Category: AMG

1985 Mercedes 500SEC AMG 5.4 Widebody 540SEC

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UPDATED WITH A NEW LINK TO THE EBAY AUCTION.

I know I’ve posted a lot of Mercedes lately, but that is my passion. Some I post I smile and say, “that is nice”, but some I find and I go “Hell Yes!!” This is one of the later.

Mid eighties Benz cars with genuine AMG modified engines are not very common. You’ll see a number of cars with body modifications, but usually that Miami Vice style look stops with the exterior. This one has the full treatment including one of AMG’s interior, suspension, and engine packages.

This is a low 15,000 mile grey market Euro vehicle. With such low miles it is not surprising that the car looks immaculate. The interior has a dual color treatment similar to some of the modern Designo models and includes a rare 300 km/h AMG speedo. Check out the selection of options on the power seats. Those are Recaro CSE seats that if sold by themselves can go for almost $2000 a piece.

The rear end has been flared out to fit thick meats on the rear wheels.
What really sets this apart though, as I mentioned above, is the engine. The engine bay houses a rare AMG 5.4 liter engine, note the AMG valve covers. This is a very scarce motor. It was third down in terms of power packages that AMG offered in the mid eighties. Number one was the 6.0 liter Hammer motor, which came a bit later, number two was a 5.0 liter 4 valve per cylinder engine that bumped out a conservative rated 340 horsepower and 457 Nm of torque. The 5.4 in this car is a pushed out version of the stock 5.0 liter M117 engine, it puts out 310 hp and a solid 475 Nm of torque.

The seller states that this is one of 25 cars with the 5.4 liter and the widebody conversion. Hard to say what the real number is, but that does not sound unreasonable.

With several days left to go the price has already reached over $25,000 with multiple bids, and the reserve not met. You can tell by that sort of price that this is not your typical 500SEC that you find in your local swap sheet. The rarity is clearly appreciated by aficionados. I would love to have this in my garage.

UPDATE: this eBay auction mysteriously disappeared, possibly a fraudulent seller. The auction did look legit, but if you see this car appear online again be careful. Like I mentioned above there are very few Benzs out there carrying this engine.
UPDATE 2: as you can see in the comments section below the seller contacted us to say he is legit and the auction was pulled due to the Euro VIN # problem we’ve seen other sellers run into when selling grey market cars on eBay.


~Evan

1983 Mercedes 500SEC Gullwing Styling Garage

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Keeping with the flavor of my last post on the Gullwing Sbarro I thought this similar aged take on the classic Benz Gullwing take was nice.
Nowadays you see everything from Dodge Neons to Honda Civics running around with cheap poor quality Lambo style door kits.
The gullwing setup on this Merc is a much more involved project since it involves cutting the roof. When you cut this much metal out of the car you have to add significant reinforcement to maintain a safe body.
Styling Garage, SGS, the company that made the modifications, was well known in the 80s for making dramatic visual upgrades to Mercedes cars.
Many SGS tuned cars were given SGS badges out front and custom body work instead of the three pointed star. This one has some AMG body parts, but looks mostly stock. Inside there is some custom guages and nice wood steering wheel.
Original price on the conversion was the same as the price of the car itself.
This specimen has 40,000 miles, and a seller looking for $15,000. It has new paint, but as you can tell from the wood planks holding the doors up there is some work to be done. Lots of depreciation here for a really unique car.

You can read more about the SEC gullwings over at 1000SEL.com

~Evan

SUV Theme Week Closes

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The SUV theme week added a bit of interesting flavor to the blog. I think we’ll continue to keep an eye out for the occasional German born beast to compliment the svelte roadsters we post. As always if there is a theme you would like to see us try shoot us an e-mail, dan@motoringblogs.com.

While we didn’t find any of the following for sale, I thought we just couldn’t leave an ultimate German SUV discussion without posting these.

If you are a Benz fan and want the highest form of expression of the G55 you actually have a pair of options.
You could go with the killer 600 horsepower Hamann Typhoon with 6 sidepipe exhaust:

or the even more crazy 700 horsepower, 800+ lb ft torque Brabus G V12 S Biturbo. Can you imagine a heavy truck with shape and weight of a small house that can hit 60 MPH in 4.3 seconds? The price tag is near $400,000.

