I have a 1977 MB 450slc. The manual and door sticker says to run 32 psi in the front tires and 36 in the rear. Why so much more in the rear? The car can't be that much heavier in the rear. Won't this make the steering a bit harder and the rear a bit more bouncy?

than some other European brands -- if you want the car to feel a bit more like a BMW, lower the rears to 32 or even 30 and they'll still have enough capacity for a lightly loaded car, although you will want to raise the rears again if you fill the trunk with luggage. My preference would be to go to 36 all around, but I'm not sure what you're running for tire sizes and wheel widths.

In my experience, the last thing you want to do is to lower the pressure below the sticker spec. The sticker gives the MINIMUM pressures. If you lower the pressure particularly in the rear, you will almost certainly experience uneven tire wear.

The rear tires must TORQUE the tires. This twisting action, with too little pressure will cause a depression underneath the center of the tire patch that will cause the tires to SCRUB as the tire rotates against the road. This scrubbing action accelerates tire wear.

This is probably why the rear is so high.

Good luck,