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1976 Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL Sbarro Gullwing Coupe – Click above for high-res image gallery

Franco Sbarro apparently had a lot of orders for these wide-bodied modern gullwings back in the late ’70s. According to the eBay listing, Sbarro made 28 Gullwing Coupes in total, most based on a two-door chassis with either a naturally-aspirated or twin-turbo 5.0-liter V8.

The car you see before you, however, is among the rarest of these rare supercoupes. It’s based on a four-door 1976 Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL 6.9 chassis. Apparently one of six built for the new wife of an Arab prince, this car spent part of its life in the hands of an NBA star. (Shocker, we know.)

The custom gullwing doors look more than a little heavy and cumbersome, and must have taken weeks of careful figuring to get right. The details, however, are what really set this car apart. For starters, it’s been updated with chrome 20-inch Giovannas, to make add a contemporary to its bling. Then there’s the original-equipment Sbarro horizontal ‘phantom’ bar grille hiding the big Benz’s stock headlamps and marker lights.

Top all that off with a set of ridiculously-wide fender flares and a lowered roofline, and you have a delicious recipe for 1970s-style excess. The price for all this exclusivity and opulence? The “Buy It Now” option lists $49,995. Thanks for the tip, Csaba!

Gallery: 1976 Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL Sbarro Gullwing

1976 Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL Sbarro Gullwing front 3.4

[Source: eBay Motors]

eBay Find of the Day: 1976 Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL 6.9 Sbarro Gullwing is an eyepopper originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 13 Mar 2011 19:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Truck, Work, Ford, Reviews, Diesel

Industry Giant Still Working Hard to Stay Ahead

2011 Ford F-450 Lariat – Click above for high-res image gallery

Ask any economics professor – competition is a good thing. Exhibit A? The large pickup truck market. Ford F-Series trucks have been the number-one selling vehicle line in the United States for more than three decades, but the automaker has never grown complacent. Each new iteration has been bigger, badder and more capable than its predecessor, and that goes twofold for Dearborn’s heavy-duty models.

Despite the fact that Toyota and Nissan never followed up their light-duty trucks with three-quarter or one-ton models, just the threat of such entries spurred Ford, General Motors and Dodge to significantly up their games. In the first half of 2010, the Detroit Three have introduced revamped heavy-duty pickups to feed a segment that, while shrinking, remains large and highly profitable. With that in mind, we saddled up to the Big Daddy of the F-Series range, the F-450, to see if the behemoth could play the dual roles of load-lugger and daily ride. Click through the jump to see how we fared.

Gallery: Review: 2011 Ford F-450 Lariat