Totally forgotten and by many - also by 'connoisseurs' of the brand, who often see such a thing as a 'self-build' -, the Mercedes-Benz Universal based on the 190 and 190D 'Heckflosse'. A creation shot from the brain of the Belgian bodybuilder Jos Vermeersch.
He did that again on behalf of the Belgian Mercedes-Benz importer IMA BV. They had previously converted a Benz into a station wagon. Based on the 180 and 180D 'Ponton'. Between 1958 and 1961 they repeated the trick about 125 times. A prototype was built on the basis of the 190 and, just like what happened with the 180 'Ponton', sent to Mercedes-Benz in Stuttgart to work with the manufacturer to arrive at the final model. The green light was given in the first week of January 1965; on 20 January of the same year, the Universal was on display at the Brussels Motor Show. A year later, the Universal was introduced based on the 230S six-cylinder engine. This model cannot be called a huge success for a mass producer, but it can be called a relatively small bodybuilder. 2.754 units were built in total, of which only 36 units based on the 230S. It would be years before Mercedes-Benz itself launched an Estate. And that became a huge success! We are curious whether an original Universal can be found in the Netherlands.