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Trying to figure out where this whole plaid thing came from, with limited success.
It seems plaid was definitely not a factory option — from Porsche.
But, let's see, 1955 and who was the other big name in German sporting machinery?
That's right, the other big name was Porsche. And maybe not so big, anyway.
The big name was M-B. (Our good doctor was still wet behind the ears in the car business when M-B was winning overall at places like LeMans, Mille Miglia, etc.) If you were a serious poser (and of sufficient means), you didn't fool around with these quirky little doodlebugs from Zuffenhausen, you ordered up a proper 300SL.
Which came standard with cloth seats. Um, plaid cloth seats. And, if you were actually gonna race the thing, why bother with the duded up optional leather seats that were only gonna get trashed, anyway?
So, fast forward to just a few years ago, and the Mercedes marketing department gets this brilliant idea to squeeze a few more bucks out of all the trust fund kids who are snapping up whatever Gullwings show up at Amelia Island.
M-B re-issues the authentic plaid seat material (operative word being authentic), and the trust fund kids go all gaga.
"Ours isn't just a Gullwing. We've got the plaid."
So, did some of the other buyers at Amelia Island (the ones who couldn't afford the Gullwings and had to settle for a crummy four-cam Speedster) take notice and figure this must be the new thing?
Historically correct, historically cashmeckt! Did you see what they just got for that Gullwing?
Dunno. But stranger things have happened.
Me, I don't pay much attention to Amelia Island. My eyes are more on the market — to see when chicken breasts are on sale.
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