SL280 and SL350 advice please

[andand]

Hi All
Pretty new to all this forum stuff but wanted to ask about 1970's and 1980's SL280 or SL350 classic merc
I am looking to buy an old one either 1970's or 1980's I find that the 70's ones seem cheaper is there any reason for this?
Any help or advice would be great.
Cheers

 

[st13phil]

Rust?

Seriously, 30+ year old cars need to be looked at very carefully. There's a reason there aren't many 1970's and 1980's cars around.

 

[Sp!ke]

I'm surprised the 70's ones are cheaper than 80's ones.

A 1970 Pagoda could cost you £100k whereas a 1980 107 could be £5k or less.

With 107 models though, it is all about condition, not age.

 

[andand]

Cheers.
Its seems the 1979 are around £5500 - £7500 yet the 1985 seem to be around the 15 - 20K mark, I guess it must be condition bit of a novice....

 

[tristand]

V6 versus V8(280 vs 350). Some would say the V8 is more desirable and less problems. Anything 1986 for the SL or after has a galvanised body, so less rust problems and more features like an air bag even and better interiors.

Some research about the cars, options, engines, common problems will really pay off. Go and see and drive as many as you can, each car you see will be a learning experience and build up your knowledge.

Get this small book for a start with "The Essential Buyer's Guide - Mercedes-Benz 280-560SL&SLC". It's not the bible on buying one, only 60 pages long but will give you a good basis to build upon.

If your not pushed about the top off/down factor, consider an SLC(production ended in 1981), much better value out there even though nearly four time less were produced.

Really, it's all down to the condition of the individual car you're looking at. What are you intending to use it for?

 

[andand]

Cheers for the info.
Definitely take your advice and check a few out. The book shall be got!!!!
I want one simply for a weekend now and again to simply take out when the sunshines, love the look of the car.

 

[DouglasMM]

I went through this about 5 years ago when a friend of mine was desperate for a R107... we looked at tons and prices were all over the shop. In the end it usually came down to condition and rust is the real bugbear of these cars. 70s cars did tend to be cheaper and were less well appointed/ optioned. I prefer the 70s cars as they are simpler, lighter, and older looking. Also it seems more 70s R107s are about with manual gearboxes which make these cars more fun... one man's opinion.

In the end these are bullet proof old Mercs so I wouldn't worry mechanically but rust is expensive to repair. Check the usual places, wheel arches, spring perches, sills, valences etc. The real killer to these cars is the scuttles rust and leak and this is a dashboard out job to repair. Basically the scuttle drains clog up, water sits in the scuttle well and rusts through. This is easily spotted as the passenger, or sometimes drivers, floor will be damp.

In the end my friend bought a 130k mile F reg 300SL from the SL shop. I thought he was nuts... especially as it was almandine red and cost him 16K. He played with it for a year, got board with it and took it back to the SL shop to sell on consignment, he got 16.5K back so I had to eat my words...

Regarding SLCs, the time to buy those may have passed as I have been looking for a good one for 6 months and the only good ones about are bringing more money than SLs...

- D

 

[jed.w]

I bought my 280SL last year after twelve months of looking around. Went to see some dogs described as excellent. Ended up with an 85 model. Sound body and engine. A few cosmetic things to do, seats were a bit worn and it really needed a new soft top.

Underside had surface rust but nothing too bad. Needed the lower suspension arm drivers side rear welding to fix a small hole.

A winter full of fettling has left me with a really sound motor that I love driving more that my 2014 Range Rover Autobiography Sport!