Tag: V12

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2008 Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG

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For every bland S-Class that Mercedes-Benz produces to lease to some eye doctor in Ocala, Florida, every once in a while they’ll mix up something special for the ones in the know. Today’s 2008 S65 AMG is one of those. This is a “Designo Graphite Edition” that I did not even realize existed and probably wouldn’t believe either outside of seeing it listed on the window sticker for a cool $9,765. What is it? Graphite paint, Corteccia and Charcoal AMG leather, a heated steering wheel, matte natural oak wood trim, and an Alcantara headliner. All in addition to the loads of goodies that already comes standard on a 2008 S65 AMG. Add it all up and you’d find a sticker price when new of $210,265. Bonkers.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2008 Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG on eBay

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1997 Mercedes-Benz SL600

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It is very clear to me that the death of the V12 is near. It was certainly inevitable, as outside of a few very select manufacturers it just isn’t in the cards anymore. What does that mean? Go buy a V12, of course! I guess I’m not alone in thinking this as prices of the somewhat more common V12 cars have started to creep up. A prime example is the R129. For a long time, these hovered in the teens, but now the very best ones are selling for strong money and the pack of average ones is starting to catch up.

This 1997 up for sale in Florida has an interesting story. It was not only offered once, but twice, and ended at a reasonable value. However, this seller seems to have other ideas.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL600 on eBay

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2009 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series

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Sometimes you see a car and say “Remember when they made that?” I had a brief moment when I saw this 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series. Of course I remembered the car, but with only 175 of them in the US, it’s not like you see them for sale often. This thing is every way bonkers in the power department as sinister as it looks with 661 horsepower with 738 pound-feet of torque. Also bonkers, the price tag of nearly $300,000. Pricessurprisingly dipped pretty hard considering they only produced 350 for the entire world, but now it seems like now is the time to snatch one up as the death of the V12 is near.

This example up for sale in Miami comes in with just under 11,000 miles and looks every bit the part. Prepare to pay though, as prices are getting stronger.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series on eBay

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2000 Mercedes-Benz SL73 AMG

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In terms of the R129 Mercedes-Benz, it doesn’t get better than this. This is the SL73 AMG. Just 85 were made and they are the only SL fitted with M297 V12, which is a variant of the M120 that was tuned by AMG. This is the same 7.3 V12 that powered the early Zonda cars and, of course, the CLK GTR Straßenversion. It is basically the cream of the crop when it comes to the naturally aspirated Mercedes V12 engines and threw down an impressive output of 561 horsepower and 575 lb-ft of torque. Even looking at it is worth the price of admission. But to have the engine and all the car wrapped around it? Bring a very large check.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2000 Mercedes-Benz SL73 AMG on carsensor.net

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1996 BMW 850Ci

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The E31 was BMW’s first real attempt at integrating lots of computer designs and controls into one of their road cars. The clean-sheet design resulted in a 2-door grand tourer that shared some visual similarities with the great M1, but stood apart as a more practical cruiser. Unlike the E24, the windows could fully drop, revealing a graceful pillarless design to match the sweeping greenhouse. The sharp nose amazingly hid an even larger motor than its predecessor; in fact, it was basically two conjoined M20s. That configuration certainly has some drawbacks, but there was no denying that the 850i had serious presence and credentials with the M70 V12 kicking out 300 horsepower.

However, BMW softened the character of what potentially could have been a screamer. Many were outfit with 16″ wheels for a better ride and tied to an automatic transmission. This was truly a GT car, and not the supercar slayer that BMW teased with its M8 Concept. That vision ultimately became the manual-only 850CSi, but upgrades later in the run saw the introduction of the V8 840Ci and the revised M73 5.4 liter V12 in the 850Ci. This one is a bit special, having run through the hands of BMW’s Individual department before being sent to Mexico:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1996 BMW 850Ci on eBay

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1999 Mercedes-Benz S600

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One of the more interesting subsects of the automotive world are cars that seemingly are common, but in reality extremely rare. If you see a Ferrari F40 driving down the street or parked on a lawn somewhere, you have a pretty good idea that is a rare car. A 1999 Mercedes-Benz S600 parked at the grocery store? You can find those anywhere, right? That would be wrong. Very wrong.

