The Show Car & The Movie Star

Chasing John Wayne’s ghost in a 1966 Mercedes-Benz 300SE

Article and Images Steve Natale

Picture this: A big man driving an elegant white 1966 Mercedes-Benz 300SE coupe rolls into the parking lot of the Balboa Bay Yacht Club in Newport Beach, California. He parks, flicks his cigarette, and with a faintly familiar bandy-legged gait strides to his 136-foot yacht, “Wild Goose.” The man is actor John Wayne.

Did Wayne even own a 300SE coupe? Did the car on these pages belong to him? Part of the fun of owning a vintage car is researching its history and pedigree. In the case of this 300SE, the evidence is worth investigating. Sometimes, the deeper we investigate, the more intriguing and interesting a car’s past becomes. Factory records or prior ownership registrations can often confirm facts; items forgotten in an old car by previous owners can also provide poignant clues.

The current owner of this 300SE, Ian Fitz-Simon, is a lifelong Mercedes-Benz enthusiast and collector. Curious, he looked up the car’s factory records.  Documents revealed that the coupe carries code “997,” a factory designation for a special show car; it was built in September of 1965, destined for America. 

Unusual engine-bay details such as the black valve cover and chromed fuel lines corroborate the fact that this was a show car.

Features unique to show-cars can be found under the hood: A black valve cover devoid of the Mercedes-Benz logo and the cast-in cylinder firing order, a polished intake and chrome fuel lines, and plated nuts and fittings. This 300SE was first displayed at the Detroit Auto Show before being exhibited at other car shows around the country in late 1965 and early 1966.

When Fitz-Simon purchased the 300SE, it had never been restored and was in very nice original condition: The coupe was 100 percent rust-free and the elegant body undamaged. However, the coupe did need some attention; Fitz-Simon decided on a sensitive restoration with an emphasis on preservation. “I love original cars, and I always try to preserve as much of the car as possible,” he said. “Like they say – ‘They are only original once.’”

Moldings and trim were carefully removed, cleaned and polished, or replaced by original factory parts where necessary. Although the car retains 80 percent of its original paint, some areas of the surface needed attention, so an expert in paint blending was called in. Interior leather was too dry and cracked to save; pristine high-quality, factory-specification leather seat covers were fitted. One of the most difficult and tedious jobs was replacing the headliner, which required pulling the windshield and back glass. The door panels, steering wheel and dash were all in excellent condition. Inspected and serviced, the 300SE was deemed mechanically excellent and continues to drive beautifully.

The Mercedes-Benz 300SE

In 1966, the W112 300SE was one of the highest-priced vehicles in the company catalog, and the most expensive coupe offered.  Introduced in 1962, a year after the sedan, the 300SE coupe and cabriolet were built in limited numbers through 1967. A total of 2,419 coupes were produced, including 497 coupes and cabriolets in the 1966 calendar year. The 300SE appears essentially the same as the 220SE, but wears more chrome trim and whitewall tires, making it seem longer and more elegant.  A luxuriously appointed interior with a wood-trimmed dash and leather seats was standard.

The 1966 300SE came equipped with the M189 170-horsepower, fuel-injected, single-overhead cam 6-cylinder engine, as well as an automatic transmission, power steering, 4-wheel power-assisted disc brakes and a unique air suspension riding on 14inch wheels. The 300SE’s luxury and mechanical fittings added up to a price nearly twice that of a 220SE.

The plot thickens …

Fitz-Simon’s 300SE factory show car came with very complete documentation, including an owner’s manual, instruction booklets for the air conditioning system and Becker radio, a pamphlet on the fuel- injection system and even Mercedes-Benz maps of Europe and Africa. He also found the original Certificate of Preparation for Retail Delivery and the warranty book with Credent-A-Plate. Oddly, the selling dealer had never filled out either of these two key documents as legally required. In all his years collecting and restoring vintage Mercedes-Benz automobiles, Fitz-Simon had never seen these vital documents left blank before.

Further digging revealed that the car was sold in 2003 to a William Dierolf in Carmel, Indiana. A little detective work located Dierolf, who still owned and operated a German-car repair shop. “I decided to give him a call, which was simple because he still ran his shop,” Fitz-Simon recalled. “I got him on the phone and explained I was the owner of a Papyrus White 300SE coupe that he once owned. He said ‘Oh yes! John Wayne’s car.’”

