Soccer legend Pele’s car discovered with shockingly low mileage after 30 years abandoned
- The 1960s Mercedes sat gathering dust in a garage for roughly 30 years
- Soccer legend Pele was almost arrested for speeding while driving the 250 CE
- The double-bumpers denote this 250 CE as a pre-1973 facelift model
Published on Jan 27, 2025 at 4:00 AM (UTC+4)
by Editorial Guest
Last updated on Jan 22, 2025 at 10:05 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
A classic, ultra-low mileage Mercedes-Benz 250 CE that once belonged to legendary Brazilian soccer player Pele has been discovered with incredibly low mileage.
The German coupe had allegedly been abandoned in a garage since the early 1990s.
It’s unclear why Pele left the Mercedes in a storage facility, but it was now getting a makeover and restoration.
Remarkably, this late 1960s/early 1970s classic had done just 5,000 miles in its entire lifetime, making this 250 CE virtually brand new.
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Pele Was Almost Arrested Speeding In This Mercedes 250 CE
Remarkably, the YouTuber – real name Vagner Moleiro – reveals that the Mercedes 250 CE’s current owner says Pele was almost arrested for speeding while driving it.
This could potentially have contributed to the Brazilian soccer legend parking up the coupe and allowing it to become covered in a thick layer of dirt and dust.
To start, the detailer went in with a biodegradable shampoo to pre-wash the car remove the top layer of dirt.
This acts as a neutral product, cleaning the Mercedes while also doing no damage to the car’s paintwork.
The YouTuber revealed he would charge just $300 to deep clean the 250 CE, which seems like a bargain for a car that once belonged to Pele.
Deep-cleaning the 250 CE reveals its well-preserved paintwork
As the cleaning process continued, the dirt easily rolled off the classic Mercedes.
Once removed, we could see the incredible condition this Mercedes 250 CE really was in.
The coupe’s paintwork survived remarkably well, which was probably due to the fact that the car had been in undercover storage for thirty years or so.
Percepcar USA was also able to fully clean and restore the 250 CE’s original wheels, which had been with the car ever since Pele first purchased it.
The interior also got a deep clean, showing how immaculate the leather still was even after 30 years in storage.
Following its restoration, the current owner said they planned to sell Pele’s old 250 CE for around $40,000.
The 250 CE, or the W114, was in production from 1968 to 1976.
The double front bumpers and smaller grille denote that Pele’s 250 CE came before the facelifted model arrived in 1973.
