1937 Mercedes-Benz 320 (Indiana Jones Car)

Imagine the look on your Insurance Broker’s face—or your friends’—when the picture you post of your “new car” turns out to be a production still—or DVD—from the historic action adventure film “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” the 1981 Steven Spielberg action-adventure classic seen by millions worldwide (with a lifetime WW gross of $389,925,971 USD). This is the same sleek black staff car—carrying Belloq, Toht and Nazi Colonel Dietrich—which is repeatedly forced from the road as Indiana Jones struggles desperately to overtake and control A Cairo-bound Mercedes Benz Cargo Truck carrying the Ark of the Covenant.

This 1937 Mercedes-Benz 320 is one of the two cars used in filming the Raiders of the Lost Ark. It was made famous in the “Truck Chase” scene in the deserts of Egypt.

This car is a mockup of a vintage 1937 Mercedes, built on the chassis of a 1960 Jaguar Mark IX with a Jaguar engine. The vehicle was built by Leaping Cats Coventry of England to be able to reach 120 miles per hour and hand the demands of a chase scene.

Classic Cars of Coventry was commissioned to create several period vehicles for the landmark classic—including the MB Cargo truck carrying the Ark. (Extensive ownership and service records come with the vehicle.)  Fashioned from a Jaguar MK9 with a modified Jaguar MK5 body, this documented “hero” car was reportedly one of two created by the automotive property maker and is the subject of extensive online coverage and attention. Miniatures of this, the similarly commissioned Cargo Truck, and others have generated model collectibles which are highly coveted and sold/traded to this day. In 1982, ROTLA was nominated for eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture, of which it won four (Best Sound, Best Film Editing, Best Visual Effects, and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration).] In 2012, the film received a restored, high-definition home video release as part of “Indiana Jones: The Complete Adventures.”

The car was used for stunts in the sequence described above—and survives in remarkably good condition.