New pics of "The Red Baron"

[suginami]

We took The Red Baron to my mom's house for Mother's Day.

I took the pics in front of the country club where we had brunch.

I tried to keep the speeds at about 70 mph to see if I could get reasonably good fuel economy, and ended up returning 15.2 mpg, which makes me very happy.

The car drives magnificently on the highway. It is perfectly smooth and tight. I also turned 170,000 miles on the odometer on the way back.

[tonkovich]

very nice

[USAROVER]

YES!!!

[suginami]

FWIW, I nicknamed this car "The Red Baron" in honor of the '72 600 Pullman limousine that Charles Schultz was presented by Mercedes when he was in vacation in Europe.

This was the only 600 Pullman limo ever painted in 568 Signal Red, the same color as my car.

The car eventually made its way to the U.S., and it has custom plates on it that read "REDBRRN".

[Darthgrader]

Absolutely stunning! A rolling work of art.

[Aquaticedge]

Beautiful Car, I do like the signal Red, it's lovely on most mercedes

[JiveTurkey]

Originally Posted by suginami

FWIW, I nicknamed this car "The Red Baron" in honor of the '72 600 Pullman limousine that Charles Schultz was presented by Mercedes when he was in vacation in Europe.

This was the only 600 Pullman limo ever painted in 568 Signal Red, the same color as my car.

The car eventually made its way to the U.S., and it has custom plates on it that read "REDBRRN".

Do you read Mercedes Enthusiast magazine? They had a special on the Red Barron not too long ago.

[suginami]

Originally Posted by JiveTurkey

Do you read Mercedes Enthusiast magazine? They had a special on the Red Barron not too long ago.

I haven't picked it up in a while....maybe I should see if I can order a back issue.

This is the magazine that is sold in the U.K., right?

[suginami]

Originally Posted by Aquaticedge

Beautiful Car, I do like the signal Red, it's lovely on most mercedes

Tom Hanson at the Mercedes Classic Center told me that 568 Signal Red is an incredibly rare color on a W108 car.

I've never seen another one.

Believe it or not, it actually looks better in person than it does in photos.

[meltedpanda]

sweet sweet ride. well done

[suginami]

Originally Posted by meltedpanda

sweet sweet ride. well done

Thanks.

I've owned the car for a couple months now, and I've done nothing to it but re-paint the driver's side front fender to remedy a very deep scratch that caused the paint around it to lose its adhesion, and add power steering fluid. It leaks power steering fluid pretty good on the garage floor.

The hose to the pump is new, and the pump itself is as dry as a bone, so I think it might be leaking at the steering box.

[Skippy]

Dangit! That reminds me of how I really should have junked my money pit 114 in favor of a certain green 108 last year.

[meltedpanda]

Originally Posted by suginami

Thanks.

I've owned the car for a couple months now, and I've done nothing to it but re-paint the driver's side front fender to remedy a very deep scratch that caused the paint around it to lose its adhesion, and add power steering fluid. It leaks power steering fluid pretty good on the garage floor.

The hose to the pump is new, and the pump itself is as dry as a bone, so I think it might be leaking at the steering box.

on my 107 , it did the same thing . I used some PS sealer fluid the good thick stuff as a last resort and fixed it right up. I drained all the fluid and replaced it with the sealer fluid. The stuff was thick as honey but did the job. Just in case, I have a steering box on my bench ready for rebuild. Its a big job!

[suginami]

Originally Posted by meltedpanda

on my 107 , it did the same thing . I used some PS sealer fluid the good thick stuff as a last resort and fixed it right up. I drained all the fluid and replaced it with the sealer fluid. The stuff was thick as honey but did the job. Just in case, I have a steering box on my bench ready for rebuild. Its a big job!

I bought the same "good thick stuff" at the auto parts store. I'm going to give it a shot until I have to rebuild the steering box.

[Mike k.]

Originally Posted by suginami

FWIW, I nicknamed this car "The Red Baron" in honor of the '72 600 Pullman limousine that Charles Schultz was presented by Mercedes when he was in vacation in Europe.

The car eventually made its way to the U.S., and it has custom plates on it that read "REDBRRN".

Gentlemen,

Just to dispel a common myth that continues. Charles Schultz never owned this car. In fact, would never be seen a car this colour. When I first read the article in MB Enthusiast, I sent an e-mail to his son, Craig, asking about it. Craig responded that his dad never owned a car like that. In fact, having recently remarried, never left the country at that time.

I contacted Mr. Chester at the time. He was kind enough to point out the article said "the first owner was alleged to be Mr. Schultz." Mr. Chester also mentioned that the PO had passed that information along to him.

I guess my interest is that many times, people, directly or indirectly, tend to inflate the provenance of cars. Often times, looking to increase the value. In this case, this car is an outstanding example of the W100. It should stand on it's own merits, and the care that Mr. Chester has provided for it.

Thanks for allowing me to share this with you.

Cheers !

Mike K.