Selecting gears in Schuco’s little Mercedes

A key supplies the power, but the gear lever decides what happens next. Schuco’s Girato 4000 Mercedes-Benz 250 SE lets its driver select forward motion, reverse or neutral, rather than simply releasing a wound-up car across the floor.

The little convertible also has steering and a handbrake. Its doors open and the front seat backs fold forward: controls and fittings to try before the next run. The box calls it a Schaltauto, a car with gear shifting.

Our museum example is white and cream, with a brown folded roof and a pale interior. The key is still with it, alongside the illustrated box. Photographs from above show how much of the cabin is accessible through the open roof.

A missing key is easy to notice. With a model like this, checking the gear selector and steering matters just as much as checking whether the motor winds.