Oh man, I think I just had an eyegasm. The underside is magnificent. The cloth thing around the intake manifold just after the air cleaner!! Oh man, SO FLAWLESS!!

By the way, if Wilma's engine was a lady, well, lets just say it would be kind of like dropping a needle down a Well. She still functions well enough, but it ain't anywhere near as pretty as yours sir!

Shortly I am to start restoration of my 109 300sel 3.5V8. Most parts are expensive. I believe The alloy wheels are a common but later addition to these beautiful cars.
mak

Joe, your right, it is a pretty machine. I would put this in-line 6 against a turbodiesel anytime (equivalent cubic inches). The wheels were not original to the build but were an option, dealer installed in 1971 I believe. I purchased the wheels when I lived in New Jersey in April of 1985. They were take off-offs from a Benz with about 500 miles on them at the time. Here are a couple of pics of them in June, 2009 after a cleaning and an application of Zymol, did I say I liked the smell of Zymol?





Thanks for your question.

oh so clean..

Wow! Their really needs to be a thread dedcated to this car, its about as nice as it gets. I doubt the ones at the MB Museum are any nicer.

__________________
1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

280SE Guy,

I smoked a pack of cigarettes after looking at your car.

Please tell us you will show your car at the Concours d' Elegance! You would represent us all very well.

Zymol should be using your car in commercials for their product. I have never purchased the product, but your endorsement makes me want it. In fact, I just spent 30 minutes on their website learning about Zymol. I am going to buy some and try it.

I am a car guy. I spend my time chasing cars like I was chasing girls when I was 20. So it is a special occasion when the only word(s) I can say is: Wow!

__________________

1962 220Sb ~ The Emerald Bullet http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hx6tN1W48_o
1957 Ponton 220S
2001 S600 Daily Driver
The Universe is Abundant ~ Life is GOOD!http://www.classiccarclock.com

holy smokes.. i had to comment again ..

pictures should be sent to mercedes usa and mercedes germany

__________________
1989 300ce 129k
( facelifted front,updated tail lights, lowered suspension,bilstein sports, lorinser front spoiler, MOMO steering wheel, remus exhaust,stainless steel brake lines). (Gone)

1997 s320 154k (what a ride). Sold with 179k miles. Replaced with Hyundai Equus

1994 e320 Cabriolet 108k



1972 280se 4.5 153k Owned for 12 yrs, sorry I sold it


[/SIGPIC]

Thanks for the reply 280SE Guy.

I want to learn about this Zymol too.

Joe and Jeffrey,

There are 2 types of the lesser expensive Zymöl waxes, they are Zymöl Carbon and Zymöl Creame each tub is about $49.00. The Carbon is for darker colored finishes (what I use on the Anthracite color) and the Creame which is for the lighter finishes. Waxing is a whole other subject better brought up on an auto detailing site, (but I really do like the smell of the wax ). There are other Zymöl waxes that can cost up to $8,400 but they do come with a lifetime refill policy.

Thanks to everyone for the kind comments and remarks, they are always welcome. Attached is a little blurb I put together about the history of my 280SE and a copy of the original window sticker! What a bargain price in 1971.

Attached Files

	1971_Mercedes_Benz_280SE.pdf (77.2 KB, 261 views)
	window_sticker.pdf (234.0 KB, 213 views)

I was showing your car to a co-worker who asked, "what is that car worth?" My answer is "Whatever the very best example in the entire world is worth" plus $5,000.00.

One of the finance wizards might help me calculate what the original purchase price of $9,109.00 would be in todays dollars adjusted for inflation.

If I won a car from a Mercedes Benz contest and was offered the choice between a 2010 S Class or your 1971 S Class... It would not be a difficult decision. I would prefer the Anthracite Classic.

__________________

1962 220Sb ~ The Emerald Bullet http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hx6tN1W48_o
1957 Ponton 220S
2001 S600 Daily Driver
The Universe is Abundant ~ Life is GOOD!http://www.classiccarclock.com

about

$46156.60

For some price perspective....

I bought a VW SuperBeetle at about the same time, 1971. No A/C or radio, no power anything as a matter of fact.

Price was $2216.00 out the door. The out the door price included tax, title and lisence plates.

I also purchased a 1969 Dodge 440 (that was the model number; it had a 360) that had much the same equipment level but no 4-wheel discs or power windows. It was right at $3600 but that included T, T, & L.

Both of these were purchased new.

During the time period starting in 1969; we bought a 220D, and then two 240Ds in the '70s all new. A new Cadillac Sedan DeVille's list pricing was very similiar.

Today, a new E-Class and a new Cadillac are roughly in the same ballpark as well.

From what I've observed, the S-Class has always been well above the new Cadillac price.

The next door neighbor to us was a banker, and he drove a car like 280SE Guy's car, in the early '70s.

In 1974 I bought a new Cadillac Sedan DeVille and paid $7,100. It listed for $8,600.

Bargain. I'd much rather pay that amount for a new 108 (if they made them) than the same amount for a current S-class, even though that would be substantially less than the new ones currently go for.

__________________
Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 400,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 22,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.

I was a big Jaguar XJ6 fan back in the early Seventies and still recall the February 1972 Road & Track road test article. List price of a '72 model F.O.B. East Coast: $7,612