Help Me Oppo

"CaptDale - is secretly British" (captdale) 01/07/2017 at 15:47 • Filed to: mercedes, r107, 560sl

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I am re-beginning the search for a R107 Mercedes 560SL (1972-1989) for my current guy friend’s mom. Since I am “the car guy” she knows, she trusts me to find a good one for here. Criteria is “not too many miles”, limit it $10,000 (maybe more for the perfect one), prefers dark interior, and as close to Central California as possible since shipping one would add to cost. We started looking about 6 months ago, but then she held off. Now her ‘04 Audi A4 is finally biting the dust, so she is having me look again. Anyone find one near them? Thanks for looking

Something like this, but maybe w/o the ruined seat

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TFRITCH?

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Oh my, too much but Black, on black, on black

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Oooohhhh..... This one might be right

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Party-vi > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 16:07

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The 560SL was sold from 1986 until 1989 in the US.

CaptDale - is secretly British > Party-vi 01/07/2017 at 16:10

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That was just generational information, but good to know.

Klaus Schmoll > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 16:13

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Why is she hung up on the 560? Also considering the smaller V8s might widen your choices. And it’s not like any of them is a particilarly fast car by today’s standards anyway.

CaptDale - is secretly British > Klaus Schmoll 01/07/2017 at 16:15

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Doesn’t have to be a 560 for her, but for the R107 generation that is what resident German mechanic and fiend TFRITCH suggested over the rest for reliability purposes.

FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 16:32

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I hear “The Excellent” might be for sale...

CaptDale - is secretly British > FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com 01/07/2017 at 16:33

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As much as I’d like to own that, I don’t know if I could convince a nice older lady to drive that.....

G_Body_Man: Sponsored by the number 3 > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 16:38

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I’d make sure the hardtop comes with the car, the convertible top is free from tears, and the A/C works. Otherwise, R107s are pretty much like any other high quality used car in terms of reliability.

JGrabowMSt > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 16:45

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I’m a huge fan of the square headlight over the round headlights. YUUUGE.

It’s just a cleaner look.

The value of the SL class really depends on where you’re located and how many miles are on the car. That’s literally it. I have never seen someone looking at SL cars balk at a car that didn’t have certain features. It’s incredible, but true. This is also partly due to the fact that if you bought an SL, it was more than likely fully loaded, or close to it. Can’t really fault someone dropping that much on a car to just pop a “screwitol” and check all the option boxes.

That said, the 560SL is an interesting car for sure. They basically need a major engine overhaul around 100k miles, and while that’s happening, you best replace the radiator as well.

The suspension is not a selling point of the car. This is the problem with the R107. You may test drive one, and think it feels numb, completely unresponsive and steering is more of a vague general directional queue than anything else. They’re floaty cars, not particularly fast, but it’s better that way, as the suspension isn’t going to help you much.

Try to get one with a hardtop. Buying a hard top separately is stupid expensive, and most people don’t separate them unless the car is getting parted out. The 450SL is a fine automobile, the 380SL is kind of a slouch for what it is. Plenty of people will say the 450 has tons of engine problems and the 380 is too slow. The 560 is the top of the line, but honestly, one that runs well and drives well is what to go for. Unless you’re jonesing for that 560SL, I wouldn’t limit the search to a 560SL.

Value wise, I would put a mint condition, very low mileage 560SL around 12-15k tops. From there, you’re only going down, but the R107 is maintaining it’s value from what I’ve seen lately. I have a very good friend with a 560SL, he thought about selling the car last year, and could not bring himself to do it. They’re beautiful cars, and as the owner of an SL class, I understand completely that they’re hard to let go of once you really get a chance to run the car through it’s paces.

I will say though, if she’s just after an SL class, a 97+ R129 SL500 is a joy of a car. The V8 is not complicated, they’ve got OBDII for easier diagnostics, and a base model will have regular springs and struts for the suspension (which is way easier to maintain over the hydraulic system, ask me how I know). The R230 class simply isn’t far enough down in the depreciation curve unless they were looking to spend in the 20k range though.

I personally love the R107 SLC cars, but they are not easy to find in good shape by me. I’d be plenty happy with a plain-jane 380SLC if I could find one, but I’m just not there.

No matter which one you end up finding for them, make sure it has square headlights.

CaptDale - is secretly British > G_Body_Man: Sponsored by the number 3 01/07/2017 at 16:49

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Definitely would have to have the hard top

CaptDale - is secretly British > JGrabowMSt 01/07/2017 at 16:51

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I tried to convince her to go R129, but she likes the R107 body style

Klaus Schmoll > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 16:56

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I started buying various vintage car magazines to read on the crapper over a decade ago (4 different monthly publications bought whenever I find a new one at the gas station or the grocery store x over a decade = a lot of dead trees). The R107 is a topic well covered. Read several “What look out for when buying a R107" articles and I can’t remember common problems on the smaller V8s. Despite poor fuel economy, that is.