The W140 chassis was wrapping up in 1999 as Mercedes already launched their new flagship W220 all over Europe. So whatever leftover cars they had came to the US to sell off. Turns out they didn’t have many of the M120 V12s to offer up. Just 14 S600 sedans and 15 CL600 coupes were produced for the 1999 model year. That is it! A generation that saw 432,732 examples built came down to a final 29 cars. Guess what we have today?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1999 Mercedes-Benz S600 on eBay

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1990 BMW 750iL

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The late 80s and early 90s was a great time to be a fan of German cars, as each manufacturer advanced in leaps and bounds. Volkswagen had the succession of 16V, supercharged, and then VR6 engines. Porsche launched the supercar 959 and beefed up the 911, 944 Turbo and then 968, and the 928 GTS. Mercedes-Benz had the audacity to replace the stalwart R107 with the R129, launched the W124, W201, and finally the W140 and generally remained the benchmark of the world. Audi’s success with the Quattro proliferated the model range, and the company that dared to be different ended the 80s with the wild quad-cam all-wheel drive V8 quattro and introduced the S and RS model ranges in the 90s.

BMW was not to be outdone. While the M brand had its roots in the 70s, it was really the 80s where they stretched their legs; the introduction of the definitive sports sedan and coupes of the M3, M5, and M6 still have repercussions today. But they weren’t about to let the go-to W126 and the upstart V8 quattro have all the large-executive limelight. The E23 had been an interesting alternative all along, and it was quite advanced in many ways. But it was its successor, the E32, that really took BMW to the world stage in the large executive market. And the top-tier model was nothing to sneeze at. Gone was turbo power, and in its place BMW sistered two of their M20 inline-sixes together on a common crank, creating the M70 – a 5.0-liter V12 with an aluminum block and the best part of 300 horsepower. This was 1987, mind you, and that was still a pretty big number. Complex, expensive, and not without fault, the 750iL generated a lot of headlines and more than a few headaches for the other brands and its owners. Finding a clean one today can be tough, but this one with some period Racing Dynamics mods looks swell:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1990 BMW 750iL on eBay

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1997 Mercedes-Benz CL600

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As the years go on, the W140 Mercedes-Benz coupe is looking more and more appealing to me. The European version, at least. I say that half joking, but it is true. Why? Some very small changes that seem to make all the difference to me. Slightly shorter bumpers and different 18″ wheels as we see here, along with amazing colors like Viola Metallic. As luck would have it, that is what we have with this 1997 CL600 for sale up in Stuttgart, Germany.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1997 Mercedes-Benz CL600 at Bob Forstner

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2004 Maybach 62

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Oh Maybach, how far will you fall? Normally when screaming about depreciation, its the Maybach 57, not the king of the hill 62 like we have here today. Just to refresh, the 62 was the extra-long wheel base version that measures 20-feet-long (!) that allowed rear passengers lay completely flat. It rang in at $360,000 … in 2004. Just to put that into perspective, the 2004 Rolls-Royce Phantom was only $320,000. This car was unbelievably expensive and its hard to argue it was worth it when you see it now and take a close look at it. That also probably explains why it is so cheap now.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2004 Maybach 62 on eBay

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2004 Mercedes-Benz S600

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Fresh off last week’s 2018 Mercedes-Benz G65 AMG, I thought I’d look at one of the first vehicles equipped with the M275 engine, the W220 S600. This engine replaced the god awful M158 V12 that lasted a few short years and was by far the better engine for the job. It was so good, they literally put it in almost every vehicle in their range for the next 15 years, including that G65 that I just mentioned. You would think an old twin-turbocharged V12 would be nothing but trouble, but they are fairly easy to live with as long as you remember it is an old twin-turbocharged V12.

This 2004 S600 up for sale in Texas comes in with just a little over 32,000 miles and seems to be in top shape. Admittedly, it isn’t the most attractive car ever in terms of looks and of course the tech is a bit dated, but for the price, is it worth look?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2004 Mercedes-Benz S600 on eBay

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