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1989 Mercedes-Benz 560SL

Being a child of the eighties, maybe I’m biased, but I think this was a fantastic period in time for automobiles. Technology was slowly creeping into the vehicle equation, but not to the point that the driving experience was diluted. Cars were safer than ever before, as well, with features such as airbags and anti-lock brakes available on some higher end models. Such is the case with this 1989 560SL, the final year for what was one of the longest surviving models in Mercedes-Benz history.

1989 Mercedes-Benz 560SL on eBay

This elegant 1989 Mercedes-Benz 560SL is truly a rare find considering the extremely low miles, well maintained conditon and rare burgundy color that stand out among others. The owner of this car bought it several years ago from a Merecedes-Benz dealer as his dream car and has treated it as such. The black convertible top is in very good condition along with the plastic windows showing no signs of fade or scratches. This beauty also comes along with the matching hardtop and stand. With just over 29,000 pampered miles, this car has been well maintained both mechanically and cosmetically.

Cabernet Red is one of my favorite R107 colors. It’s a lot more visually arresting than your typical silver, white or black, but not as brash as red or some of the wild 1970s colors. Having driven a few R107s in my day, I truly love these cars. They aren’t the quickest cars out there, and their handling is soft, but they do everything remarkably well for a 23 year old car. The asking price of almost $30,000 is about the top of the range when it comes to 560SL values. While this is certainly a nice example, I think we’re probably looking at more realistic price of around $22,000 to $25,000 at best.

-Paul

5 Comments

  1. Sam
    Sam August 16, 2012

    Paul, you’re spot on about cars of the ’80s. It was a time when auto manufacturers, especially those in Europe and Japan, had mastered the art of crafting cars that were efficient, durable AND fun to drive. It was the last mechanical era, before the complete takeover of all-electronically controlled systems. For example, Honda’s four-wheel steering system on the 1988-1991Prelude was entirely mechanical, and therefore easy and inexpensive to fix and essentially good to go forever.

    Color and condition are the best aspects of this piece. But I agree about the price. $30k is absurd. On the basis alone that it was replaced by a much better looking and overall much better car, the R129. And that it is U.S.-spec. And that pristine examples are being unloaded every day by the estates of wealthy people all over. I wish free market principles applied to used car sales. Prices of pre-owned examples be forced down when there are seemingly so many to choose from.

  2. KevinR
    KevinR August 16, 2012

    It really all depends on the buyer and what they want. If you’ve always lusted after a 107 SL, then this is probably the one for you. There aren’t going to be many more low mile, last model year examples that look better than this one.

    However, if what you want is a Mercedes SL that is reliable, fun to drive and not much of a hassle, you can do much better with a 129 SL. The top mechanism is much more user friendly, the cars handle better and they have more creature comforts. And, it will be cheaper than the asking price on this car.

  3. Larry
    Larry August 16, 2012

    Agree entirely on the color on the color, Paul. It’s absolutely gorgeous. The car looks to be in excellent condition as well, making this one very appealing SL.

    I also completely understand the 80’s nostalgia thing. I was there too, and yes, an R107 560SL was *the* car to show people that you’ve made it.

    But, at some point, common sense has to creep into the picture. At the seller’s BIN price, forget the R129’s – you can easily buy an early R230 with similarly low mileage. Yes, the R230 is all kinds of complex compared to the R107, but it’s also much more capable.

    While Cabernet Red may be uncommon (and beautiful), low-mileage R107’s aren’t. If I do need to scratch that 80’s SL itch, I couldn’t justify nearly doubling my spend for this one.

  4. Larry
    Larry August 16, 2012

    Agree entirely on the color, Paul. It’s absolutely gorgeous. The car looks to be in excellent condition as well, making this one very appealing SL.

    I also completely understand the 80’s nostalgia thing. I was there too, and yes, an R107 560SL was *the* car to show people that you’ve made it.

    But, at some point, common sense has to creep into the picture. At the seller’s BIN price, forget the R129’s – you can easily buy an early R230 with similarly low mileage. Yes, the R230 is all kinds of complex compared to the R107, but it’s also much more capable.

    While Cabernet Red may be uncommon (and beautiful), low-mileage R107’s aren’t. If I do need to scratch that 80’s SL itch, I couldn’t justify nearly doubling my spend for this one.

  5. Larry
    Larry August 16, 2012

    Sorry about the double (now triple) post. Don’t know what happened. GCFSB needs an edit/delete feature for the comments!

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