Type W120 (4 cylinder / sedan)
Including models: 180 / 180a / 180D / 180b / 180Db / 180c / 180Dc
Type W120 180 sedan (circa 1954/1955)
Courtesy: Uwe Medla / May 26, 2003
Here is Uwe (the young man in the middle) in his father's Mercedes-Benz Type 180 sedan at home in Germany in the 1950s. When Uwe was 20 years old in 1976, he bought a Ponton of his own. It was a 1957 Type 190 sedan. At that time, he was in the German Army and drove it many places (including Italy) until he sold it in 1979. Another 24 years would pass before he discovered in May 2003 that it was still alive and well in the USA He located his name on a webpage that listed him (in the official Kraftfahrzeugbrief) as one of the former owners. The 1957 Type 190 was found to be owned by Jeff Miller, the editor of this Mercedes-Benz Ponton website.
1954 Type W120 180 sedan
owner: Alvaro Reyes Vega / Cucuta, Columbia
1954 Type W120 180D sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
owner: Miroslaw Isbrandt / Osieczany, Poland
1955 Type W120 180 sedan
Dr. Pedro Alfonso Castañeda / Bogota, Columbia
Photo submitted: May 11, 2015
1955 Type W120 180 sedan
owner: Bert Verbessem / Bert@verbessem.be / Waarloos, Belgium
Photo submitted: February 3, 2005
1955 Type W120 180 sedan
owner: Juan Gonzalo Cordoba Sosa / Argentina
Photos submitted: November 25, 2005
1955 Type W120 180 sedan
Kaputt / Don't Drink and Drive!
Photo submitted: August, 2001 / Courtesy: Helu Hansen / Mercedes-Benz IG
Ponton taxi (W120 or W121) spotted in Vientienne, Laos
Dear Editor,
On a recent vacation trip to Laos, I spotted this Ponton taxi patiently waiting for its owner to finish lunch in Vientienne, the capital city. It looks a bit worse for wear, but after a while, the owner emerged and off they went in search of customers. It was still running well although it seems that the owner has done some backyard repair jobs.
Thanks for a wonderful website,
Herman Groenewald
South Africa
December 19, 2003
Type 180 Ponton sedan in Iran
A few days ago a friend from Los Angeles sent me this image form his family album, which was captured in 1965 in northern Iran near Caspian sea. Their friend's Ponton was transferred to the other side of Cham-Khaleh river by ferry.
Hamid Zadeh
Toluca Lake, California USA
October 13, 2015
Photo added: October 14, 2015
Type 180 Ponton sedan in Cuba
Dear readers,
I saw this Ponton during a vacation to Varadero, Cuba in May 2006, and then again in May 2009. I will look for it in February 2011, and maybe find out what year and model it is.
Regards,
Bond Hardie
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
sandybondh@gmail.com
Photos submitted: October 27, 2010 / posted: January 13, 2012
1955 Type W120 180D sedan
Type 180D Ponton sedan (40 bhp), driven by Helmut Retter and navigated by Wolfgang Larcher, won the Diesel Class of the historic 1,000 mile Italian race (coming in 201st overall) at an average speed of 58.81 mph. The diesel sedan left the start point (Brescia) at 00:04 and thus had the number "04" on the doors. The light colored car (possibly "light gray") had round fog lights, no hubcaps and louvered blinds in the rear window. Photos of the 180D Mille Miglia Ponton courtesy: Larry Hansen / July 15, 2005
A reader of this page contacted the editor on March 29, 2008 and reported that the color of the "04" 180D is "dullish gray" and is still the same color after all these years, and has not been resprayed. It is currently in the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart.
1956 Type W120 180 sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
owner: Kobus van der Westhuizen / kobus@vibewise.co.za / Durban, South Africa
Photo submitted: August 2, 2002
"This vehicle belonged to my grandmother and then my father, and now I have it. The front visor is for heavy rain, to increase wiper efficiency, and was fitted in Durban, South Africa." Regards, Kobus van der Westhuizen
1956 Type 180 with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
owner: Paul Vorster / paul@mlanjenicapital.co.za / Johannesburg, South Africa
Paul writes, "I recently acquired this 1956 Type 180 Ponton sedan. It is in running condition, and ready to be restored. I am going through the process of understanding the details of the vehicle before the restoration begins."
