Does nayone know why they stop making th 450 sl's in 1981 and replace it with the 380 SL's.


Does the 450 mean 4.5 L v8 and the 380 mean 3.8 v eight. And how are the 380 compaire to the 450 sl.

I own a 380 SLC and i love it. Its a 3.8 liter yeah, the 450's were 4.5 liter. They performance is great in mine though..

-Aaron

At one time I conidered buying an SL, and researched into it. I found a good book, a buyers guide to Mercedes. It talked about all the MB's and ranked them via a star system for collectability or desireability. 1 star meant not collectable, 5 stars very collectable. It also speaks to its likelihood of appreciation.

Of all the SL's, the book ranked the 560's as the most desireable. Next were the 450's, then last the 380's. The 380 suffered from very low horsepower, and had worse performance than the 450. MB really took a step backward. Further, the 380's had single sprockets for the timing chains, and that was bad. Many, if not all owners, have changed to double sprockets.

Yes, 450 means 4.5 liters, 3.8 means 3.8 liters, 5.6 means 5.6 liters. The 4.5 is an iron block, aluminum head. The 3.8 and 5.6's are all aluminum.

My brother has a 1985 380SL it has the dual timing upgrade from factory.

The car has 165-170k on it, he hardly maintains it and it is still going strong.

HE recently had a new chain done, and the lifters, and the car drives like a champ.

Apart from some minor paint work needed the car looks and runs great.

Power is fine for the car. Yeah the 450 was a bit faster, but the 380 is perfectly fine.

I've driven a 450 vs a 380, and the 450 had a ridiculous amount of rear squat under accelleration. the 380 doesn't have as much squat under acceleration. From what I can tell.

Either way, I still love the 107 roadster. its styling is one of those timeless pieces that just will not go out of style.

Even today those older SL's still look better than most new cars.

Alon

Even with an R129 in the stable, I still long for an R107 to call my own...that's the car I dreamed of owning when I was fresh out of college.:)