Bentley and their coachbuilders. I believe Brunei is were the largest treasure trove of M120 modified cars reside, yet in possibly poor condition if cared for correctly. Hope to see a massive auction their someday!Well thanks, Yes it's hard to get some info now about those cars , it seems like Mercedes wants to wipe out the History of AMG before 1999 when they took the control of the idependant firm to become a subsidiary. Even the Mercedes AMG Club refused my car . Because i was not able to supply the AMG Sérial number!!!. Even in the middle of the nineties Mercedes was very discret about the AMG cars , In the M/B catalog from 1997 you just have a small insert saying that M/B is able with AMG to improve your car. The only clue i've got it's a Japanese catalog (in japanese unfortunately) with pictures and description of the 6.0 Sedan and Coupé . I'll try to post the pictures. The most seen is the CL700 of Sultan Brunei which was sold 105.000€ (90.000£ or 117.000$) and for this price they do not guarantee that's it's the true car of the Sultan. I post the link hereunder https://www.tuningblog.eu/en/categories/cars-from-az/mercedes-cl-700-amg-355137/ For the brakes I don't know if mine has been upgrated , but for the suspension it's obvious that she's 2 cms lower than the correspondant CL600. And to finish , even in the middle east they have Japanese AMG , an exemple below a video of a CL600 AMG in Dubaï https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLnMb05enGgThis is a really fascinating and rare C140 with great comments by the seller. Very well-presented and good to have a real history. I'd really like to know more about the AMG ECU tune. I have a SL600, S600 and CL 600 (97,97,99) and they could use some more power and better breaks. I believe many M120 AMG products went to the middle-east and more will be emerging. Too-bad AMG never kept good records what were they thinking? Hope this goes to a good home.For the US bidders the shipment and custom from France to USA will be done by SCHUMACHER CARGO LOGISTIC Inc. On the account of the winner. No problem to import the car in USA because it's aged of 26 years (1997) . I will be present (and will look after the car) from the transport from Cannes to Marseille (Fos sur Mer) Harbour.Picture Nr 132Hi for the watcher who have asked me what was the AMG badge on the location of the jack on the right side. This is an Affalterbach AMG badge which was gently placed there by the AMG team after my visit in the workshop on February 23th 2023. First they washed the car and after during the moment I spent to visit AMG (a private visit thanks to the whole team) they took many pictures of the car for their archive ( as stupid that it seems ,AMG never took picture at that time , car were only numbers on a register. ) When I finished the visit we spent a good time at the Pizzeria "Al Linde " in Affalterbach , where we discussed of the past time. You'll find the picture of the badge in the gallery at the last position.An additional photo of the side skirt/Affalterbach badge has been added to the listing.Hi officiallly the car was born in january 97 as to refer to the Lastvin info. They didn't care of the order date but only of the exworks date. Concerning the upgrading of the exworks M120 to the 6.0 AMG to improve the performance they (maybe upgrade the ECU and also the exhaust system) not to much (only 50 hp) because AMG had to respect the M/B guarantee for their customers . One watcher on M/B market seems to be very much informed and ask me to check the ECU array in the car unforunately I'm presently in Paris and not in Cannes and I have the magnetic card in my wallet to grant the acces to the private area of the parking so for the moment nobody is on the spot. On sunday i will be (maybe i hope so) more aware as I will be physically present and facing the car. Concerning the numbers I can't help you because I don't know how Mercedes register them you know the C140 concern the 420, the 500 and the 600 altogether. By the way I confirm to KUTHEY that i've taken contact with an USA shipping firm to make the shipping from Marseille to any harbour on USA .the Company is Schumacher Cargo Logistic. B.R. NorbertMy 600 coupe is VIN 338xxx build date 8/96; interesting that this "end of summer 96" is 15,000 #s beyond mine. In NA at least, any 140 coupe produced before roughly the 1/97 timeframe was labaled "S." Inquiring minds would love to know what the "tune" is. 50 extra HP sounds like software mods. Would happily explore it on mine if an option. Super model! Have never seen AMG put this steering wheel or these later Monoblocks on a 140. Makes sense though from what was out there by midway through the 97 model year. Also SUPER info from seller. This kind of documentation does not come easily.$25,000 bid placed by @Gesso
No problem we have specialists here on the French Riviera. I can arrange that for you asap you win the auction. On which US port would you like to ship the car?@Marignan75 Arrange all logistics (shipper, documents, etc.) involved to ship vehicle to a US port.What do you mean by that , organise shipment? tell me more.@Marignan75 Are you able to facilitate shipping/registration to the US? Ty.@Hamgburglar Il try to do that tomorrow.B.R. NorbertVery cool car! Would you please be kind enough to post a picture of the car's engine number and also ECU array and ignition module part numbers--I ask this because I wish to confirm the tune and/or additional engine modifications by AMG! all of these will be located in the engine bay.... The ECU's will be under the cover near the passenger side firewall, and the ignition modules should be under the cover near the driver's side wheel fender. Please and thank you!$20,000 bid placed by @2plus2
