Coronavirus, or Covid-19: no matter what you call it, it will not stop us from living! We shall abide by all restrictions (PLEASE, PLEASE, DO SO !!), but we do need to retain our sanity. And to be able to, what better ways to keep going on with what we like to do, what makes us happy – at least a little bit.
This means we need to also continue with our hobbies, and for us collectors in particular, to continue enjoying our models and to add here and there one to our collection.
I can assure you, that ALL modelmakers have wonderful new models in the pipeline, and although you might temporarily not be able or willing to buy all of them, you will sooner or later regret it, if you don’t get the ones you are attracted to the most.
And this brings us to the latest new model:
From AUTOPIONEER comes the 1:43 model of what the company calls a 1934 Mercedes-Benz-SS Spezial Cabriolet. Taking into account that the car’s body was built by Erdmann & Rossi on a 1930 SS chassis, the car should - as is customary - be correctly described as a 1930 SS-Spezial Cabriolet.
A bit of historical background: the beginnings of the Autobahns
In November 1933, Director Willy Hof from the “Reichsautobahngesellschaft” in Berlin ordered a Mercedes-Benz Cabriolet 710 Type SS, 27/160/200 PS (W06) from Daimler-Benz AG. Subsequently the chassis No. 36345 with engine No. 72766 (which had been manufactured in July 1930) was sent to Erdmann & Rossi in Berlin for bodywork.
Willy Hof was one of the early promoters of what was ultimately to become the “Autobahn”-network.
On November 6th, 1926, he registered and founded in Frankfurt (Main) – as member No.1 – the “Association for the Preparation of the motorway Hanseatic Cities-Franfurt-Basel”, a high-speed road project which he dubbed the “HAFRABA”.
The abbreviation HAFRABA meant “Hamburg-Frankfurt-Basel”, with the association’s aim to promote an autobahn from the ports at the North Sea, i.e. Lübeck, Hamburg, via Frankfurt as an important place of commerce in western Germany to southern Germany at the border of Switzerland, i.e. Basel. From the beginning, the association had planned to extend the autobahn further from Basel to the Italian port of Genoa.
It was in fact the example of the Italian highway initiative of the entrepreneur Piero Puricelli in Milan, who already in the early 1920s constructed privately-operated highways (autostrade) between Milan and northern Italy, which stimulated the German debates around motorways.
As a mix of entrepreneurs and public agencies, the HAFRABA association was a private initiative and not part of a state administration.
Two groups can be identified among the 32 members of the advisory board and among the 6 members of the executive board of the HAFRABA association.
One group consisted of:
- leading officials, and some mayors, of the urban administrations of the cities along the route from Hamburg to Basel (see map): Hamburg, Bremen, Hannover, Göttingen, Kassel, Giessen, Marburg, Mainz, Frankfurt(Main), Wiesbaden, Darmstadt, Mannheim, Karlsruhe, Freiburg, and Basel.
- leading officials of the transport administration of the federal states along the route Hamburg-Basel, as e.g.
- Arthur Zierau, representing the federal state of Baden,
- Kurt Becker from the Prussian province of Hessen-Nassau and
- Dr. Theodor Krebs from the federal state of Volksstaat-Hessen.
- as well as Robert Otzen, as professor for railroad construction from the Technical University of Hannover.
(The complete list of the board members is published in the report of the first meeting of the advisory board of HAFRABA on 10th of February 1927, op. cit., p. 28-29)
The second group consisted of 10 directors from the construction and the transport business, for example:
- Vogel and Dykerhoff from the Portland Cementwerke in Amöneburg and Heidelberg,
- Milke from the Strassenbau AG in Cologne,
- Meisenheimer from Wygass+Freytag in Frankfurt(Main),
- and further five representatives from the chambers of commerce.
- The speaker of the advisory board was Landmann, plus
- the mayor of the city Frankfurt (Main).
The secretary of the HAFRABA association was Willy Hof.
The most important member in the executive board was the Italian autobahn promoter Senator Dr. Piero Puricelli. He spoke German fluently and served therefore as an important link of ideas and experiences between Italy and Germany.
In its publications, the HAFRABA association showed the weakness of the existing road network in Germany. It claimed highways for automobiles only in order to meet the growing demand of road capacity due to increasing motorization and to connect important cities.
At the time, Germany had only a small density of cars per capita in comparison with other countries, (**).
According to traffic counts done in the years 1924 and 1925, the most important long-distance truck traffic flow occurred between the cities of Cologne and Berlin, (i.e. East-West and not North-South). However, there was also a relatively high volume of local traffic leading to the overload of country roads. Improving secondary and rural roads should have been much more necessary. Expressways were consequently far more urgently needed to link neighbouring towns than to serve long distance traffic.
