1970 Mercedes-Benz 280 SL

VEHICLE DESCRIPTION

The 280SL sat at the very top of the Mercedes-Benz W113 ‘Pagoda’ range, and like so many of these timelessly elegant roadsters, the car being offered for sale here was exported new to North America.

It was delivered via Houston to Park Place Motorcars in Dallas, Texas, finished in the attractive colour combination of Dark Olive with Cognac MB-Tex interior trim. It was specified with ‘single seats’, automatic transmission, power steering, a Becker radio, tinted glass and whitewall tyres, and the options contributed almost $1000 to its suggested retail price of $8351.

The car’s extensive history file includes a wealth of invoices, plus an owner’s manual and service book. Service stamps from 1971 show that it was maintained by a Mercedes-Benz garage in Jacksonville, Florida, and then by Robertson Motors in Memphis, Tennessee from 1972-77.

By 2007, the Mercedes was in Arizona with owner Brian Coffelt, who took it with him when he moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, and then when he emigrated to Dublin in Ireland. He eventually sold the car to a new owner who was based in Scotland, and the history file documents considerable expenditure in subsequent years – including more than £3000 on a complete matching lock set.

More recently, the 280SL has benefitted from extensive work that was carried out by David Phillips Autos with parts supplied by noted specialist The SL Shop, which also carried out servicing work in 2021 and 2022. 

Now being offered for sale, this extremely attractive Mercedes 280SL ‘Pagoda’ still has its original factory hardtop and will be freshly serviced by the Classic Motor Hub before being delivered to its next owner. 

MODEL HISTORY

As a replacement for the famous W198 300SL and the 190SL, the Mercedes-Benz W113 had big shoes to fill when it was launched in 1963. It stepped up to the challenge with a blend of elegant styling and the sort of engineering excellence that people had come to expect from the German marque. 

Based on the platform from the W111 saloon, the W113 was styled by a team that included Paul Bracq and Béla Barényi, who was responsible for the concave hardtop that gave the model its ‘Pagoda’ nickname.

The new SL was powered by a range of fuel-injected six-cylinder engines, having been introduced as the 2308cc 230SL. The shortlived 2496cc 250SL was produced from late 1966 to early 1968 and gained all-round disc brakes, while the final evolution was the 2778cc 280SL, which was introduced in late 1967. 

There was a choice between a four-speed automatic gearbox or a five-speed manual, and air-conditioning was usually specified for North American cars. Steering was via a recirculating-ball set-up, while the suspension combined double wishbones at the front and a low-pivot swing axle at the rear.

While the W113 was intended to be more of a safe, comfortable Grand Tourer than a sports car, its robust engineering made it a fine choice for endurance rallying. Its best-known success came when Eugen Böhringer won the gruelling 1963 Spa-Sofia-Liège Rally in a 230SL. 

The 280SL lasted until 1971, when it was replaced by the new R107 model, but the W113 is rightly regarded as being a high point in the long history of the Mercedes SL, and its status as a coveted style icon has attracted famous owners from Tony Curtis and John Travolta to Kate Moss and Priscilla Presley.