Hemmels International Makes Pagodas & Gullwings Better Than New
U.K.-based car company handcrafts each vehicle. No room for mass-produced items.
If you ever wanted to feel self-conscious about the condition of your Mercedes, you really should avoid checking out the story of Hemmels International. Joseph Sullivan, the purveyor of Hemmels International comes from a long line of mechanics in the family, which gave him the building blocks for what would come later on in life with a business restoring Mercedes SL Pagoda models and Gullwings, too.
Sullivan reminisces, “I was lucky enough to get a very good aeronautical engineering apprenticeship. During this apprenticeship, what I realized and what I was taught there was that you need to be able to work to the highest standard to achieve what needs to be achieved, and I carry that through in terms of quality to produce the vehicles that we produce today.”
Restoration almost isn’t a fair assessment for the work that Hemmels performs, and “rebuilt” doesn’t do it justice either. Being that the cars are hand crafted, they can have quality standards higher than that which you would get from a mass-produced item. In fact, things like body panels which might need restoration are replaced instead of repaired with authentic Mercedes parts when possible. Every single part is dismantled and cataloged, too, for the highest level of restoration, even for things you can’t see.
Performing on these cars requires a certain talent as well, and “old school” mechanics are now able to pass the torch. Sullivan says “We’ve got guys here who are in their 60’s, and are old-school mechanics, or metal workers or engine builders. That then gives us the platform to teach that skill set to the younger generation of craftsmen coming through.”
Like a tailored suit, each Pagoda 190 SL and each Gullwing are available in any paint or interior color you like. This makes for just one aspect of why you’ll have to wait one year for your Mercedes to be ready.
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