Thus, the road link of Düsseldorf-Cologne-Bonn had been discussed as early as the 1920s and the Cologne-Bonn autobahn opened in 1932. Moreover, the creation of the LEHA (Leipzig-Halle) association in 1927 marked the start of efforts to link Leipzig and Halle by means of an autobahn. Discussions about linking Heidelberg with Mannheim were also started in 1927.
Financing proved (as always) to be the biggest problem, and between the years 1927 and 1933 Willy Hof tried to establish contacts in the government for the passage of the necessary legislation, and with the banks, to secure funds. A task all the more difficult just after the Great Depression and in the dying days of the Weimar Republic.
Legislators condemned the Autobahns as a luxury project that would benefit only the few wealthy enough to own cars; the Nazi Party was against public spending on highways for the same reason, as were the Communists, as well as the Reichsbahn which feared competition.
Between 1930 and 1932, “ADAC-Motorwelt” – the leading journal for automobilists – with 52 issues a year, only mentions the HAFRABA project in two short notices. This can be explained by the different interests of the automobile industry. As most German car engines were not designed for the permanent stress of use on autobahns, the German automobile manufacturers had no interest in autobahn construction.
After his election as Reichschancellor and head of the government on January 30th 1933, Hitler, a car nut, (who favored Mercedes-Benz cars) started immediately to push ahead with his dream of ‘Volksmotorisierung’ in Germany and the construction of autobahns, recognizing the enormous propaganda value of the project, not only as far as the creation of jobs and a unification of sorts of the German regions was concerned, but as a prestige object as well.
As the government and its agencies took over the concept and construction of highways, the HAFRABA as association was dissolved on August 18th, 1933, and incorporated into the project company GEZUVOR, the “Gesellschaft zur Vorbereitung des Reichsautobahnbaus” (Company for the Preparation of Autobahn Construction).
The GEZUVOR’s mandate was to plan the expressway network from a technical, economic, and transport policy perspective. The German railways ‘Reichsbahn’, which still remained independent until 1937, was also included in this GEZUVOR company.
In charge of the GEZUVOR was Dr. Ing. Fritz Todt, a party member and “protégé” of Adolf Hitler, as “Generalinspektor des Deutschen Strassenwesen“, i.e.: as the “General Inspector of the German Roadways”, to which Willy Hof had now to report to.
According to some sources, Willy Hof, the executive Director of the HAFRABA, resigned on December 22nd,1934. Yet, on the subject of his resignation, the “Bundesarchiv”, (i.e. the German Federal Archives) state the following: “Willy Hof was initially HAFRABA's managing director; after its incorporation into the "Society for the Preparation of the Reichsautobahnen e.V." (GEZUVOR) he became until 1935 its chairman, and did not resign without resentment… Willy Hof still held a position of director of the “Reichsautobahnen” Company until 1936.
Construction began on September 23rd, 1933, on the section Frankfurt (Main) – Darmstadt, with Hitler himself doing the ground-breaking, a moment which was widely photographed, and reported. And on May 19th, 1935, this section Frankfurt (Main) – Darmstadt, a 22Km (13.67 miles) long stretch of Autobahn was inaugurated.
The problem of the local transport links and secondary roads played no role in the discussion about the autobahn network after 1933, as this network was strictly a long-distance one that covered the entire Reich.
-x-x-x-
(**) Comparative data 1923-1933:
Private car ownership in Germany 1924:
- Germany: 1 per 321 inhabitants
- France: 1 per 90 inhabitants
- UK: 1 per 71 inhabitants
- USA: 1 per 7 inhabitants
Total amount of cars in Germany (trucks or buses not included):
- 1923: 100,340
- 1926: 206,456
- 1933: 489,270
(Source: Kraftfahrt Bundesamt)
About the car:
According to Daimler’s archives, the Mercedes 710 Type SS, chassis No. 36345, engine No. 72766, left the factory on July 18th, 1930, as a “Cabriolet 4”. The car was exhibited in Paris between April 29th and May 18th, 1931. From there it came back to Germany, and was put on display in Würzburg on June 16th, then in Berlin on July 30th, 1931. From June 21st, 1933 onwards, it was used as a demonstration car.
In its entry dated November 30th, 1933, the Daimler-Benz Commission book lists that this car (commission number 53808) was purchased on November 20th, for Director Hof, by the “Deutsche Reichsbahn Hauptverwaltung” (the head-office of the German Railways in Berlin).
On November 24th, 1933, the car was sent to the famous coachbuilders Erdmann & Rossi in Berlin Charlottenburg.
The written order called for the construction of a new body for the 710 SS: a two door, four-seater Sport-Cabriolet in accordance with a special design incorporating a multitude of specific wishes listed on the purchase order.
One of these was that the back-seat area use was still to be determined at a later time. It was pointed out that “possibly measuring devices might be accommodated in this area; tools, accessories, supplied by Mercedes, would have to be accommodated in appropriate boxes”.