Photo submitted: March 30, 2009
Type W120 180 sedan (RHD / Right Hand Drive)
This Right Hand Drive Type W120 180 sedan belonged to Bakshi Ghulam Mohammed, the Prime Minister of Kashmir from 1953-1964. Bakshi Ghulam Mohammed used this car extensively to tour the Kashmir countryside. He can be seen in the front passenger seat in this photograph. An internet search on his name "Bakshi Ghulam Mohammed" (1907-1972) will yield more details. Note the license plate reads, "KASHMIR-S11."
Contributed by Dr. Bakshi Jehangir
Photograph submitted: October 25, 2008
1956 Type W120 180D sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
Amol Nayak / Mumbai, India
Dear Jeff,
I am sending a photo of my 1956 180D which won third prize in the best restored classic cars category at the rally held in Mumbai on the 22nd of April 2007. I would be happy if you put her up in the ranks with all our other club member's beauties. By the way, she managed to beat a 300S for the prize. First and second were a Rolls-Royce and a Bentley. I know this would be impossible without all the help and support from International Ponton Owners Group (IPOG).
Regards,Amol Nayak
Mumbai, India
amolnayak@hotmail.com
1956 Type W120 180 sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
owner: Dino Witjaksono / Jakarta, Indonesia
1956 Type 180 Ponton sedan
former owner: Ron Sweeney / West Kirby, England
Type W120 180 sedan
former owner: Steffen Mueller's father / Berlin, Germany
Steffen's father bought the 180D "used" (pre-enjoyed) in 1959.
Note the mirror at the driver's door, and the rear window defroster.
Photo submitted: February 9, 2005
Type W120 180 sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
Photos: Hartwig Mueller / Mercedes-Benz salesman / circa 1961 / Bremerhaven, Germany
This photo shows fellow Mercedes-Benz salesman Heinz Piotraschke in front of the Restaurant Schifferklause Lehrke (Bremerhaven) in a used Type 180 Ponton with temporary red tags. Note the modifications made to this example — chrome accent strips on the front fenders and along the bottom of the windows, as well as long, fender-mounted turn signals (normally found on the Type 219 and 220S/SE Pontons). Hartwig recalled, these modifications could be carried out at the dealership at the customer's request after the car left the factory. The Webasto sliding roof can also be seen in this photo.
The Restaurant Schifferklause Lehrke was a frequent destination for Mercedes-Benz salesman meals (both lunches and dinners) in 1961.
Retrospective: The restaurant owner provided delicious "granatbrot" (a small, seafood shrimp a.k.a. "prawns") for us salesmen in one of his two "chambres separees" so we could eat in relative privacy.
Mercedes-Benz salesman Heinz Piotraschke
Restaurant Schifferklause Lehrke was still in operation as of 2013.
1957 Type W120 180 sedan
owner: Martin Pitts / pitts251@peoplepc.com / Florida and Kentucky USA
I bought this car in baskets two years ago here in Florida. I saved its soul. I made a lot of good connections for parts and help from mbzponton.org. I also have a 1957 cabriolet in Lexington, Kentucky, where I live in the summer. That car is for sale.
Photo submitted: May 18, 2003
1957 Type W120 180a sedan
owner: Ghassan Hammoud / Beirut, Lebanon
Hi, my mane is Ghassan Hammoud and I live in Beirut, Lebanon. I bought my 1957 Mercedes-Benz Type 180a Ponton sedan a year ago (2007) from a car dealer who shipped it from Germany. It was renovated in Beirut and is in great condition.
Best regards,Ghassan
Photos submitted: April 14, 2008
1957 Type W120 180a sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
owner: Helu Hansen / helu.hansen@t-online.de / Bonn, Germany
owners:
Dirk and Diana Cornelis / info@foto-kalender-fokus.com
Stekene (Antwerp) - Flanders, Belgium
"We wish all Mercedes-Benz Ponton owners happy driving
in 2002!"
This 1958 Type 180D belonged to Dirk's grandfather.
