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.
It’s one thing to swap an engine over a couple weekends in your home garage. Not an easy task at all. However, it is a whole other thing to swap an engine and have everything be so perfect and finish every single little detail that nothing looks out of place. You tie in all the modern systems while keeping that classic look. It’s literally the best of both worlds. That is what we have today.
This is a 1969 Mercedes-Benz 280SL with an M113 V8 and a five-speed automatic transmission. That isn’t the end of it. 15″ wheels with full covers, KW suspension, four-wheel disc brakes with ABS and ASR, and an absolutely perfect red leather interior. It just doesn’t stop.
I’m officially declaring that spring is in the air. We are into mid-March now and soon the weather will turn for the better. That means car season is here and convertible season is soon to follow. Today, I wanted to look at one of my old favorites that always bring joy to me no matter the engine size or the condition – the W113 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class. I think these are one of the most classic Mercedes models in terms of package and usability of them even over 50 years later. I am not alone in this thinking therefore prices are not cheap. However, this 1968 280SL up for sale in Virginia comes in at a somewhat reasonable price and I’m not sure why.
Prior to the R107 generation Mercedes-Benz SL-Class, your thirst for a V8 couldn’t be quenched. Your only options in prior generations 300SL and W113 Pagoda were inline-six powerplants in various guise. Don’t get me wrong, they were very sweet engines, especially that in the Gullwing, but V8s they were not. However, it looks like there was someone who wasn’t going to accept that. Leave it to the sneaky Germans to pull this one off.
Green is good, even in small doses. The Mercedes-Benz Pagoda series was all about utilizing two-tone color schemes beyond the normal silver over black or black over tan. They’d mix complementary colors together usually on the hard top, hub caps, and interior. They weren’t afraid to take chances, even with non-traditional colors. Case in point, this 250SL finished in white with a Dark Olive hard top and Green Parchment MB-Tex upholstery. Even better? It’s got a 4-speed manual too.
I know when designers sit down with engineers and discuss (or fight) over a new model and how it will work, they really want to end up with the best possible product. Sometimes it ends poorly, sometimes it’s just okay, and sometimes they hit a home run. With the Mercedes-Benz Pagoda, these cheeky German knew they hit it out of the park. Actually maybe it was a “Tor!” since Germans don’t really play baseball. Either way, over 50 years later these things still turns heads. I know I badly desire one, and examples like today’s might just keep that dream alive.
This 1968 up for sale in California is finished in a lovely shade of blue over a tan interior. The condition seems about average, but the price seems awfully reasonable given the top of the food range 280 can bring six-figures for the really nice ones. I think I know why.