The “chassis was also to be prepared for very high speeds”. Also: “everything has to be very robust – but not too heavy.”
Delivery of what was obviously to be a car destined for tests was to be 6 weeks after delivery of the chassis to Erdmann & Rossi.
At the IAA 1934 (International Automobile Exhibition), held in Berlin between March 8th and March 18th, the car was displayed front and center at the stand of Erdmann & Rossi.
It presented a few distinct external features, among which the one standing out most was the radiator water tank, the volume of which had been increased, and now, with its protruding chromed rounded addition at the top, was somewhat reminiscent of the Blitzen-Benz of yore.
Other particularities were the streamlined headlights incorporated in the fenders, fender wheel spats (fender skirts) enclosing the rear wheels, and notably so the shape of the car’s back, with its unusual stowage space for two spare tires and a – likely small – suitcase.
The actual purpose of the Mercedes 710 SS “Spezial-Cabriolet” was to study the Italian Expressways in the country’s north, to do test runs, to assess the different road surfaces, markings, as well as the slopes and radii of curves.
Mandated by the “Deutsche Reichsbahn Gesellschaft“ (the German Railway Company – which was a member of the GEZUVOR, let’s not forget), Willy Hof traveled in 1934 to Italy, as the head of a whole team of drivers with three cars, one of which was the Mercedes 710 SS ‘Spezial Cabriolet’.
The project was deemed so important, that the CEO of the Reichsbahn, Julius Dorpmüller, decided to fly in, in order to witness the start and the first results of the test runs.
Although originally rather skeptical about Autobahns, which were seen as a competition to the railways, the “Reichsbahngesellschaft” became increasingly interested in the project.
In fact, Dr. Dorpmüller pushed for the takeover by the Reichsbahn of the Autobahn construction, and the “Reichsautobahngesellschaft” became more or less a subsidiary of the German Railway Company within the GEZUVOR project Company.
The Reichsbahn now looked at the Autobahn network as an excellent and more economical means to use new streamlined high-speed buses to connect smaller cities and towns, rather than with trains operating below capacity.
As planned, the Mercedes had been specially prepared and equipped with measuring instruments.
The 710 SS Spezial Cabriolet did not quite look like when it had been on display on the Erdmann & Rossi stand at the IAA.
Indeed, just to mention the visible external differences, the car had been equipped with a cross bar between the two front fenders, not to hold the headlamps but to hold the fenders in place, which at high speeds would have had the tendency to shake and flutter. In addition to an added proper rear light, the front and the back of the rear fenders were pierced with two large ventilation holes, to cool down the tires behind the covered wheel arches.
One should note here that air, making its way under the spats into the arches, basically remains trapped, causing a high pressure inside the arches as well as a build-up of heat, due to the friction forces between the tire and the road creating heat energy. As a consequence, the pressure of the tire increases invariably, with the subsequent risk of a tire blow-out, if the tire pressure reaches above the tire’s normal operating pressure.
In fact, the car was operated at speeds up to 200 Km/h, leading to regular tire problems. It finally dawned on the team, that the spats were more of a problem than an aerodynamic advantage, thus the removal of the spats and the addition of ventilation holes.
In any event, there may have been some stability issues with the Spezial Cabriolet, which was also collecting data on crosswinds and behavior at high speeds in curves. This led to a few accidents, and in one case to the return of the car to Berlin for serious repairs and a change of colour: originally grey, the car was now painted orange, for visibility.
Back in Italy for more test runs, the car was immediately dubbed “parrot” (Papagei) by the team, (and not the “Pinguin” (!), as the model by Autopioneer states -- Where did they ever get that moniker from?? – Oh, well, Penguin, Papagei, what’s the difference, both start with a “P” and there is a “g” in there somewhere, right?! Besides, I have one question: has anyone ever seen an orange Pinguin ???).
As for Willy Hof, he managed to roll-over the car into a ditch. Whereas he was only lightly hurt, the same could not be said about the car.
Back in Germany, Willy Hof continued his series of tests in the spring of 1935, on various roads, including on the newly finished stretch of Autobahn between Frankfurt and Darmstadt, where he crashed the Mercedes-Benz 710 SS Spezial Cabriolet at approximately the same spot where the racing car driver Bernd Rosemeyer killed himself in an accident a few years later, on January 28th 1938, trying to establish a new land speed record.
What was left of the 710SS Spezial-Cabriolet was sent back to Erdmann & Rossi.
About the model:
Making a model of this unique and unusual car certainly was a good idea. The result however is far from impressive.
Autopioneer Models, a German modelmaker, let’s rather say: “model supplier”, is, as far as I know, having its models made by ABC Brianza of Italy.