Photo submitted: January 3, 2002
Type 180 or 190 Ponton sedan
Bob Dylan - late 1960s
Source: YouTube video "Bob Dylan - Another Self Portrait"
Photo uploaded: June 2, 2016
1958 Type W120 180a sedan
owner: Alan Dubroff / Pompton Lakes, New Jersey USA
1957 Type W120 180D sedan
owner: Hamid Zadeh / Toluca Lake, California USA
Photo submitted: September 15, 2015
A Type W120 180D taxi in Athens
Note the Mercedes-Benz buses in the background.
1958 Type W120 180D sedan
owner: Lito Madrigal / Philippines
Note the extra chrome body molding trim – typically reserved for the six cylinder Pontons
Photo submitted: January 7, 2015
1958 Type W120 180D sedan
owner: Manfred "Mardy" von Harten / Allentown, Pennsylvania USA
1958 Type W120 180a sedan
owner: Prithvi Tagore / West Bengal, India
1958 Type W120 180a sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
Hi all,
Here's a photo of a friend's 1958 180a
taken during a recent drive in the western coastal part of India. The drive
covered 360 km –through some tough roads. It started from the city
of Bombay (Mumbai) and headed toward the hills, which gradually turn into a
steep ascent onto the Western Ghats – the mountains on the west coast of
India. Lots of sharp hairpin bends and twists with trucks and buses occasionally
charging at you from the other side!
This car was restored from scrap in
2011. The owner retained the original 15 inch wheels that came with the car (an
option for countries with rough roads) and it's right hand drive. He imported a
Becker Europa along with one for my car some six years ago from an
IPOG member who was selling his entire
trove of radios (I forgot his name).
Cheers,
Prithvi Tagore
West
Bengal, India
December 18, 2013
To determine whether this is a 180b or 190b, note the apparent lack of brightwork trim along the base of the rear door window. That bit of flash was reserved for the Type 190/190b, and was the only exterior difference between the 180 and 190 Ponton models as they left the factory. Also note the mud flaps, slotted wheel covers (standard on the 220S/SE models), and the right side wing mirror. Enhancements continue: fender spear lights (atop the front fenders) were uncommon on the four cylinder models, but the Type 180 and 190 Photo Galleries include other examples of the same. With the Alps in the background, the building architecture suggests either Germany, Austria, or Switzerland.
Mercedes-Benz Type 180b with Type 190 with Webasto sliding sunroof
Tripoli, Libya / Note the Mercedes-Benz bus (1949 L5000 ?)
Photo courtesy: Fouad Ghandour / October 24, 2014
1958 Type W120 180a sedan (RHD) / 1960 Type W120 180b sedan (RHD)
owner: Herman Groenewald / hbgroen2000@yahoo.com / South Africa
The two Pontons in this photo are a 1958 180a (blue car) and a 1960 180b (white car). My father bought the blue Mercedes in 1958 and since then, it was passed on to me. The car is totally original (body and engine) and is still in daily use but will be due, in a year or two, for minor restoration.
1958 Type W120 180a at the moment of sunset.
I bought the white 1960 Ponton one year ago with the idea to break it into parts to supply my original 1958 Type 180a sedan. After carefully looking the car over, I realized that it is still in relatively good condition and I decided that a restoration job would be the way to go.
Herman Groenewald
December 19, 2003
1959 Type W120 180a sedan
owner: Rúnar Sigurjónsson / Iceland
1959 Type W120 180a sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
owner, date, location, and children: unknown
1959 Type W120 180a sedan
owners: Jeff and Kim Marie Speech / Wisconsin USA
1959 Type W120 180a sedan
owner: Martin Peisl / San Jose, California USA
1959 Type W120 180a sedan
Nizar Shahin / Toronto, Canada
1959 Type W120 180D sedan
owner: Jean Pierre Vanhooren / Belgium
1959 Type W120 180Db sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof
Bernd / Trier, Germany
1959 Type W120 180b sedan with Webasto sliding sunroof (RHD)
owner: David Robertson / Shepherd's Bush, west London
The Ejsmond family in 1965 on the island of Corsica.
Beach photo submitted August 29, 2013 by David Robertson (son-in-law of Mr. and Mrs. Ejsmond)
Wargrave, Berkshire / United Kingdom
More current, second photo submitted: January 29, 2014
1958 Type W120 180D sedan with extra trim, and later style bumpers and tail lights
owner: Matthias Dulack / Budapest, Hungary
I am living and working in Budapest, but the car is in the Netherlands.
