That's very cool. I think it all depends on where I live in the next 10 years. Given that MT 6 cylinder cars with fuel injection were never imported to the US. I will find the donor W114/W115 with the least amount of rust. I can either swap in the parts from my dismantled 280CE with the 4 speed manual (and source a 5 speed), or have some real fun by using the spare M104 engine that I have in a 96 SL320 parts car. If I move back to the UK, I'll bring one back from South Africa.
The nice thing about the US spec cars is that they all came with A/C and most had electric windows and cruise control.
First thing is to thin the herd a little so I even have some space to work. I've listed my 6.3 on eBay. If you look at what's in the background might give an idea of how cramped a 12000sq/ft building can get:
1969 Mercedes-Benz S-Class | eBay
Wow , that’s some workshop !
I think you mentioned having a euro spec R107 280SL with 5 speed manual ? The drivetrain in that would have been very close to a W114 280E , particularly because the injection setup is identical between the two models , unlike most other variants , such as W123 , where there are some big differences.
I think if I was building one up with a newer engine , I’d go for the 300-24 in conjunction with a 5 speed manual : that engine just loves to be revved and delivers so much at the top end , where the 320 is more about bottom end torque . Only thing with these engines are the electronics are more complicated .
On the other hand , many people have put V-8s into W123s , but not sure if many have tried it with a W114 ? I know people have put 6.3s into Pagodas , and also that in the days of the W116 you could order a 350SE with a 4 speed manual box ( it was Rudi Uhlenhaut who told me that the one time I met him ! ) ; so I suppose you could build a manual V-8 , maybe either a 500 or a 560 ?
Incidentally, another car that passed through my hands was an early W126 280SE ; it had both cruise and a/c , and these cars tend to be quite cheap here in the UK at least .
Another unusual car I had briefly was a C107 280SLC , which I bought because they are so rare , but the body was rotten with rust , so I ended up breaking it . The C107 was one of the most comfortable cars M-B ever made , and those louvres in the C pillars were so clever , angled to allow the driver to see out without allowing outsiders to see in . Most here were either 350 or 450SLC , plus a few 450SLC 5.0 . The 280SLC I bought was the only one I ever saw in RHD and UK registered , although I knew they were sold in other markets .
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