Enthusiasts Blogging Our Favorite Classifieds
A little over a month ago I looked at a 1999 Mercedes-Benz C43 AMG Estate that, thanks to Canada’s 15-year import law, was ready to be enjoyed by our friends to the north. Today, I have big brother E55 AMG Estate that looks to be literally fresh off the boat from Japan. This 2001 shows 47,000 miles and looks to be missing the most important W210 characteristic: rust. Although much like the W211 AMG Estate, you’ll pay a premium for that extra cargo room.
The majority if the time I check out a Mercedes-Benz W126 it is either a 560SEL or a 300SD. For good reason though as if you wanted the ultimate luxury car short of Rolls-Royce/Bentley, you went with the 560SEL. If you wanted a car to literally last you a generation, you bought the OM617-powered 300SD. But if you wanted a compromise of both models, Mercedes gave you that option towards the end of the W126 life-span from 1988 to 1991 with the 300SE. It was the tried-and-true M103 3.0 inline-6 paired to a standard wheelbase sedan that saved you over $20,000 if you selected the 300SE for $53,000 versus the $74,000 you would have paid for the 560SEL. Now that the majority of these cars are sneaking up on 30 years-old, you don’t often see them in really nice condition. Fortunately, this example painted in the rare Willow Green up for bid in Connecticut is in really nice condition and probably won’t cost you a ton of money either.
Welcome back to Fail Friday! Today we have a 2007 Mercedes-Benz S550 that you can probably take one guess as to why I am taking a look at it. This first-year W221 has all your standard custom S-Class ”enhancements” with oversized wheels, custom interior, blacked out taillights and headlights, a color change but the biggest thing that sets this S550 apart: suicide doors. In today’s world, the full-size suicide door is only reserved for various Rolls-Royce models, but thanks to some actually really nice work, you can have them on your highly depreciated S-Class too. But is it worth it?
After Mercedes-Benz blessed us in North America for so many years with the W123 300TD, in both turbo and non-turbo versions, you would think they would do the logical thing and carry that on into the W124 era. Sadly, Mercedes gave us a small taste for one year only in 1987 with the 300TD powered by the OM603 that was a turbocharged inline-6. Little did we know at the time that the 1987 300TD would be the last diesel Mercedes estate that North American would get and probably ever get. We had plenty of options for gas versions, but the oil burners would never return. Thankfully, this seller in California gave us all one more example for us to enjoy and what a treat it is.
This is a 1992 250TD up for bid in California painted in Blackberry Bornite Metallic that was imported from the Netherlands. That color look familiar? It is powered by a naturally-aspirated 2.5 liter inline-5 diesel engine with a 5-speed manual transmission, patterned cloth seats, manual windows and almost zero options. Could there be a more perfect wagon for some?
The first generation Mercedes-Benz SLK was all about fun. When the SLK was launched, Mercedes said it was ”driving in a new dimension.” I kind of get what they were after but I’ll just chalk it up to some marketing-speak. While the R129 was the serious roadster with a serious price tag, the R170 was the light-hearted option that checked in at $40,000 as opposed to the $80,000 and up if you went with SL500. There was a finally an option for people who didn’t want to spend starter home money for a Mercedes convertible. The best part about it was that the normally ultra-conservative styling you were used to seeing was moved towards something that still could be recognized as a Mercedes, but a breath of fresh air and a look into the new millennium. You want a crazy color? Sure. Matching seats? You got it. And how about something those stuffy R129 buyers don’t have, an automatic, retractable hardtop? Yep, that will make Morty and Barb from the club jealous. How about one more thing, a supercharger. Now we are going crazy!
All this was really great in the late 1990s. Times were good, money was flowing and there was no reason to believe that you when you bought a SLK, you weren’t getting that same standard of quality that you were used to from every Mercedes convertible of past. All the way from the 300SL and 190SL to the R129 and C124 and everything in between, those were really special cars. There is a reason why the W111/112 Cabriolet is still a six-figure car and Pagodas even in the roughest of condition are starting at $50,000. The thing with the SLK was that all of a sudden the generous amount of leather and wood you were accustomed to in your top-down Mercedes was suddenly replaced with vinyl and plastic. Lots and lots of plastic. It’s tough to blame Mercedes as they needed to directly compete with the BWM Z3 that was well into production and buyers didn’t care all that much because they got a convertible with that giant three-pointed in the grille for half the price they usually are. Everyone wins.