Went through the current pile just for shits and giggles, and found a bit of reading material. Take what you will out of it. It’s armchair knowledge at best.

G_Body_Man: Sponsored by the number 3 > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 16:59

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Would they be willing to go to $12,900?

https://sandiego.craigslist.org/nsd/cto/5918541419.html

CaptDale - is secretly British > G_Body_Man: Sponsored by the number 3 01/07/2017 at 17:01

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That is pretty!

CaptDale - is secretly British > Klaus Schmoll 01/07/2017 at 17:02

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That is awesome

JGrabowMSt > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 17:04

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Cant blame her on it. I love my R129, but the R107 is a beautiful design as well.

I would just keep an eye out for models other than the 560. They’re not common. You find a lot for sale, but they don’t have a big spread in value, so they’re a tough sell for someone just looking for a toy. If she’s going to be DDing the car, good tires are a priority, and hard to find. You may want to consider different wheels to replace the really high profile tires with something slightly more responsive.

They also don’t have the most luxurious radio, so you may want to also look into a replacement. If it has a tape deck, pick up a bluetooth tape adapter and call it a day. If it’s just AM/FM, consider something else, but keep the original radio with the car.

Red is an okay color on the R107, Silver, Blue and Black all look amazing. I’m not a fan of the white at all though. I once saw a blue SLC on the highway and I cannot get the picture out of my head. The wheels are a mixed bag, I think the chrome is tacky and really not a good look for the car. Monoblocks do look very fitting on them if you can find a set for reasonable money (also lets you run 18" tires which are better performing).

Also you should definitely watch the Harry’s Garage video on the R107 he has.

G_Body_Man: Sponsored by the number 3 > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 17:06

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Light exterior, black interior, pretty good mileage, comes with the hardtop and the storage rack for the hardtop, and only a bit over $10k.

Klaus Schmoll > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 17:15

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Oh, one little thing I remember: timing chains and something about water pumps.

But let’s be honest, if a car has survived this long, it has to have eventual teething problems fixed, or it would be on a junkyard somewhere. Mercedes aren’t like American cars that can run poorly for millions of miles. If something fails and isn’t fixed immediately, it will cause a cascade of other failures that turn it into lawn art.

FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 17:41

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But he’s only asking £120,000! Pretty decent episode yesterday. Here’s a nice one in up the road from me in Austin for $8500. Dark interior in good shape. If it’s loved here it’s whole life then it should be rust free. Probably could get it and shipped for $10k.

https://austin.craigslist.org/cto/5900015259.html

Steve in Manhattan > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 17:52

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Get one with a driver’s side airbag - that came late in the car’s production, and it might save a life. It will also have CHMSL (center high-mounted stop lamp). Even more safety.

CaptDale - is secretly British > Steve in Manhattan 01/07/2017 at 19:18

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We will look into it, but she drives maybe twice a week

CaptDale - is secretly British > FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com 01/07/2017 at 19:23

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That is a pretty one

Steve in Manhattan > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 21:31

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Nonetheless, most accidents happen close to home (they say) ... so get her basic safety.

Joe6pack > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/07/2017 at 23:39

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I have had two R107s - an ‘86 560 and a ‘73 450. By far, I preferred the ‘73. The earliest cars actually had 4 speed autos and a lower rear end gear ratio. They also came with the smaller Euro bumpers and had the most horsepower (230) up until the 560 came out. As a result, they feel sportier than the later models.

This was my actual car and was the first collector car I bought. The Mustang in the second photo was actually the second. I prefer the round U.S. headlights to the square Euro ones. I don’t have any pics of the 560.

In ‘74 the R107s got the diving board bumpers. In ‘75, they got catalytic converters in the engine bay which fried all the wiring. In later years they got a problematic automatic climate control system. The 380 that came out in ‘81 had timing chain and head issues. The 560s are newest and you are more likely to find one in good condition, but I still prefer the ‘72-’73 cars.

These are good cars that don’t go wrong often and I wouldn’t worry about higher mileage. That said, if they sit for long periods of time, they will likely need maintenance. The brakes in particular like to freeze up.

CaptDale - is secretly British > Steve in Manhattan 01/08/2017 at 09:19

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I definitely will bring that up with her.

Steve in Manhattan > CaptDale - is secretly British 01/08/2017 at 11:29

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Oh, and ABS - not sure which year that added that (if they did).