- The iconic 600 Pullman has also been owned by The Supremes’ Mary Wilson
- Rare car is one of only 39 right-hand drive, four-door Pullmans ever produced
- It is going under the hammer with supercar dealer Tom Hartley Jnr
A rare Mercedes that has been owned by Beatles legends John Lennon and George Harrison is going under the hammer for an undisclosed six-figure sum.
The star-studded 600 Pullman was bought by Lennon in 1970. However, the car has also been owned by The Supremes’ Mary Wilson.
The rare car is one of only 39 right-hand drive, four-door Pullmans ever produced.
It was fully restored at the Mercedes-Benz factory by its previous owner and is now being sold by supercar dealer Tom Hartley Jnr.
Its rear cabin is decked out in Mercedes’ iconic polished wood and leather decor and includes four luxury seats which face one another.
As well as John Lennon, the car has also been owned by his bandmate George Harrison and The Supremes’ Mary Wilson
The car was purchased by the current owner, a UK collector and philanthropist, in 2007
Lennon ordered the new 600 Pullman in late 1969 and opted to add some musical extras including a Blaupunkt radio, Pioneer tape recorder and a Philips-Mignon record player as well as a number of loudspeakers to create an impressive sound system.
He also requested partition glass between the driver and passenger compartments, flexible reading lights in the rear and thicker padding on the driver’s seat cushion.
The original logbook shows it was registered in Lennon’s name on February 19, 1970.
It was a regular choice of transport for Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono and they were photographed getting out of the car at the launch of Ono’s book Grapefruit in July 1971.
However, he did not have the car long, when he and his family moved to the United States he sold it to fellow Beatles star Harrison.
Car enthusiast Harrison had owned another 600 Pullman in the 1960s before he bought this one off Lennon. That car sold at auction in 2021 for £145,000.
The cars rear cabin is decked out in Mercedes’ iconic polished wood and leather decor
Lennon ordered the new 600 Pullman in late 1969 and opted to add some musical extras including a Blaupunkt radio
He kept this Pullman at his Oxfordshire home and in 1975 Mary Wilson and her husband Pedro Ferrer were invited for dinner. Harrison gave them a tour of the property, which included showing them this car.
The couple were impressed and Wilson wrote in her biography that when they saw the Pullman they decided they simply had to have it.
The Motown star used the Pullman for touring in both the US and the UK, and was pictured with it several times.
She owned it until it was sold at Christie’s in 1989, when it was purchased by Jarmo Hellas of the International Pullman Group.
He sent it back to the Mercedes-Benz factory for a full restoration, with the car stripped down and overhauled.
It was purchased by the current owner, a UK collector and philanthropist, in 2007.
A spokesman for Tom Hartley Jnr said: ‘Chassis 001580 is one of the rare right-hand drive, four-door 600 Pullmans and it is surely the most important 600 ever built.
The car is on sale for a six-figure sum with supercar dealer Tom Hartley Jnr
The car was fully restored at the Mercedes-Benz factory by its previous owner
‘It was ordered and owned new by music legend and cultural icon John Lennon and was equipped with a whole host of extras befitting one of the greatest music stars of all time.
‘While many Pullmans were furnished with trivial items such as a bar, John Lennon opted for extras that helped provide a haven for his creativity and allowed him to enjoy a variety of music.
‘Chassis 001580 would be a very fine car in its own right, being a rare right-hand drive four-door 600 Pullman that presents exceptionally well throughout following its restoration by Mercedes-Benz.
‘However, when you consider its first three owners, all from true music royalty, and the first owner being an icon of the 20th century, it should then really not only be viewed as an important car, but also a unique opportunity to purchase a very special piece of history.’
They added: ‘We are super pleased to have been the ones to have brought this car to the market, there cannot be any other car anywhere in the world that boasts such rock star pedigree.’
