# Mercedes revives the concept of Wretched Excess **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Created:** [February 9, 2015, 6:48pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982 "2015-02-09T18:48:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![shadowfax](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/shadowfax/32/13026_2.png) [@shadowfax](https://community.cartalk.com/u/shadowfax)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 8:40pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/21 "2015-02-11T20:40:34Z")
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Rolls-Royce_Silver_Ghost_at_Centenary.jpg) I’ll take that Ghost, please… ---
**Author:** ![Rod-Knox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a183cd/32.png) [@Rod-Knox](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Rod-Knox)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 10:48pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/22 "2015-02-11T22:48:02Z")
I spent a few hours working on pre-WW II Rolls Royces and found that their greatest claim to fame was reduncancy of critical components and overbuilding/understressing components. And the chaufer was apparently a well trained maintenance mechanic. That’s a beautiful car @shadowfax. I’m sure that only the .01% could have afforded one. I wonder how it survived the war years. ---
**Author:** ![shadowfax](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/shadowfax/32/13026_2.png) [@shadowfax](https://community.cartalk.com/u/shadowfax)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 11:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/23 "2015-02-11T23:11:50Z")
@“Rod Knox” only the .01% can afford it now 😉 It’s worth 35 million, which would no doubt horrify our article writer. > I wonder how it survived the war years. Especially since it was in Italy during both World Wars. It was originally a press car in 1907, and after the year long press tour, RR sold it to a guy who only used it once a year when he vacationed in Italy. RR got it back in '48. I imagine someone who could afford that thing probably had it garaged at some countryside estate that was not anywhere near the actual fighting, but it’s still pretty lucky that it made it through. Twice. ---
**Author:** ![insightful](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/insightful/32/2732_2.png) [@insightful](https://community.cartalk.com/u/insightful)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 4:12am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/24 "2015-02-12T04:12:56Z")
Gotta love those wood spoke wheels… ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 9:38am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/25 "2015-02-12T09:38:31Z")
Yes, that Ghost would look great in my imaginary stable. ---
**Author:** ![MarkM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@MarkM](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkM)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 2:19pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/26 "2015-02-12T14:19:40Z")
Yes, that Ghost would do, though for some reason I immediately thought of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Not that the car looks much like it, but it’s of the same era and both have that silvery sheen. I prefer my vintage cars in darker colors, especially deep reds and greens, but this Ghost does look quite splendid. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 9:42pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/27 "2015-02-12T21:42:47Z")
Ah, but the car’s full model name is actually “Silver Ghost”. It wouldn’t be right in any color but silver. ---
**Author:** ![shadowfax](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/shadowfax/32/13026_2.png) [@shadowfax](https://community.cartalk.com/u/shadowfax)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2015, 10:40pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/28 "2015-02-12T22:40:01Z")
Originally it was just the Ghost. The Silver Ghost was that one specific car in the picture. But the press got confused and called all of that model line Silver Ghosts, which RR resisted for years until they finally gave in. So you can now get Silver Ghosts in non-silver colors. There’s one that’s burgundy with gold accents that looks just fantastic. I guess “Burgundy Ghost” doesn’t have the same ring to it. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![MarkM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@MarkM](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkM)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2015, 11:31am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/29 "2015-02-13T11:31:05Z")
Burgundy with gold accents… Sigh… I would love that one madly. At the San Francisco Auto Show Academy of Art University (yup, its real name) brings thirty or so cars from its world class collection. I can never decide on a favorite. It’s mostly cars from the twenties and thirties, though it has a fair number of the rarest newer cars. Ferrari and such. From the collection it appears a private art college (family owned) can be quite lucrative. They have an auto design major in their industrial design program. They claim the collection to be examples of good design to be studied by their students. I would have loved to major in gazing lovingly at old cars. ---
**Author:** ![shadowfax](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/shadowfax/32/13026_2.png) [@shadowfax](https://community.cartalk.com/u/shadowfax)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2015, 9:04pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/30 "2015-02-13T21:04:56Z")
> Burgundy with gold accents... Sigh... I would love that one madly. I bet you would! I would too. ---
**Author:** ![MarkM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@MarkM](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkM)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2015, 6:06am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/31 "2015-02-14T06:06:26Z")
Love the red pin striping. Makes the panels look so sharp. I prefer cars a little newer than this, but I’ll make an exception for this especially beautiful example. ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2015, 8:26pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/32 "2015-02-14T20:26:13Z")
No offense meant, but the burgundy Rolls Royce reminds me of the Munster Koach. The Munster Koach was cobbled together from 3 Model Ts, but Barris’s final product does remind me of this Rolls. Maybe he used it as a model for his creation. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2015, 9:55pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/33 "2015-02-14T21:55:11Z")
I like the Munster Koach. IMHO it’s one of the coolest hot rods ever made. ---
**Author:** ![MarkM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@MarkM](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkM)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2015, 6:48am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982/34 "2015-02-15T06:48:32Z")
Yeah, Munster Koach! Much cooler than that Chitty Chitty Bang Bang car. [Previous page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/mercedes-revives-the-concept-of-wretched-excess/88982.md?page=1)