~Evan

Theme Week: Winter Olympics of SUVs

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Since our first theme week was such a success and fun. We are doing another round. This week we are thinking about the Winter Olympics. Heavy snow, cold temperatures, rugged terrain, all things you would associate with the Winter Olympics. Lastly, of course, you have your highly tuned, trained, athletes at the top of their game, ready to tackle tough conditions.
We think that this can be a pretty easy comparison to the top dogs (St. Bernards perhaps?) of the luxury, performance SUV, category.
So be on the lookout this week for Teutonic trucks.

To start things off here is a silly video of a pair of Mercedes G55s pulling a C63 through some snow. Something is slightly off with this video, be it lack of snow tires, lack of driving skill, lack of something.

~Evan

Well Cared for 2001 Mercedes-Benz E55 AMG For Sale

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Randy emailed me recently with details of his low mileage E55 AMG that he’s listing for sale. What a great looking car! While we usually go with more classic and rare listings to feature on the site, I was compelled by the honesty of his email and history of ownership.

On to the pictures and details!

2001 Mercedes E55 AMG For Sale

quote from Randy’s email to me:

I have my father’s 2001 e55 for sale. He bought the car new and drove it sparingly until he died in 2004. (His other cars were a 1995 993 – which we still have with 32,000 miles on it – and a Subaru Turbo Wagon!) I got it after he died and drove it until late 2007. At that point, I got a new 2006 e55 and my Dad’s car was put in the garage. It has been driven occasionally since then.

It has approximately 49,900 miles on it. I have all service records; mine and my Dad’s.

There have been no modifications to the car. No air dams, spoilers, extra AMG badges, blue lights or huge wheels with ridiculously low profile tires, etc. It’s just as Mercedes intended it to be: subtle, yet extremely powerful.

The car runs strong; it accelerates powerfully, it stops straight. The air blows cold. The radio & trunk-mounted CD work as they are supposed to. In fact, everything (to the best of my knowledge) works, with the exception of the air bladders in the front passenger seat.

It is classic silver with two tone silver.

Defects:

1) There is a tiny scratch (not through the paint) on the right rear bumper skin.
2) Very slight “curb rash” on the right front wheel.
3) Two years ago, my wife was involved in a minor accident with the car. She pulled into an intersection and hit another car. The bumper skin was replaced and the right front fender was repainted. There was, to my knowledge, no mechanical or suspension involvement. In fact, the accident did not even break the headlights. The car was repaired and there have been no subsequent issues.

The interior is an attractive (but not pimpy) two tone black & light gray. It looks and smells new. The seats show no wear, the carpets are in great shape, the headliner is clean, the sunshades work well, etc. Neither my Dad nor I smoked in the car.

Asking $19000

Please contact Randy at this email address for further inquiry: randy@wileinterests.com

I hope this car finds a home that will care for it as well as Randy’s family has. Good luck with the sale!

dc

1984 Mercedes 500SEL AMG

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Here is something a bit unique. The pictures are nice, but the seller provides no description at all. Note to car people if you are selling a car and want to get people to offer you good money, describe your vehicle.

You occasionally see Benzs like this that have had a tough life and get moved to a new owner who a decade after the car was built tries to bolt on cheap body parts to make an AMG look car. This one appears to have been given the AMG treatment early on. Though the AMG front fender badges have the new AMG logo that would not have been contemporary with the car.

The car does have genuine AMG body parts, the trunk spoiler in particular is a fairly unique item. The car also has tailight filler spacers on each side of the rear license plate. These red parts that match the ridges of the tailights are not stock. The wheels appear to be genuine period correct AMG spec Ronal parts. Though they are missing AMG center caps.

The addition of a 5.0 badge on the right of the trunk makes me wonder if AMG did any engine work. Why advertise that it was 5.0 unless it was special? Mercedes only distinguished engine size with numbers on the right when they were different from the engine size given in the model number. (190E 2.6, 280SE 3.5, 300SEL 6.3, etc.) This is not a standard part for a U.S. 500SEL. To my knowledge it was only used on the 450SLC 5.0, standard, from the factory.

The velour interior, combined with the euro headlights, along with the VIN show this to be a Euro car.

If you are a Benz enthusiast and have never tried the online VIN decoder it is a must see.

If I can drag some more info out of the seller I’ll post it here.

Seeing this Benz in white roll by in the mid 80s truly would’ve said big pimpin’ to me. I love the sturdy look of this era S class.

