Wind in the hair. Timeless styling. Heirloom build quality. Room for just two.
From 1963 all the way up through 1989, Mercedes-Benz offered a pair of roadsters that perfectly fit that bill.
Wind in the hair. Timeless styling. Heirloom build quality. Room for just two.
From 1963 all the way up through 1989, Mercedes-Benz offered a pair of roadsters that perfectly fit that bill.
The 190s were heavy and underpowered.
The 230s were nice touring cars.
The later versions like the 450s (made until 1980) are also heavy - both in weight and on gas, but are very civilized touring cars especially if you have both soft and hard tops. Not huge power - 220-240 bhp and somewhat heavy (around 3300 lbs., although that looks pretty good today when 2 seater 4 cylinder models can top 4000 lbs.)
Frankly I'd rather own a Mk 2 Jaguar sedan (that I'd had rustproofed).
To my knowledge the last SL that had a 4 cyl was the 190. 230's had a six this side of the Atlantic. They were, and are, beautiful machines. Watch for rust.
Robool: What he said.
Years back I had occasion to look at a well used 230SL that was offered for sale. I was impressed with the almost 360 degree visibility from the driver's seat with the hardtop on. I was not impressed with the partial view of the ground directly below the driver's feet. Looked great from a distance, but I hope whoever bought it liked to weld...
All W113 SL's world wide were built with six cylinder engines, not four as the article claims. As mentioned above, the only one with a four was the porky 190SL.
To me, the only downside to a W113 is the high price, they are absolutely delightful to drive.
My choice was an early 450SL. I searched for and found a slightly wrecked '73. It had the exact combination I wanted: the trim "euro" style bumpers, power windows, blue with dark blue leather seats. After a five year restoration, it's stunning, and drives beautifully.
NEITHER!!!
Where we live in the upper Midwest there is only one choice for top down driving in a limited warm weather season - the SLK series!!!!!
None of the above. My 1990 300SL with the twin cam motor and 5 speed manual. Even an overweight car is fun with a stick and 6500 RPM redline. The mercedes version of vtec works and that motor was a joy at 6K.
I described that event as "the best day I ever had at work."
Or maybe that was just the 1957 300SL that capped off my drive.
I was covering Pebble for "The Star," the Mercedes club publication, and had the joy of piloting ralph Wagenknecht along 17-Mile Drive. It brought memories of "With Moss in the Mille Miglia," which I read for the first time at about age eight.
Definitely worth meeting that particular hero.
In reply to Automobilist :
That's the same color combination as my mom's much-loved, direct-import 1982 280SL (which did have the twin-cam 2.8L six). Wonderful car to drive. And even the Euro bumpers!
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