Mercedes-Benz produced 419 examples of the 540K.
The 540K was a luxurious grand touring car built from 1936 to 1940, using the W29 chassis. It evolved from the 500K and combined a 5.4-liter supercharged straight-eight engine with sophisticated engineering and coachbuilt bodywork. Buyers could order several body styles, including roadsters, cabriolets, coupés and large touring cars.
The figure of 419 refers to the 540K model itself, not to the combined 500K-and-540K family. Mercedes-Benz produced 342 examples of the 500K and 419 examples of the 540K, for a total of 761 cars across the two related models. That distinction explains why larger figures sometimes appear in summaries of the W29 range.
Production took place at Sindelfingen, where Mercedes-Benz supplied chassis and built many bodies, although some customers commissioned specialized coachwork. The 540K was offered in standard and longer-wheelbase forms, including the especially imposing Special Roadster. Its rarity, engineering and hand-finished bodies have made surviving cars highly prized by collectors.
The model is also sometimes associated with wartime armored cars, but those later special-bodied vehicles should not be confused with the normal 540K production count.