WOW - Look at this one...

[nhdoc]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1972-Mercedes-Benz-Grand-600-Limo-With-Center-Divider_W0QQitemZ200000834005QQihZ010QQcategoryZ6333QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Boy oh boy...I would love to see this car in person. I wonder what it will go for? Whatever it is you could not replace it today no matter what. Look how clean it is under the hood!

If I only had the space and the money it would be in my stable...a guy can dream though!

[Hatterasguy]

Wow thats just about as nice as they come!

[Jim B.]

Low mileage, could go for BIG $$

Scott Featherman in Sports Car Market profiled these a few years ago..
here are couple or remarks....
"It takes a true specialist, with first hand knowledge and experience, to service, repair or restore these machines. For example, the hydraulic system requires a lightweight special purpose oil. MB Part #100 890 00 11. While this looks like typical ATF fluid, if ATF fluid is innocently dumped in the hydraulic reservoir-the system that powers the seats, windows, ventilation flaps, sunroof, trunk lid, shocks and on the early models, the door assists, you have just committed a $30,000 faux pas. Typical rebuild costs: Brake system overhaul, $25,000; front or rear axle assemblies $12,000 each plus $6,000 for the rest of the air suspension system, driveshaft $7,000, Fully restoring a 600, if you begin with a complete decent $20,000 builder, will set you back at least $150,000


"Obviously if you must have a 600, you are better off spending at least $70,000 for a good car with 40,000-50,000 miles that has been maintained, with a thick folder full of documentation. Top condition SWB 600s will bring well over $100k from savvy buyers who are aware of what it takes to make one right..."

"If the car runs out OK, and the owner drives it for a year and then sells it without doing anything, he will probably get his money back and have had a good time. But if he comes out one morning aqnd notices the car has adapted a kneeling position at one corner due to the collapse of the air suspension, he should be aware the good times have ended and the fiscal future is bleak."

Fun to look at!! Not for me personally, but this is one to watch!!

[davestlouis]

Yikes, and I was afraid of what it would cost to operate a 6.9.....makes a Rolls look like a cheap ride.

[300SDog]

Better than a Rolls says me for the statement it makes. Now how come the United Nations motor-pool at nearby Manhattan haint put a bid on it? Looks like the best loaner vehicle that *any* visiting dignatary could possibly want.

[Mark DiSilvestro]

Methinks the UN motor pool won't want to deal with maintaining a 600, so visiting dignitarys will just have to settle for stretched Caddys and Town Cars.

Happy Motoring, Mark

[Benzcrusher]

This car was on Ebay a few months ago,,,, wonder what happened...

[mercmad6.3]

It certainly looks nice ,but with any M-100 car the main thing that must be remembered is .." garages Kill!' which means that to leave a 600 sitting around without use and it will begin to develop problems in ANYTHING mechanical.
These cars drive like sports cars and to compare it to the primitive Rolls Royce is to say that you have never driven or ridden in either.
600 Guru Karl Middlehuave said once that the 600 is a $200,000 car,buy one for $20,000 and it will cost $180,000 to get it back on the road.
The majority of 600's were owned by the Rich and famous( there were only 2500 built) so the chance that it belonged to a celebrity etc is always on the cards.A friend of mine has one that belonged to African Dictator and murderer 'Mobutu' ,It's in the same conditon as this one and has a similar mileage.The owner had several and would ship them back to germany for a service or refurbishment every so often,Easy to do when you are stealing your countries money....
So I would say thsat this car has probably had the same treatment until the 1980's when it went to the US.Service probably hasn't been carried out correctly since.hence the low bids.

[Hatterasguy]

Still I'd rather start with perfect close to new original interior and body work, mechanical stuff can be fixed. But you only get original factory paint once.

In my book such a 600 that is perfect is ahead of a mechanicaly sorted one with 70k or so miles on it.

[mercmad6.3]

I agree on the body work,gone are the days of "restoring" cars just because they were old,buyers today look for originality over new upholstery.Wear is part of a cars Character.
Mechanial things on a 600 are seriously expensive,e.g pistons ...$1100 each. interior "comfort" circuit hydrualic switches...$2000 each ,and they do break because the diecast material deteriorates over time,the emergency kitset for the trunk has $23,000 worth of parts in it,such as a spare ram for the trunk lid.
Disc pads are $1200 for a set ,although another friend in South Africa has managed to get sets made for $80 a set.( if you need a spare set ,send me a PM and i'll pass his address etc on),then there is the air suspenion...while not as complex as others will have you believe the valves are rebuildable at $300 each ,the bags are $180 each,all this can be avoideed with a bit of driving,bags etc will last over 30 years on a regularly used car.
The auto trans will start leaking if the car is'nt used enough and handbrakes stick on...
So if you buy this car count on paying a knowledgable specialist at least $30,000 to make it roadworthy.
But read the feedback before committing yourself