~Evan

1979 450SEL 6.9 AMG on eBay

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The ultimate autobahn cruiser of its time and then some. Nothing could touch the Mercedes 6.9 in terms of might and comfort. Following in the tradition of the Mercedes 6.3, this was also the fastest four door sedan in the world when new. 100 MPH on the highway could be enjoyed as long as the fuel in the tank held out. The 6.9 liter (417 cu. in.) engine made bursts into the 140s attainable if needed.
The car’s impressive hydro-pneumatic suspension, operating at over 2000 psi provided silky smooth road manners and kept the car on an even plain on hard launches and braking. The system is however expensive to service if not maintained properly. Unmaintained 6.9s can be spotted by their lowrider like appearance as the suspension settles. Vacuum operated cruise, door locks, and trunk were nice features as well. Also of note is the car’s impressive 12 (!) quart dry sump lubrication system. This allowed for better oiling during a spirited workout and made it possible to cram the monster engine under the hood. The oil reservoir is mounted near the fender instead of in a pan underneath. Taking this car in to your local quick oil change place was not considered a viable option as you would either end up with a drained transmission pan or an engine short half a case of oil.

Genuine AMG vehicles of this era are hard to document. The factory didn’t keep great records so knowing a cars history is important.
is an interesting case since it has been restored and has a new engine rebuild.  The seller seems to know his stuff in terms of the 6.9, so likely there is no deal to be found here, just a chance to take ownership of mighty Merc. This car is also unique in that it is a a U.S. delivery Euro car. It has the good looking Euro headlights, but does that mean it has the Euro engine horsepower. With the new pistons it probably doesn’t matter. It also has leather which Euro cars did not have. Cali 6.9s were restricted down to 250 horsepower with emissions garbage. While full blown Euro spec cars hit nearly 300 with a meaty 420 lb ft of torque. Torque figures like that were scarcely seen anywhere outside muscle cars or dump trucks, neither of which could compete with a 6.9 in terms of all around enjoyment.

This car has some neat AMG options like the correct AMG steering wheel and 300 KPH speedometer, as well as an old style AMG trunk badge. Mercedes offered the 6.9 with debadging as an option. You could go super stealth with nothing on the trunk lid or just leave the small 6.9 tag minus the 450SEL label.

Full on AMG 6.9s with complete mono color body kit, blacked out trim, the Penta wheels and engine add ons like AMG cams are extremely rare and extremely good looking creatures. This one definitely qualifies as a stage 1 AMG, but doesn’t have the full treatment.

Having owned a full euro spec 6.9 I can attest with great vigor to the pleasure of driving these cars. The road manners and power are just amazing particularly considering the time period these cars were produced, think gas shortage and American luxo-barges.

There is plenty of information online about the 6.9 if you want to go look, but quickly here is a look at the 6.9 suspension being operated manually (the lever sits on top of the steering wheel):

and here is a link to the famous Brock Yates article about his experience thrashing a show room stock U.S. spec car around Road Atlanta for 100 miles. This is a fantastic article and reminds us that all cars are not created equal. Make sure to note the part about getting 5.9 MPG.

Below I’ve included a picture from one of my vintage AMG brochures, one of the only AMG brochures to show a 6.9, and a Flickr photo showing how the full 6.9 AMG package compares to this eBay listing in terms of looks. The sturdy lines of the 116 chassis Benz with AMG accoutrement in my mind are still some of the best and coupled with the formidable engine this is a package that 30 years later is still surprisingly sophisticated.

Lastly just for fun here are some 6.9s in the movies showing their stuff.
Ronin, scroll to about 4:50 for the good stuff:

Lost Highway, gets good about 1:00, R for language:

And of course Claude Lelouch’s C’etait un Rendez Vous, the film that started the “getaway” movie genre. Though the sound dubbed in is that of a Ferrari the car actually used was a 6.9. View the making of video to see the 6.9 with the camera mount.

~Evan

Cash for Clunkers Weekend Reading

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You may remember my “spirited” post over the Cash for Clunkers program a little while back.

Well as a follow up here is the official government list of  cars sent to their deaths through the program.

Of note are the 63 BMW 6 series cars, including 13 635csi models, a 850i, a M3, and a M5.

Mercedes suffered as well, can you imagine over 100 560SEC s crushed? That is literally tons of usable parts from one of the greatest Benz engines gone. Looks like 11 Merc V12 engines also have made their last trip. No wonder parts are so expensive. A pair of AMG cars, a C36 and a C43, were sent away too and gasp a 500E.