Note the extra brightwork trim accenting the fenders, and the amber fender spear lights. These features are uncommon on the four cylinder models, but the Type 180 and 190 Photo Galleries include other examples of the same. The grille is narrow – like the pre-1959 cars, but the bumpers and tail lights are like the ones used on the mid-1959 and later Pontons. The chassis number would determine when the car was made. Ed.
Photo added September 30, 2015
1960 Type W120 180Db sedan
former owner: Simon Pontin / Rochester, New York USA
Simon Pontin hosted the weekday morning classical music radio program The Sunshine Show, and the eclectic Saturday morning show Salmagundy; The Show for Working People at WXXI (91.5 FM) from 1976 until his retirement on May 16, 2009. His absence left a hole in the fabric of Rochester's soundscape, and in the imaginations of his regular listeners. Best wishes to you Simon!
Photo of Type 180Db with Simon Pontin, Jr. (circa 1965) submitted July 31, 2004
1960 Type W120 180Db sedan
owner: Charly Denecheau / France
Type W120 180b sedan
1960 Type W120 180b sedan with Right Hand Drive (RHD)
owner: Johan Hendricks / Cape Town, South Africa
1961 Type W120 180b sedan
owner: Ramzi Saba/ Beirut, Lebanon
1961 Type W120 180b sedan with Hebmüller VentiDach steel sunroof
owner: Joachim Preiss / Pontonlandia, Germany
1961 Type W120 180b sedan
former owner: Christian Graff / Kelso, Washington
Photos added March 7, 2017
The paint was originally moss green, but the previous owner painted it a metallic green lacquer, so it was prepped and painted professionally in the two-tone, official, Mercedes-Benz Medium-Blue and Ivory epoxy, as shown. The two-tone door panels were designed and installed by our son, Christian, along with the carpet, while the paint was done in Longview, Washington by a professional auto painter, Larry Barnett. The cream seats were done by Longview Upholstery. Christian acquired the car from a nice, Middle Eastern family in downtown Seattle in February 2015. They originally purchased it in Spokane, WA before driving it over to Seattle. When Christian got the car, it didn't run, but the engine block was sound. After he overhauled the ignition system and rebuilt the carburetor, it was running in short order. Then, he focused on restoring the interior and paint. In March 2017 it went to its new owner in Mexico City, Mexico. Because it went through a broker in Texas, I don't know who actually bought it.
Nathan Graff
Kelso, Washington
March 7, 2017
1961 Type W120 180b sedan
owner: Lucana (Ana Lucia Perez Tobon) / Columbia and Patagonia, South America
Hello. My name is Ana Lucia Perez Tobon. Lucana is my artist name. I have owned my 1961 Mercedes-Benz Type 180b Ponton sedan for 18 years, and I bought another one (a 1960 Type 180b) for my son in April, 2006. I have worked most of this year (2006) on a project in Patagonia, South America from Colombia with my Mercedes-Benz. She is in very good shape because I DO love her! The mbzponton website, with all of its technical information, has been very helpful to me. That is why I write to you - to thank you. If you have any other advice for my car, please let me know.
Lucana
October 1, 2006Photo of 180b submitted October 1, 2006
Self portrait with 180b submitted December 10, 2006
Article with 180b submitted December 24, 2007
1961 Type W120 180b sedan
owner: Andrey Sebastian / Malang, Indonesia
Note the extra chrome body molding trim – typically reserved for the six cylinder Pontons
Photo submitted: January 12, 2015
1961 Type W120 180b sedan
owner: Carlos Andrade Cazares / Irapuato, Guanajuato, Mexico
Photos submitted: October 11, 2016
Type W120 180b sedan
Norbert Janssen / Germany
1961 Type W120 180b sedan with RHD
Bambang Widjayanto and his son / Jogyakarta, Indonesia
Dear editor,
I have a 1961 W120 Ponton 180b, chassis number:120.010.20.029247 and engine: 121.923.20.029430. I found the car in a small garage in Jogyakarta, Indonesia in 2009 with heavy dust everywhere (click on the photo to see other photos). Fortunately, the engine still ran even after sitting for three years. The main body parts are original, but the rear view mirror is missing. I bought it and cleaned it and made some minor restorations. After several months of engine "normalization", I tested it and drove with my 8 year son. He was very happy with "a very very old car like you daddy" he said to me.Next step, I need to fully renovate the engine and of course the body, to make my family and friends smile on this "Kentang" (Kentang in Indonesia means, "potato" because the W120 has a rounded shape. I am not a mechanical engineer and unfamiliar with the old cars, but thanks to the mbzponton website, with all of its technical information, I will be able to manage.