Dierolf explained he had serviced the car for many years before acquiring it from the customer and knew everything about it. The previous owner – who unfortunately has since passed away – claimed he purchased the car in 1980 from the John Wayne estate sale.

More clues

“The way Dierolf talked about the car once belonging to John Wayne was with such confidence, it was hard not to believe him,” Fitz-Simon said. “Needless to say, I was intrigued and wanted to find more information on this 300SE.”

The facts about the car and some of the items discovered in it started to add up for Fitz-Simon: Perhaps Wayne could have owned the 300SE after all. For starters, the coupe had been a factory show car. Often, Mercedes-Benz and other automotive manufacturers gave a few of their high-end display models to celebrities at the end of the new-car show season: Having a brand-new top-of-the-line model cruising around Beverly Hills or Hollywood with a celebrity behind the wheel is always good for a company’s image. The delivery paperwork – left blank – and unused warranty book might indicate that the car was never sold, but instead given to a celebrity such as Wayne.

Other facts appear to corroborate the possibility that Wayne once owned the 300SE. Wayne kept his yacht Wild Goose at the Balboa marina; he was a long-time member of the yacht club and served on its board of directors. A collection of vintage Balboa Bay Yacht Club parking decals still adorns the 300SE’s front windshield and bumper. The last decal is dated 1979, the year of Wayne’s death.  Since the club did not save parking-permit records in the 1970s, confirming the name of the permit holder was not possible.

A collection of old Balboa Bay Yacht Club parking decals – John Wayne was a member of that club – adorns the front windshield.

Fitz-Simon recalled other details of the car’s recent restoration. He remembered that the car required a complete interior cleaning. Both the leather seats and the headliner were very dry and yellow from cigarette smoke; they needed to be replaced. Wayne was known to be a heavy smoker. Curiously, when Fitz-Simon removed the door panels, a very old Smith & Wesson gun key – used with the kind of gun seen so often in the old Western movies – fell out onto the garage floor.

Among the factory paperwork and manuals lodged in the glove box was a period map of Phoenix, Arizona. Wayne spent a lot of time making Western films around Phoenix and was very fond of the area. In fact, Wayne and a business partner purchased the 26 Bar Hereford Ranch in Eagar – approximately 225 miles east of Phoenix – in 1964. The old map still carries the stamped message, “Compliments of the Hyatt Regency Phoenix;” the Hyatt was a popular hotel with celebrities visiting Phoenix. Points of interest were also circled on the map, along with hand-written notations, including “Phoenix Mercedes-Benz,” “Biltmore” – another luxury hotel favored by famous guests – and “Brookshires,” known at the time for the best steak sandwich in the West.

All in all, these tantalizing clues seem to point to Wayne as having likely owned this 300SE coupe. However, none prove conclusively that he did. We may never know for sure, but as Wayne reportedly said, “Money cannot buy happiness, but it’s more comfortable to cry in a Mercedes than on a bicycle.”

Whether or not this 1966 Mercedes-Benz 300SE was actually owned by Western movie star John Wayne, of one fact there can be no doubt: it remains an elegant and expensive luxury automobile designed to appeal to an exclusive clientele.

Poetry in motion: The 300SE after its gentle restoration.

Chrome, wood and leather details elevate the 300SE.

SPECIFICATIONS

1966 Mercedes-Benz 300SE Coupe (W112)

TYPE: Two-door, five-passenger coupe

ENGINE: M189, 2,996cc, overhead cam I-6 with mechanical fuel injection

TRANSMISSION: 4-speed automatic

HORSEPOWER: 195 at 5,500 rpm (SAE)  • TORQUE: 203 lb-ft at 4,100 rpm (SAE)

LENGTH: 192.2 in  •  CURB WEIGHT: 3,600 lb  •  FUEL EFFICIENCY: approx. 19 mpg

PERFORMANCE: Zero-60 mph 12 sec • TOP SPEED: 124 mph 1966 Mercedes-Benz 300SE Coupe (W112)

TYPE: Two-door, five-passenger coupe

ENGINE: M189, 2,996cc, overhead cam I-6 with mechanical fuel injection

TRANSMISSION: 4-speed automatic

HORSEPOWER: 195 at 5,500 rpm (SAE)  • TORQUE: 203 lb-ft at 4,100 rpm (SAE)

LENGTH: 192.2 in  •  CURB WEIGHT: 3,600 lb  •  FUEL EFFICIENCY: approx. 19 mpg

PERFORMANCE: Zero-60 mph 12 sec • TOP SPEED: 124 mph