A number of high end Audi models also are on the list and a sprinkling of Porsches.

Most surprising, though not German, on the list is the 1997 Bentley (listed as a Rolls Royce) Continental R and great oogley moogley a Buick GNX, listed under ASC. If that was a true GNX it could have been rolled and burned and still probably brought more than the CFC allowance.

Post your thoughts or interesting finds after you peruse the list.

~Evan

1991 Mercedes SL500 low mileage fair priced

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You know how much I like it when sellers take a gamble and put up a vehicle for auction at a low or reasonable opening price and stay away from placing a reserve. When an ad like that goes on eBay and is away from the hype of a major Barrett-Jackson style event you really can peer into what fair market price is like. This is even more the case when the same car gets listed twice in a short period of time.

This nice blacked out Benz has only 36k miles, peanuts for the venerable 5 liter Mercedes engine. The black out trim and lights looks pretty decent on this. The treatment isn’t really complete, if it was triple black with all black interior and black rims it would look even better. It has some interior custom bits too. If I was the buyer I’d keep the hardtop on, the look is much nicer. I’ve always thought Mercedes did a better job than BMW 3 series in terms of the looks of a removable hardtop on convertibles. You have four different options here, hardtop, softop, neither with, or without roll bar.
Someone might get a deal here unless two crazed bidders get into a battle. The car “sold” last month for $9606. If anyone noticed this it should make the price a bit lower this time around as you always wonder why it is being relisted.

From the seller:

This is an ultra clean 500 SL. It has all original paint that is in excellent condition and is the beautiful color of Jet Black. The original paint has a beautiful luster and in great condition. The added AMG styling package is the only thing that has been painted on the car. It has a perfect, clean Car Fax and has never been in a accident. The original black soft top is perfect including the original hardtop which is also in excellent condition. It is sitting on a amazing looking set of 19″ staggered custom wheels with like new tires which gives this Benz a very aggressive look. This car is a true unmolested beauty!

Good looking car at a fraction of its new price.

~Evan

Mercedes 560 SEC Coupes, 6.0 AMG

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Being a Mercedes guy, I’ve always liked the 560sec and its siblings of the same body style. Here are several all up right now on eBay.


1991 Mercedes 560SEC AMG 6.01991 Mercedes 560SEC AMG 6.0 1
The body on this one has 292,390, but it has only 50,000 since a full restoration. The ad doesn’t say much about the 6.0, but the valve covers look genuine. Seller says all the documentation from Renntech is available. Pretty subtle for having an AMG engine, transmission, headers and rear end.


1985 560SEC Euro1985 560SEC Euro 31985 560SEC Euro 11985 560SEC Euro 2
Here we go, this is a GREAT opportunity. Rarely do you find a decent vehicles listed on eBay at a low opening bid AND no reserve. A 55,000 mile 560 that looks amazing up for sale with the public setting the market price. This is fantastic if it was a standard 560 SEC, but this is a grey market car with an AMG body package. So you get the nice Euro headlights and the sculpted bodywork. Don’t miss getting a bid in on this one, someone could snag a real deal if this one goes under the radar on eBay. Probably not the smartest move for me to post this here since I’ll probably throw a bid in on this myself, but I’d like to see what the market sets itself at. If this was a later model, year I’d say if it didn’t breach $10k it would be undersold.


1991 Mercedes 560SEC white
Here is a white one that the seller claims is a multiple show winner. I’m sure it is nice, but a 100,000 mile, 1991 model year car, in stock form must not have much competition in its class at whatever shows he’s entering it in. The car does look good and is nice that it has service records, but you can almost be sure that the ask for the car is going to be over priced just by the way the seller is describing it.


1986 560SEC 1 owner
I just put this one in because I always find older 1 owner cars intriguing. Being the 2nd owner on a vehicle that has a long history with its original owner can mean some neat stories and a chance to really know the car’s past. This 160k mile car is a California delivery vehicle so a buyer is going to want to look out for extra smog gear restricting the engine.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1988-mercedes-560-SEC_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem20acc7832aQQitemZ140337709866QQptZSalvageQ5fPartsQ5fCar

1988 560SEC fixer

And this is for the handyman looking for a bit of a challenge. Chances are you can talk the owner down from the $1875 ask. Sadly I think you’d have to go down on price to find a taker, but then you get close to part it out territory as the parts become worth more off the car. Who wants to save this one?

~Evan