$5,000 bid placed by @Gesso
@Ilovebigtoys Thanks, Now in Europe those very rare cars (around 12) of this particular 6.0 are very looked after. The last CL600 AMG 440 HP like this one, has been sold 57.000$ plus MBmkt fee on last february (you can look the auction result) and it was a japanese one from 1995 with exactly the same color. This one is a real German from AMG plant of Affalterbach. For me and I hope for the future buyer it's even more exclusive . Buy it and come to France it's the nice season and the Festival de Cannes wil close at the end of this week.I do appreciate your "story" and well aware of who Klinsmann is, as well as the car. I purchased a CL500 for my late wife the same year here in TX. While not the same car performance wise, it was the same body style and behaved like a "tank". It was a fairly rare car then, and even more so now. The complaint from her re this vehicle was that it has a huge blindspot due to the roof line/design. I had to buy her a Porsche 911 as a 2nd driver and kept this for a few years until I traded it in another Mercedes Sedan. Unfortunately the trade in/sales price dropped like the car it was, like a "tank", with less than 20K miles on the ODO. Sadly but this car is in Cannes/FRA, and not in the US It would be nice to buy it, take a long road trip in Europe and then sell it or eave it there or park it with friends/family. That all depends on sellers price expectation. I personally don't find it worth shipping to the US as the market appreciation does not warrant such investment, in my opinion. Good luck selling. It is a well preserved 26 year old car and in most countries (also outside EU) should qualify as Antique/collector vehicle thus less or no import duties.@Ilovebigtoys You're right but I found interesting to tell the story as it was told to me and with my own investigations. After the car itself is a piece of the AMG true History. Now AMG is part of Mecedes it's not the same thing. Thnks to Hans-Werner Aufrecht and Erhard Melcher the A and the M from AMG the G is for GrossAspach the town where Aufrecht is born the Creators of the Legend.Appreciate all the details. Now it is jus a car. The calue is in the car andnot who once “almost” owned it$250 bid placed by @Ilovebigtoys
@DC311 Tnks for your interest in my car. I'll try to reply to your questions. BUT it will be long. First the history of the car as i've been told and then partly confirmed in Affalterbach. Vehicle History First Owner: 1996/1997 Probably a pro footballer from Bayern Munich: a name is put forward: Jürgen Klinsmann. Who was Bayern's centre-forward at that time. His name was confirmed to me by the old engineer of AMG (a Fussball enthusiast) who was a young fan from the Bayern at that time. The car ordered at the end of the summer of 96 was only delivered late at the beginning of January 97 .Then went to AMG in Affalterbach where it remained for several months (3/5 months), according to Hans Gerber (former AMG chief mechanic) it would have been delivered in April / May 97, too long for Klinsmann who finally bought a 550 Maranello available immediately and more sporty he was 26 or 27 y.o.. He resells the Mercedes new (not yet delivered) to a German diplomat ( the name remains confidential) stationed in London. With less than 1.000kms she was exported to Engalnd "As new" from Stuttgart to London officially (because the owner was a Diplomat) as the service booklet show the data. "Pre delivery inspection" dating 30/06/ 97 Second owner: A German diplomat stationed in London. Whom name is kept under silence. He will keep it from the end of 1997 to 2020 (succession). The car was serviced from September 98 to May 2008 in England. (cf. the "maintenance booklet" in English, where it totals 128,572 kms. Back in Germany on the death of its owner, it passed into the family heritage. Maintained and kept for a dozen years where it's been driven a few kilometers (less than 2,000 km). It was finally sold in 2020 to a Russian citizen residing in Sweden. Third owner: This Russian living as a permanent resident in Sweden, (and because of the events: War in Ukraine) choose to sell it after a few thousand kilometers traveled in two years (less than five thousands according to him). He sells it to me in February 2023 the Fourth Owner: I acquired it with a mileage of 135,200 km to which must be added the 3,300 km I traveled for the return to France: from Stockholm / Copenhagen / Bremen / Heidelberg / Affalterbach (AMG factory on February 27, 2023) then Cannes. Today it totals 138,700 kms. Now some history and figures of W and C 140 AMG (Affalterbach). It's always very difficult with A.M.G. Affalterbach to get numbers. Indeed after having long discussed and phoned many with Mercedes Benz Archives and an engineer and his colleague former workshop manager (who is retiring in June 2023), of AMG factory of that time. All the "work orders" required by the entry into their workshops of a Mercedes were at the time kept manually. One voucher per workshop or workstation, therefore a multitude of cardboard sheets depending on whether the car went to the upholstery, the bodywork, the mechanical workshop, any shielding, etc. When M/B took the majority of the shares, everything was digitized, but that was in 1999. Before it is above all a small notebook bound with all these files held manually. They have since then never been reprocessed or digitized, obviously this does not interest AMG 2020s. Now the "Factory" is about ten ultra-modern buildings grouped together in Affalterbach where young people are in the majority and the 70s to 2000s are well forgotten. Well this preamble completed. I was nevertheless able, after several hours spent with these two former executives of the time in