1975 450SL - Charity Case

My wife has been lobbying me for an R107 for at least 10 years.  A friend was selling a pretty clean 560SL last spring and offered me a buddy-price of $12k or so (he later sold it on BaT for $13).  I brought it home so my wife could see it and just hated it.  Floaty, imprecise, lazy.  I was completely sure my wife would hate it too (she drives a '91 318is and has never owned a car with an automatic) but she LOVED it.  

Fortunately for me, I found a bit of previously unnoticed rust that allowed me to wave it off.    Normally I wouldn't have a strong opinion - it's for her, afterall - but I just can't see past the potential pain of learning the ins/outs of a 30yo MB.

Currently, I have her interested in a Fiat 500 Abarth Cabrio but I fear the return of MB-lust so I'll be tuning in.

Wally said:

In reply to yupididit :

That dark pre-internet time was when Chevy swaps were common to get rid of pesky European fuel injection.  All we understood when something went wrong was put a carb on it.  If you did try to fix the injection you’d have to go to the dealer’s parts counter and have some wormy little guy tell you that you probably weren’t smart enough to understand what you were doing anyway.

That and the parts counter guy wanted serial numbers of everything to ensure you had a legal justification to fix the car.   They made it as difficult as possible so non dealership people wouldn’t try to do repair work. 

In reply to frenchyd :

A friend’s father had a gray market car and the local dealer wouldn’t touch it.  Everything had to come through M-B of Manhattan.

stuart in mn said:

frenchyd said:

In reply to TacoTuesday : I’ve seen two of those in track ready condition. They really have an elegant look to them and apparently it’s not that hard to put a manual transmission in them. One was a euro spec car with a ZF  and the other had a T5 adapted.  

The Euro spec guy raced his in autocross while the T5 guy was planning on wheel to wheel  with his local club  

 

I remember seeing Doc Bundy racing a 450SL in SCCA GT-1 at Brainerd back in the late 1970s.

That’s right!  OK now I’ve seen three track ready 450SL cars!!! 

Nice! 

get the hood, roof and trunk repainted and cruise around like a a thrice-divorced Realtor.

not every car has to be a Rally Bomb. JMHO

Agent98 said:

Nice! 

get the hood, roof and trunk repainted and cruise around like a a thrice-divorced Realtor.

not every car has to be a Rally Bomb. JMHO

I like to race cars.  There is real value in expensive complex cars that depreciate quickly while retaining solid mechanical value.  

You can race much faster in a Mercedes, Jaguar, or BMW for less money than a Miata. 

Much of the heavy complex stuff goes away when you race prep one of those cars. A thousand pound difference in before and after weight is common. That part doesn’t cost anything, in fact it can generate some cash by selling off unneeded pieces.  Then all you need to do is trim the springs to lower the car back down and put suitable tires on it.  

When it comes to handling. Those expensive luxury cars treated as mentioned become just bigger more powerful Miata’s. 

Then all it becomes is your choice. Would you like a 2000 pound 130 hp car or a 3000 pound 300 horsepower car?  

Then all it becomes is your choice. Would you like a 2000 pound 130 hp car or a 3000 pound 300 horsepower car? 

Great minds think alike. Is why I shall never sell my LS1 Firebird...

Actually inspired idea, (better watch out for the 450SLCart, FloridaGator! ) I will gladly follow along and see where you remove 1000 lb out of one of these cars and what you had to do to get there.

100 lbs top, 100 lbs bumpers, 200 lbs HVAC+ interior, lighter wheels 100 lbs, -that's 1/2 to your target, at least.

Very educational! Carry on, Sir....

1000lbs off a r107 I'd like to see that. Or off a w116 or w126 even.  W140 I'd believe that. 

A few years back, I was seriously considering one of these as a track rat. Putting a cage in a convertible is so much easier than a sedan, but having a good hardtop to keep the water and mice out is a nice option.

Everybody used to want gray market cars for the added power, but I actually wish that they sold the Euro 230SL with the in-line six over here. I think that car would have some potential, along with being a bit simpler. 

It seems like there’s been at least one cheap ratty Mercedes SL at every auction that I’ve ever been to. I bet there are enough out there that we could have a Spec SL series. 

How about a Mercedes SL class for the $20xx Challenge?

Woody said:

It seems like there’s been at least one cheap ratty Mercedes SL at every auction that I’ve ever been to. I bet there are enough out there that we could have a Spec SL series. 

How about a Mercedes SL class for the $20xx Challenge?

What an amazing idea. Keeping that budget spoils be this biggest challenge lol. Would r129's and SLK's count?  Lol

Agent98 said:

Then all it becomes is your choice. Would you like a 2000 pound 130 hp car or a 3000 pound 300 horsepower car? 

Great minds think alike. Is why I shall never sell my LS1 Firebird...

Actually inspired idea, (better watch out for the 450SLCart, FloridaGator! ) I will gladly follow along and see where you remove 1000 lb out of one of these cars and what you had to do to get there.

100 lbs top, 100 lbs bumpers, 200 lbs HVAC+ interior, lighter wheels 100 lbs, -that's 1/2 to your target, at least.

Very educational! Carry on, Sir....

I’ve done it already. When I built my Chumpcar turbo Jaguar XJS. They start out at 4200 pounds and  I got it down to 3000 pounds before selling it.   

Not anything you’d like to daily drive  unless you like to be abused. But I know there is another 3-500 pounds waiting to be removed 

Woody said:

It seems like there’s been at least one cheap ratty Mercedes SL at every auction that I’ve ever been to. I bet there are enough out there that we could have a Spec SL series. 

How about a Mercedes SL class for the $20xx Challenge?

Let’s include the Jaguar XJS and the BMW  equivalent 

stuart in mn said:

It looks pretty solid from here.  I like the color.

 

I'd go more for the look of the Mercedes that Wheeler Dealers fixed up a couple seasons ago:

The car is parked at the corner of W Magnolia and Catalina in Burbank,  Home of...................

Autobooks-Aerobooks!

In reply to Jerry From LA :

I made some really silly excuses to drive to Burbank on weekends. Ah I miss southern California.