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There area bunch of oxymorons in the automotive world. Reliable Fiat. Quality Maserati. Leak-free Land Rover. Inexpensive Porsche. Today, we have another one to add to the list: Restored G-Wagen.
Long before the housewives of the world used the G-Wagen as a grocery-getter and mall crawler, this box on wheels was a utilitarian masterpiece. It was meant to be used and abused, and for the first 21 years of production, they basically were. Then in 1990 when the W463 rolled onto the scene, they got very posh, very fast. However, if you still want that utilitarian experience, there are plenty of them out there. To no one’s surprise, people like to have their cake and eat it too. They want old, but they also want comfortable and luxury. That is exactly what this 1991 G230 is. Someone actually went through the trouble and expense of restoring a G-Wagen with a naturally-aspirated four cylinder that made 123 horsepower when new. I guess that is all you need when the speed limit on Nantucket is only 25 mph.
The words “Q-Ship” and “Sleeper” get tossed around a lot when describing the super-performing sedans, coupes and wagons from Audi, Mercedes-Benz and BMW – but truth be told, virtually any enthusiast and most non-enthusiasts can spot a high performance model a mile away. We have to go really pretty far back to find examples that were true sleepers – models where it was only the number of tail pipes, subtly wider wheels, or maybe one single badge that hinted at their greater performance. There were no extra gills, bulges, flared fenders, red trim, flashy colored brake calipers and 22″ wheels with 375 section tires. For models like the 450SEL 6.9, you had to know what you were looking at to fully appreciate the performance. But even as we got towards the E28 M5, manufacturers were slapping badges, lowered suspensions, spoilers and special trim to help set their client’s substantial investments apart. In the vein of the 450SEL 6.9, though, Volkswagen launched a discrete performance sedan – a true sleeper – in the Passat W8.
A few weeks ago I took a look at a 1993 Mercedes-Benz 500SEC that needed some help to say the least. Thankfully it looks like it sold a few days ago for a low sum of $4,600 and maybe is on its way to a new life. Honestly, I wouldn’t bet on it given how expensive it would be to refurbish the car. Today, I’d thought I’d look at another C140 that looks like it doesn’t need much, if anything at all. This CL500 up for sale in the Los Angeles area is a rare 1999 model, the last year the C140 was in production. Mercedes really cut back on the C140 for the 1999 model year – production was just under 1,500 for the entire world. Word is, only around 125 of them made it to the U.S. in both CL500 and CL600 guise. Needless to say, a rare bird. The good news is this example has just over 100,000 miles on it and looks like it has about half of that. The better news, it isn’t as expensive as you might of thought.
In terms of ‘Classic Mercedes-Benz’, the W111 Coupe is near the top. Rightfully so, as it is a product of Frenchman Paul Bracq who was also responsible for the Pagoda, 600, and even some other iconic cars at BMW, Citroën, and Peugeot. It’s as every bit as elegant and stunning as anything that rolled out of the factory in Crewe, England at rival Rolls-Royce/Bentely, and the build quality is on par with some international bank vaults. Even doing a quick Google search for “W111 Coupe” will have you lost in an array of stunning examples. However, I highly doubt a Google search will turn up this color combination. This 1966 up for sale in Florida is painted in Sandbeige Metallic over a green leather interior. Yes, green. Not that green that almost looks like black. No, this is Saint Patrick’s Day green. Wait until you peek inside this car.
Update 9/5/19: This 1602 Touring sold for $18,300.
If you’ve missed the most recent bandwagon, it’s been firmly hitched to the back of the E30 Touring. Recently these cars passed the magical “25 Year” importation ban and have begun flooding the market. The reason is simple; they haven’t previously been available here, the E30 market is red hot, and they’re relatively dirt cheap in Europe. But if you really want to show up those bandwagon-jumping E30 hispters at the local show, why not look towards the original Touring – the Michelotti-designed, E10-based ‘E6’ 1600, 1800 or 2000 Touring models. Shortened by about 6 inches and with additional glass, the Touring had modern conveniences like split-folding rear seats and was available only for a short run between 1971 and 1974. It ran the full production line in engines minus the turbo; the most valuable examples are clean tii versions or the ultra-rare Alpina variants, but even a nice clean basic example of any shows just what a neat design it was:
