I may be back in a benzo 1976 450sl

Hello all,

It has been long time since I rock and rolled.

I bought a 2005 ford ranger pickup in 2005 and I need my benz fix again.

I am considering a 76 450sl with 75k in real good condition. A friend of mine recommended the car, he is a german mechanic and has taken care of this car for many years.

It has no rust and most likely was not driven in the rain. No Known problems. He just had it at the shop for service. a real nice example of that car.

My concerns are is this going to scratch the itch for a long time and be a good car in the process. I am looking for a nice sunday car to enjoy. I like messing with cars in general so that is part of the fun.

Are they fun to drive. Are they dead solid reliable like the other benzos that I have owned. What do they compare to or are they truley in a league of their own.

I think that the asking price is 6000 which I feel is a real good price considering the condition and known history.

Thanks for all of the feedback

hope to be back at the forum

bob

[Jim B.]

Originally Posted by The Bob

Hello all,

I am considering a 76 450sl with 75k in real good condition. A friend of mine recommended the car, he is a german mechanic and has taken care of this car for many years.

It has no rust and most likely was not driven in the rain. No Known problems. He just had it at the shop for service. a real nice example of that car.

My concerns are is this going to scratch the itch for a long time and be a good car in the process. I am looking for a nice sunday car to enjoy. I like messing with cars in general so that is part of the fun.

Are they fun to drive. Are they dead solid reliable like the other benzos that I have owned. What do they compare to or are they truley in a league of their own.

I think that the asking price is 6000 which I feel is a real good price considering the condition and known history.


bob

What I hate about the 1975 and 1976 450SL is the fact that for those years the catalytic converters were located on them under the hood, near the manifold, and they created huge amounts of underhood heat as a result, and not surprisingly, some fires and other problems.

For that reason I would personally never
consider one from those years.

Beginning in 1977, the problem was fixed, when the catalytic converters were relocated further downstream on the cars.

The car is otherwise fine, and built to the highest standards of Mercedes Benz quality in effect at that time.

$6000 is a good price for one with mileage that low, but the service records should be examined to see whether the car was serviced at time intervals or mileage intervals.

Vacuum lines, rubber seals, and plastic parts may have badly deteriorated or rotted, and be expensive to repair so everything should be checked carefully.

Few of them were driven hard, and few were the owners only cars, so plenty had low mileage for their years.

They were often used as weekend cruisers, and fashion accessories for women. They worked well for those purposes. They are boulevard cruisers, and will never be expected to handle like a Fiat X 1/9 or a VW Scirocco.

If it comes with both tops, you may need to buy a hardtop hoist or a hardtop stand.

Obtaining parts is no problem for them, and the 450 motor is very reliable but won't win any fuel economy prizes. They are responsive to wheel, lighting and cosmetic upgrades, which are easy to find, but for resale, most buyers prefer unmolested,well maintained originals.

www.oursl.com

www.slmarket.com

Prices are all over the map, from $3,000 to $30,000, depending on year, mileage, color, condition, and history, for the R107 chassis.

Thanks for the reply.

The history is what I like best about the car. My friend is old german man who does not screw around. He says that it is tight with nothing wrong with it. I bought his bmw that he had personally with great success. I have full confidence with the history. I just have to drive it and see if I like it. I am sure that I will at least like it as I sure do perfer MB to all other cars. Nothing else drives like them. I will keep the wheels that same, it has some wire spoke type that is retro, I like retro. The lights if not upgraded to euro will be. and the shocks will most likely be replaced with bilstein HD for good measure and then it should be road ready. I think that my friend has taken care of this car for the past 30 years. He has been around a long time. He insists that there is not a spot on the car. I saw it and the paint looks like new. It is original. IT should be a pleasure to roll around in on a sunny day or for a long highway cruise. If it was 20 years ago it would be high society but now it is most likely just a old car that was and still is cool to drive and be in.

Do you think that anyone would like to drive it. Nobody wants to drive my ranger.


Thanks again for the info


If I do buy it I will post pics


bob

[Jim B.]

Make sure it passes what Powerpig calls the WAF - wife acceptance factor. Or take your chances that asking forgiveness is often better than begging permission.

If you got it, you should ask a good exhaust or muffler shop about the feasibility/cost/legality of relocating/replumbing/removing the catalytic converter from underneath the hood.

Unless you are Autocrossing the SL, you don't need HD Bilsteins, the Bilstein Comforts are perfectly fine for cruising and spirited cornering.

The ride would be rough in the HD Bilsteins, which as far as I know aren't even made any more, anyway.

Good luck

THat is funny that you say that as I had the little talk with the little lady today and she was not supportive nor overly negative. I got the If it makes you happy line. Well boys that is good enough for me. Call me what you will but if it make me happy is as good as it gets around here.

It should make us both happy. Me much more so. It is a passion for cars that I have that is hard to let go. The ford ranger is good for mulch and the general duties of a small pickup but not much more.

I was thinking of punching out the converters but as I have learned to leave alone what I can.

Well I will do some research before buying shocks I have the bilstiens in the ranger and it is stiff as hell but I like the control that it gives.

we shall see


thanks

bbo

[CamelotShadow]

As the Crow says
If it makes you happy
WTHIWWT...

[aublutiger]

Bob...
In the same boat here and not regretting it at all. I purchased a 76 450SL from a family this past July for $2000. The car was a single owner...he bought it new for his wife..when she passed away in the 80s, it sat in his garage. In the 90s he started restoring it beginning with the mechanical items first. He obviously worked very slow, as his first cosmetic purchase was a new top 2 years ago. Unfortunately, he passed away last year. So, with some skepticism...I took the family for their word and had a MB mechanic look at it. Came back with flying colors. It looked like *****...but it drove like a dream. I currently have it in the body shop getting the paint and rust spots taken care of...but have already purchased most of the parts I need to fix up the interior off of ebay. As soon as she comes home I'll have her all fixed up in a couple of weeks. It is an EXCELLENT sunday car and turns heads, esp with the vintage tag. I think I haven't stopped at a gas station yet where someone asked questions about it...and you know how often you have to get gas with one of these cars! That would be the only neg experience so far....the gas mileage. But...I LOVE this car. Def get some method of removing the top without damaging the paint!!!
Have fun with it and post pics when you get it!