SL Fever!! Bought a 96
 

As most of you know, I purchased my 1991 500SL a couple of months ago. Ive been pretty happy with it so far, but today I saw an absolutely flawless 1996 with 50k on it for a great price, and I could not resist. So now the 1991 is on the selling block and my new ride is here.

Honestly I could not see driving anything else but one of these (except for a SL600!) Long term goal is to get one of the new ones!!!

I will post pics tommorrow for those of you interested. My 91 is for sale also by the way.

Congratulations! I think you will be very pleased with the '96; there were several evolutionary changes that came about then. Nothing earth-shaking, but nice.

By all means, post some pictures. What color is it?

Best,

Travis

Man, you do have SL fever!

Congratulations. What kind of deal did you get on the new one?

'Doc, I'd be very interested to know how you compare the '96 to the '91; in particular, what you think of the transmission. When I drove a '96 a couple of weeks ago, it seemed markedly more responsive than earlier SLs on account of that 1st gear start.

How much do you want for your '91 and how many miles does it have?

I see a HUGE difference in the transmission. It's a bit of give and take though. The 96 has a very snappy first gear, I mean it absolutely takes off like a rocket off the line. The 91, even after the first gear kit, seems sluggish by comparision. They both hesitate for a half a second before accelerating on leadfooting it, I think thats just a limitation of the tranny. The 91 does seem a little spunkier accelerating at high speeds, I know the 91 is a 5.2/326hp whereas the 96 is a 5.0/315hp, Im not sure if they made this up anywhere else, but the 91 did seem a hair faster to me.

Pros of the 96 which make me very happy with my decision:
ASR off switch
starts in 1st gear
much snappier off the line
has a subwoofer (91 has horrid sound system)

Plus the 91 has 120k miles, while the 96 has 50k, big difference in trim, wear and tear, etc. Let me tell you though, the 120k miles on the 91 may have taken a toll on the trim and interior, but the engine and tranny are very very strong despite the miles.

For the moment the 91 is with my cousin who is considering purchasing it, but if he doesnt I will list it.

The burgundy one is the 91, the pewter one is the 96. The changes I see in the 96 are really great, highly recommended if you have the extra money.

Love those wheels on your '91. What brand is it?

They are Neeper Concept wheels, specifically the Haaz line. They are ok, ride a bit rough and the offset is wrong so my fenders are chewed up a bit. I have seen the sizes though and you can get them in 25mm offset.

I would not go with them again, they came with the car. I am looking for OEM AMG monoblocks if anyone has a lead on good prices. Prob 17 inch.