This beautiful Mercedes-Benz was one of the most innovative cars of the 1970s

One of the most amazing Mercedes-Benzes ever engineered is one you've probably never heard of.

When you think of iconic Mercedes-Benzes from the late '60s or early '70s, cars like the 600 Pullman or maybe the 300 SEL 6.3 likely come to mind.

What we have here is the C 111. It's a crazy looking, super-sleek, gullwinged, rotary-powered test car project that Mercedes-Benz began developing in 1967.

The C 111 was originally built so that Mercedes could learn more about different up and coming car innovations. Specifically, glass-fiber-reinforced plastic materials used for use in exterior body panels and also also the then-newish rotary-style engine. 

At least that's how it started.