question, to refine the history of the W140 berline / sedan and their coupe versions the C140 whose lifespan took place from 1993 to 1998 . Total production from end 1992 to 98 Type : W140 and C140 AMG: A total of 500 vehicles with models 420/500/600 would have passed through Affalterbach. But for all the workshops combined, that is to say both in bodywork and various motorizations. Of these 500 cars , only 150 vehicles are full-fledged AMGs with improved engine suspension and running gear. Like the one which is concerned today. Divided into: 90/95 saloon/sedan in 6.0, 7.0, 7.2, 7.3 engines The remaining 60: C140 coupes (in V8, yes there are some) and V12 (for the V12 idem 6.0, 7.0 ....) Impossible to know in what quantities the V8 and V12 are distributed but we can count on approximately 1/3, 2/3 So more V12 than V8 That is roughly 40 V12s (600SEC, S600 coupe and CL600 it's the same car but the name changed during the 6 years production) over 6 years with the various engines!! On these C140 V12 a dozen 324KW (440.6 hp!!!) produced over the 6 years of manufacture of which 9 would have been exported to the USA and other countries, that's 3 European and 9 USA rest of the world. These very rare cars can only be identified by the 2 sticker plates affixed to the front crossmember of the engine bay, one for the power and the other for the type of spark plugs to be used, and a long AMG plate with the engine version (in exchange for the identical Mercedes Benz logo plate) a white lithographic engraving on the rear window. The white inscription"AMG Affalterbach Made in Germany and signed by Hans-Werner Aufrecht " engraved on the ashtray (and not a thermo-sticker like on the japanese versions) (curiously and not systematically certain had in addition at the top of the engine a plate "one man one engine") or were badged on the trunk with the 6.0 , 7.0 ; 7.2 , 7.3 L depending of the engine version from 440hp to 550hp for the most powerful with the CL600 or 600SEC or S600 in place or removed depending of the buyer. My car has both the CL600 on the left of the trunk and 6.0AMG on the right side. Regarding the many AMG vehicles from Japan, they are not considered by AMG aficionados as real AMGs because they were quite ordinary vehicles imported into Japan, which is very very strict in terms of pollution. Once cleared and taxed, they were directed to the workshop (pompously called AMG-Japan) of the subcontractor who was responsible for installing kits from Germany (either bodywork or engine suspension etc.) for the inside they were free to their imagination. They are easily recognized because they all have the GPS radio handset with color screen in Japanese and which only worked there and is impossible to update in Europe or USA. They bear a sticker on the driver side pillar sometimes in Japanese or in Japanese / English and in the engine they put on the Mercedes cover an Extra cover AMG . Again no counting. We see them for sale every day and they represent 95% of the worldwide used AMG sales market for the 140 types. The same goes for AMG-USA but there very few cars were made because the some Americans with stubbornness succeeded in importing German AMGs in America. Concerning at last the tachometer I've asked myself the same question. Maybe it was so long that the german Diplomat could'nt wait motre to export the car in England , maybe he was satisfied with the 260 km/h instead of the 300 km/h Who knows . Well I'been very long indeed but I hope to have replied to your questions . Do not hesitate if i've forgotten something. B.R. NorbertInteresting car. Couple of questions from a potential bidder: Are there any documents that can show AMG's work orders or invoicing? Seems like the futballer abandoned the project mid-way and it would be interesting to see documents that show original plans vs. what AMG delivered. Is there an AMG tag on the driver's doorsill? Are there any other AMG tags apart the ones in the engine compartment? Such tags exist when engines would be physically modified (augmentation of displacement). Was it a normal practice for AMG to re-badge the engine/car to 6.0 from 600? What would be the reason for that? Would it be fair to say that the engine tuning this car received did not warrant a change to an AMG speedometer in the instrument cluster? Sorry if too many questions.@AmpeliaAMG Well for that it's very easy . I just bought a Ferrari Dino 308GT4 from Barcelona . It's just the inverse . so you just need the "Carte Grise" the french ID of the car (I will receive it in a few days 2 weeks maximum french Administration) and a "Control technique" valid The control technique is the same that the one you can find in the picture 122 . It has a validity of 6 months so enough time to make the Spain registration . It's easy because we are in the same market France and Espagne (. E.U. Union Européenne. ) . No import taxes No VAT .@Marignan75 Thank you. I will be following this auction and doing a bit of research as to what is needed to transfer a French title to a Spain title.@AmpeliaAMG Thanks a lot yes a fantastic car , not a Japnese one a truly "AMG Affalterbach" only 12 ever made . Hope you find a nice prperty in Spain. NorbertLove this vehicle. We will be biuying a home in Marbella Spain later this year. This would be a perfect car to have there and use while in Spain/Europe - so as to not have to ship my SL63 AMG from the US. Someone will be purchasing a spectacular and rare vehicle. Just too soon for us. Best wishes to the Seller.According to AMG Archives and Mercedes Classic only 12 cars of this particular type C140 V12 would have been built between 1993 and 1998. This one is equipped with the same engine the mythic "Cathedral M120" that you can find on the Pagani Zonda C12.