The owner of Autopioneer may be a good businessman, but a car connoisseur he is not, nor is Brianza up to the task, when one compares their models, with the likes of models made and marketed by Autocult, ER-models, Ilario, Matrix, or NEO, just to name a few.
And as has been proven time and again by these model makers, it is not the lack of documentation that prevents the making of a proportionally precise, detailed and accurate model, but a lack of knowledge (problem!), lack of research (big problem!), and of accuracy (bigger problem!) as well.
Although at first glance a very nice, and at 259.95 Euro (USD 294 + S&H at time of writing) an expensive model, it loses all its appeal upon close inspection, and soon you realize that the model’s price-performance ratio is totally out of balance.
When you look at the model up close, you intuitively notice that something is wrong, the car looks somehow too flat, too long and yet, you can’t pinpoint the problem. After all, the wheelbase is OK…
After this first impression, the incorrect details start appearing one after the other. One of the biggest errors is the rendering of the radiator. Mistake or laziness, the V-shaped radiator frame (likely taken from another Mercedes model) hides a nearly flat radiator grille, and misses totally the distinctiveness of the increased radiator water tank on the car, round and projected ahead of the standard type SS radiator, somewhat reminiscent of the Blitzen Benz. On the model, the cap and the Mercedes-star are thus perched in the wrong place as well.
The overly stretched appearance of the model is due to the fact that, ahead of the headlights, the entire shape of the model is wrong, far to elongated. This is the point, which shows that consulting knowledgeable people at least of various Mercedes-Benz Clubs would have been beneficial for the model maker and the collector as well…
The bar across both fenders is located too far ahead of the car’s front axle, whereas in typical 710 SS-fashion (see picture here), this bar and the headlights should be sitting close to the axles, close to the radiator. The bullet shaped lamp pods are not quite elongated enough either.
As far as the hood / bonnet of the model is concerned, a look at the right-hand side clearly shows that whoever was in charge of making the model did not do any research, nor consult any of the available documents, nor was there any supervision or quality control by the manufacturer. To me all this shows a total disregard of the collector!
For instance, the ventilation louvers of the side of the hood are going right through, from the front to the back of the hood, without the usual interruption above the cut-outs for the manifolds, as was standard on all Kompressor cars, be they 400, 630K, 680S, 710SS , 540K. No other model manufacturer has ever made such a mistake.
The manifolds correctly exit the hood as flexible pipes. On the car, they then continue as straight solid chromed pipes leading below the car (to finish as one exhaust pipe). On the model on the other hand, these pipes instead of being a continuation of the flex-pipes look like replaced by some large inserted drinking straws!
The manifold closest to the radiator is also located too close to the radiator.
As far as the ventilation louvers on top of the hood are concerned, what passes for louvers on the model is absolutely stunning (Yes, I was stunned!). Not only do these “louvers” start too far back from the radiator whereas they should start exactly in line with those on the side of the hood, but I’m not sure what
that is, that we get sold as louvers. Whatever it is, a 1:43 louver representation it certainly is not! Other manufacturers such as EMC and Ilario with prices similar to Brianza have made louvers on their various 1:43 Mercedes 710 SS, that do look like louvers. Autopioneer/Brianza EMC (Ukraine) Even IXO (PCT) with its 710SS model, which cost 1/10th of Brianza’s price, has much nicer looking scaled down louvers as well.
Ilario (France) IXO (PCT) - China
To finish the analysis of the front part, the turn signal is located too low on the model. Since this little photo-etched piece is simply glued on, the mistake could easily have been avoided.
This shows once again, that any study of, or comparison with pictures of the actual car has been superficial at best, and that production monitoring or quality control was seriously lacking…
Looking at the backend of the model, one is facing a definitely oversized exhaust pipe, extended much too far out from under the car. It should in fact end just after the body of the car. The diameter of the pipe makes it look like a cannon barrel of a James Bond car. 007 would have loved it!
The wing-nut shaped fastener, which holds the spare tires in place, is a small photo-etched part, looking too flimsy in comparison with the one on the car. Here a chromed, molded piece would have been more advantageous.
The rear light on the model is merely a stuck-on photo-eched part, whereas on the car, it is a three-dimensional light with 3 lenses, and not only two! Another cheap solution for an expensive model!
Finally, a look under the model unfortunately reveals how little Brianza has kept up with the times. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I let the picture speak for itself.
The last time I saw a bottom like that was on an artisanal Aurore model by the Swiss Manfred Schmid, a model he made back in the Nineteen-Sixties. That was over a half-century ago; enough said!
Quellen/Sources/Источники:
- Daimler AG
- R. Vahrenkamp (University Kassel)
- Bundesarchiv; Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt
- verschiedene andere (others).
Bilder/Pictures/Изображения:
- Alamy
- verschiedene andere (others).
(с)BERND D. LOOSEN
