Warning!
We have 15 years of archives. Links older than a year may have been updated to point to similar cars available to bid on eBay.
This site contains Ebay partner affiliate links, which may earn us a commission at no additional cost to you.
Rallying and Mercedes-Benz are terms that don’t seem to go hand in hand, but at the end of the 1970s, a most unlikely contender would emerge on the scene. The C107 Mercedes-Benz 450SLC 5.0. This homologation special would do battle in the 1978 World Rally Championship. Later, the car would become known as the 500SLC. What differentiated these from a normal C107 SLC? A brawnier V8 engine with 240 horsepower, aluminum hood and decklid and a small rear spoiler on the edge of the trunk. The 500SLC would bring to the fray a 4-speed automatic, replacing the 3-speed automatic that did duty in the 450SLC 5.0. Only 1,636 examples of the 450SLC 5.0 and 1,133 examples of the 500SLC would be produced, making this 500SLC for sale in California quite special.
Even despite it’s somewhat awkward proportions, I was always a fan of the Mercedes-Benz C107 SLC. This car lasted barely for a decade before it was pulled in favor of the S-class SEC coupe that debuted in the early 1980s. Somehow, the SLC is relegated to a rather curious position in Mercedes-Benz history as the only four-place coupe to be based off the SL roadster. This 450SLC for sale in California is about as good as they come these days, in a very eye-catching combination of Astral Silver over red leather. If you want the style and grace of an R107 but perhaps don’t want the convertible or the higher entry cost of the 560SL, you should spend some time looking at a car like this.
While prices of the E24, 928 and Mercedes-Benz C126 models continue to rise, the C107 still offers plenty of Mercedes-Benz build quality, some racing heritage and European style on an affordable budget. The styling of the big coupe isn’t for everyone, but European models such as this 380SLC really clean up the lines in my mind. On top of that, it features the hotter Euro 380 motor with 215 horsepower – some 60 more than the U.S. version. With a price drop of $3,000 since this summer to a Buy It Now of $11,900, this looks like a very clean example that offers a lot of unique, classic car for the money.
The below post originally appeared on our site June 19, 2015:
For as long lived as the R107 SL and C107 SLC were, Mercedes-Benz never offered these roadsters and coupes in six-cylinder form in the US market. That’s rather curious, given the fuel crunch that was in full swing during this cars production run. Plenty of private importers went and had a go, bringing the 280SL and SLC into the before legislators stepped in and curbed gray market imports. Now that all R107 and C107 models are eligible for import as they are more than 25 years old, one can take their pick from any number of six-cylinder SLs and SLCs out there for sale abroad. Luckily, this 280SLC for sale in New Jersey is already here, offering the classic Mercedes buyer something a bit different than your usual large-bumpered, sealed beam headlamp adorned SLC.
Amidst all the craze for late model R107 SL Roadsters, the Mercedes-Benz SLC has still remained a relatively obscure model for collectors. This was the only coupe Mercedes would produce based on roadster underpinnings, with exception of the wild SL65 Black Series from a few years past. The SL65, however, had the retractable hardtop replaced by a fixed roof, where the 1972 350SLC you see here, along with subsequent models, had an extended wheelbase and rear seat. This particular 350SLC represents the very beginning for the C107 coupe, having been delivered new in France replete with the slim bumpers and attractive euro headlamps.
