Hi board;

I am very close to buying a 'nice 72 280 sedan;

it has under 80,000miles
very clean in n out
maintenence records
no rust
a/c is still old r12;

Anyone have any advice on how these ride. I am now in an 85 300D turbo;

Or any 280 cool things or quirks to look out for?

Thanks!

AA

__________________
'87 924S
'81 280SEL

Sold ->

81 300SD -
93 300E w/ 3.2
85 300D-
79 300SD
82 300CD
83 300CD - CA
87 190E 5 spd
87 Porsche 924S

"..I'll take a simple "C" to "G" and feel brand new about it..."

Check for rust.
Carbs can be problematic and so can the camshafts on the M110 engines. Else they are solid engines and should be fun.

__________________
With best regards

Al

It will handle exceptionally well. Cool things about the '72 114 are that it's low-tech enough to be easy to maintain. Also has better features then later versions of the same car like massive seats and corner vent windows, manual sunroof(?) etc. Weaknesses are driveshaft center support bearings (not expensive), inaccessible starter motor and earlier versions of the twincam were known to wear rocker arms and camshaft lobes, preventable with maintenance. Also the usual rubbers, subframe bushings and engine mounts. See if it has dual Zenith carbs, that would be a plus. How much are they asking for it? 114/115's in excellent condition are lately climbing in value.

I quite enjoyed mine while I had it-the girlfriend got it after me and she loved it as well. Do a search for the carb (1A1 or something?)-it can be a real POS if the baseplate has been bent b/c of overtightening of the airfilter, but there is a rebuild kit and a conversion kit to hollys-apparently zenieths are also an option.

I used to do high-speed runs (i think it tops out around 120?) to a girlfriends house on a new stretch of toll road between our houses-it was a very, very smooth engine.

Watch for leaks through the window rubber as well...if you want to ugrade the sucker, keep in mind the w114 has the same underpinnings as the sl of the same vintage.

Is it a 280 or a 280SE?

I thought that there were 250's in 1972 and 280's in 1973. If it's a carb engine, does it have one carb, or two?

__________________
Chuck Taylor
Falls Church VA
'66 200, '66 230SL, '96 SL500. Sold: '81 380SL, '86 300E, '72 250C, '95 C220, 3 '84 280SL's '90 420SEL, '72 280SE, '73 280C, '78 280SE, '70 280SL, '77 450SL, '85 380SL, '87 560SL, '85 380SL, '72 350SL, '96 S500 Coupe

The car has one carburator. It is a Holley.
Is this a good thing. I am a D owner, and don't know too much aboutcarbs.

__________________
'87 924S
'81 280SEL

Sold ->

81 300SD -
93 300E w/ 3.2
85 300D-
79 300SD
82 300CD
83 300CD - CA
87 190E 5 spd
87 Porsche 924S

"..I'll take a simple "C" to "G" and feel brand new about it..."

Sorry about the mistake in the year.
It IS a '73 and a single carb;

123,000mi
No rust except for 2 very small spots
Had a mechanic look it over up on a lift for inspection; and it needs;
1- new battery
2- new fog lite bulb
3- new upper & lower front ball joints
4- new tie rod bushings
5- new centet muffler

There are service records
no sunroof,...........

Silver/ Red Interior in excellent shape

Asking 1000. plus to ship it to FL. another 800.

__________________
'87 924S
'81 280SEL

Sold ->

81 300SD -
93 300E w/ 3.2
85 300D-
79 300SD
82 300CD
83 300CD - CA
87 190E 5 spd
87 Porsche 924S

"..I'll take a simple "C" to "G" and feel brand new about it..."

I just picked one up a few weeks ago, and I love it.

BTW, was just watching a Hx Channel special on Carlos the Jackal and there's a tight w114/w115, black on black, cruising in slow-mo through one of the scenes. Awesome.

What your mechanic gave you as a list looks like a bare-bones list for making the car driveable and street-legal. Plan on replacing all the soft rubber...

__________________
1973 280 - Current Project Car
1979 240d - 100% Stock
1982 380sl - 100% Stock
1985 190e 2.3 - Heavily Modified