There’s always talk about classic cars suddenly getting out of reach for us mere mortals, but dig down a bit into a manufacturer’s portfolio and there are still a few cars out there to be had on a shoestring budget without requiring massive amounts of expensive restoration work or mechanical fixes. Case in point the Mercedes-Benz W114 Coupe. There’s been a lot of discussion on the Benz forums as to why these particular Mercedes are cheap, especially since they were the first all-new chassis to appear post World War II. Perhaps the appearance was a bit staid and levels of luxury were down a bit in comparison to the contemporary S class. Maybe it was the carbonation problems that some owners of petrol engined examples experienced. Finding a good classic Mercedes that is in good running shape is not easy when your budget is under $10,000 these days, especially when it comes to a coupe. This 280C for sale in Georgia, though, fits the profile.
Click for more details: 1973 Mercedes-Benz 280C on eBay
Year: 1973
Model: 280C
Engine: 2.8 liter inline-6
Transmission: 4-speed automatic
Mileage: 130,000 mi
Price: $7,950 Buy It Now
1973 Mercedes Benz 280c Coupe – W114.073 – only 4,924 of these vehicles were made.
I have a 1973 Mercedes 280c for sale. The car overall is in amazing condition. Running and Driving daily. The car was purchased in California and lived in Oregon most of it’s life – garaged. The car has been on the East Coast for about a year and a half. I will breakdown everything I know about the car.
Exterior – The car was repainted in the last 5 years. The paint shines and looks great. It was painted a cream color which differs from the factory color. The door jams were not painted. It does have some chips on the hood from highway driving with small surface rust and a few in other places on the car. Nothing major. The car has some dings and a few minor dents with two small ones on the passenger door and one on driver fender. These are small dents from parking lots and close garage quarters. The car is missing one piece of stainless on the driver side behind the rear window. One piece of stainless on the rear on the trunk lip needs holder replaced it’s starting to come off a little. The passenger tail light has a small crack in the plastic. The car is almost completely rust free aside from the small surface rust spots from chipped paint and a little surface rust in the trunk – No through rust anywhere and the floors, rockers and fenders of this car are solid as a rock. The typical rust you find in these cars is not there. It’s really amazing. The stainless and chrome all shine nicely and have only very minor imperfections. The car has a brand new set of Michelin tires on it. Less than 500 miles on them.
Interior – The interior is original and in overall amazing condition. The seats are in great condition with only a small tear on the driver seat but it’s on the side (can be seen in photo). The dash is in excellent condition with normal cracking of wood varnish. The dash has one small crack in the center seam as most do and it’s hardly noticeable. I have a brand new dash pad in the box that will go with the car. The original radio works. The door panels are in very good condition with the driver side missing the map holder – I have it but it has a crack in it. The headliner is excellent condition. The carpet is great shape overall – Under the drivers feet the plastic insert has worn off but the car has the factory floor mat inserts and the are in great shape. All the power windows roll up and down.
Mechanics – The car runs and drives well. I drive the car daily and it’s a beautiful cruising car. The car starts every time. It idles well and runs at temp. Shifts like a Mercedes. I would drive this car several hundred miles no problem. It has been taken back and fourth to South Carolina several times. The car leaks a small amount of oil – nothing major just leaks a little oil from the pan.
**The car needs a few minor things as it is a 41 year old car in mostly original condition.
*The #7 fuses blows when you turn on the headlights. It controls the running lights for the right hand side of the car and the dash lights. So the right hand running lights and the dash lights do not work. The brake lights, turn signals and headlights all work fine. There is a short somewhere that I haven’t been able to track down.
*The speedometer sticks a various speeds. I have a complete new speedometer unit. This has also caused the odometer to stop working properly.
*The A/C was removed by the previous owner – I have all of the components and the dryer and lines are still in place. The heater on the car works and blows hot.All and all this is an amazing example of a very collectable car. Please email with any question and I can provide more photos of anything needed. Thanks –
I have an open Title to the car from Oregon and I will sell it with a BILL of Sale as required by the State of Georgia.
Upon reviewing this car, it was just a bit too nice to include it for our Heap of the Week segment. Sure, it could use some refinement around the edges, but fix a few of the mechanical issues and this would make an excellent practical classic. I always bang on about it, but these classic Benzes were way ahead of their time in terms of drivability, putting them on par with more modern machinery. The price is right on this one, just being a little bit under a condition 3 car as described by Hagerty. With some fettling, the resourceful buyer could take this one from good to great.
-Paul
