The Mercedes-Benz 180 (W120) came out in 1953 as the first "Ponton" model. The name came from the pontoon-style fenders built into the body, which broke with the pre-war separate wings. It was also the first Mercedes passenger car with a unibody. This gave more interior space, safety and comfort than the earlier 170. The 180 first had a 1.8-litre side-valve four-cylinder engine; overhead-valve engines and diesels came later. It set the pattern for the modern mid-size Mercedes saloon. It was built until 1962, alongside the larger six-cylinder Pontons. It helped restore the company's reputation for solid, well-engineered saloons. The Ponton generation is seen as an important step toward the more technically advanced Mercedes-Benz cars that followed.
The original Ponton saloon that modernised the postwar range.
73years
8trims
39–67hp range
The Story
Why the 180 (W120) mattersTrims
8 trims · 1953–1962The W120 180, launched in 1953, was the first of the "Ponton" Mercedes-Benz models and the marque's first unibody passenger car, a landmark structural advance over the separate-chassis 170. Its integrated pontoon fenders gave a cleaner, more modern silhouette and freed up interior space. Powered initially by a 1.8-litre four-cylinder, with overhead-valve and diesel units following, it re-established Mercedes' core mid-size saloon after the war. Produced until 1962, the 180 laid the foundation for the technically advanced saloons that succeeded it.