Replica 1920s Mercedes Gazelle is Cheap but is Still Cool
Besides the Shelby Cobra, the Mercedes-Benz Gazelle is the most copied car ever.
Back in the ’80s when everything was pastel, there was one company who thought things should be a bit more chrome and wooden. Although their beginnings preceded this era, a 1978 exchange of ownership for Classic Motor Carriages meant the Gazelle replica Mercedes kit car had a bit of a revival in the “Miami Vice” era. This would put it square up against the Excalibur; a Mercedes SSK replica of a similar flavor.
Gazelle’s main advantage over other kit cars was, and still is, the price of entry, and an asking price takes a buyer. But buyers these days are running a bit thin. Under the skin of the Gazelle are the running gear and an inline four-cylinder motor from a Ford Pinto.
Just like the F40 and 328 kits that came out for the Pontiac Fiero, the Gazelle never really looked proportionally correct, despite all the era-correct styling elements. Wider radial tires were the biggest give away, then the AM/FM radio, and then, obviously the engine. Despite these curiosities, Classic Motor Carriages did manage to sell quite a few of them and you can still find ones for sale here and there.
We have to wonder how many people still own one, or who would be in the market for one anyway. It’s certainly not a car you get up-sold into buying, or settle for a Gazelle, instead of say, a Corvette convertible. Like the very early car-phones, fads come and go, and this one really had a very specific time stamp on it. Other wedge shape supercars of the time may have had more flair and more excess, but if you needed attention on a budget, this car did wonders.
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