I presently own a 1976 280 sedan and I recently agreed to buy a nice 1971 250C from a friend. The 280 has a floor shift automatic, while the 250C is a column shift automatic with a bad torque converter. The 250C transmission is already removed and sitting in the trunk.

Since the 280 is my daily driver and a long time project, I already have many parts to complete a manual transmission swap from a W115 240D; my original plan was to put them in my 280 sedan whenever it made the most sense. Now that the 250C entered my life, I am reconsidering which car should get the manual.

As it sits, the 280 is fully functional and I have no need to remove the transmission for any reason other than to swap a manual. It is a US spec car, so it's already down on power; I believe the 250C is about the same, or maybe even a little more powerful than the malaise spec 280.

Since the 250C needs a transmission, something needs to go into that car no matter what.

That said, I am looking for some insight as to what would be the best approach for both cars:


Option 1: Put the manual in the 280 sedan and put the 280's automatic into the 250C. This gives the 280 some sportiness and minimizes the install time on the 250C. This option keeps the 250C as a luxurious tourer, whereas the 280 can be my brash daily with no apologies.

Option2: Leave the 280 sedan intact and devote the manual swap to the 250C since the transmission is already removed. I imagine dropping the column shift and moving to a floor mounted shifter will require some other ancillary items like a center console and some sort of delete hardware for the column shift. I can get the necessary parts one way or another, so there's no problem for me.



Any advice or insight is appreciated. Thanks in advance!

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1963 Mercedes-Benz W111 220SE | 1965 Mercedes-Benz W111 220S
1966 Volvo 122S Wagon | 1969 Volvo 1800S
1972 Mercedes-Benz W108 280SE 4.5 | 1977 Mercedes-Benz W116 280SE "Rude Benz"
1986 Mercedes-Benz W124 300E AMG | 1996 Volvo 960 Wagon