See you, I will come back after it is fully restored.
Bambang Widjayanto
Jogyakarta, Indonesia
bambang.widjayanto@gmail.comPhotos submitted: October 10, 2010 / uploaded: January 13, 2012
1961 Type W120 180b sedan
Piotr Nierzwicki / piotrnierzwicki@yahoo.com
Photo submitted: January 16, 2012
Village of Jezierzyce, northern Poland
A Type W120 180Db taxi in Kuwait
Note the two-tone paint and roof rack
1961 Type W120 180Db sedan
owner: Lorenzo Pacho / Manilla, Philippines
Type W120 180Db sedan
Tirso Neri Padilla / Cebu City, Philippines
1961 Type W120 180Db sedan
owner: Ratko Radanov / Austria
1961 Type W120 180b sedan
owner: Raffoul Traboulsy / Beirut, Lebanon
Photo Submitted: March 30, 2008
Type W120 180b sedan
Warsaw, Poland
Photos submitted: January 16, 2007 by Fabian Schoeters / fabian.schoeters@laetare.be
1962 Type W120 180c sedan
Jorge Alejandro Medellín / Bogotá, Colombia
1962 Type W120 180Dc sedan
owner: Miroslaw Isbrandt / Osieczany, Poland
1962 Type W120 180Dc sedan
owner: Ami Fardaraghi / amifardaraghi@hotmail.com / Iran
I am a British citizen living and working in Iran. After living in the UK for 29 years, I returned to Iran for business purposes and, upon arrival, found this 1962 Mercedes-Benz Type 180Dc Ponton sedan and immediately bought it. One of the photos I am sending includes my daughter. The car is lovely to drive and I have managed to find many spare parts for it. I found your website and enjoy reading it very much.
Thanks and regards,Ami Fardaraghi
Photos submitted: April 18, 2007
1962 Type W120 180c sedan
owner: Raeef Mohsen / Tripoli, Lebanon
1962 Type W120 180Dc sedan
original owner: Albert Whipple / Grants Pass, Oregon
Dear readers,
My 1962 Mercedes-Benz Type 180Dc (chassis number 029900) was purchased by myself on May 17, 1963 from Dealer Robert C. Martin of Grants Pass, Oregon — costing $3,886.35. It was a dealer demonstrator used to pick up and deliver people having their cars serviced, and had 5,250 miles on the odometer, but came with a full factory warranty. I had to park it in 1987 due to a personal problem, and it was stored until last year. It is now in my new shop building and I have started a restoration to good condition including front-end work, brakes, and paint. It is currently disassembled, and I hope to have it back on the road in 2014. Work is slow as both the car and I are older and slower, however I have done all my own work on it from the time the warranty ran out. I added air conditioning in 1984 and reclining front seats from a W115 series car in 2010. Running at freeway speeds even in the summer with air, the average fuel consumption (with 600,000 miles) is 32 mpg. One vacation trip — driving carefully on the take-offs and going no faster than 55 mph, I got an amazing 43 mpg. The photo is from 1975, as all the fenders, doors, etc. are removed now for the restoration. Also please find enclosed, the original Owner's Service Policy with both the dealer's name and mine.
p.s. I still live in the same basic location. I moved about 700 feet north of where the photo was taken. I forgot to mention that I rebuilt the original engine at 520,000 miles. It had a broken ring in the number 2 cylinder. I was a 24 year old single man when I bought the car, and took a lot of razzing over the tractor noise the engine made. I was commuting 50 miles round trip to work at that time, and fuel was 19.7 cents plus 4 cents federal and 6 cents state taxes. Boy, have times changed.
Kind regards,
Albert (at ¾ century mark) and Ponton (at ½ Century mark)Photo submitted: January 11, 2014
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