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Comments
I don't know about the 450SL, but our 380SL has the manual seat adjust (forward-backwards) on an incredibly tight spring. One end on the seat bottom. One end secured to the floorboards. Disconnecting it wasn't too bad, but it takes a lot of muscle, experience, or proper tools, or some combination of the 3 to resecure the spring if you have disconnected it to remove the seat. I've taken seat out from several makes of cars, including two other MBs, with manual and electric mechanisms, to be able to remove the carpet for replacement or deep cleaning while detailing the car......the SL seat was the only one I ran into problems with. I ended up having the spring reinstalled by a shop.... how embarrassing.
With 5,000 miles on those new Dunlop Sport 8000s I can say that overall they are pretty nice handling tires and seem very grippy, but the deep vertical grooves makes them a little twitchy with any imperfections in the road surface.
Other than that, the car is running great with 106K miles on it.
But shop around and ask around. If you are in a large metro area, maybe even a Mercedes wrecker will install a used part for you for a lot less $$$.
Those climate control setups had to be one of the weirdest of all time. My W126 had something similar, but it always worked - cold air and heat. However, now and then it would also put out heat when I had the heat turned off, or it would put out cold air when I had it on economy. I just ignored it.
There were aftermarket ones available that had an aluminum billet housing, but I don't any experience with those myself.
I wouldn't bother with any used ones, they usually aren't worth the money.
MG did this for years. It looks very much like a garden hose spigot!
It's certainly more than a one day job if you include painting. I hope you're getting this car pretty cheap enough to justify the expense.
If you're lucky, maybe you can just grind out the one area of rust and not have to replace the whole rocker.
With every old MB I have seen, a little rust always leads to more (like with any 30 year old car I guess). I see rust, and I lose interest.
Others here have posted good advice for you I think. Buy the best AND the newest year 450SL you can afford. 75-77 isn't a good time for these cars either. You want like an '80--'81 or whenever the last years were.
When you find one you like, be SURE to play with every switch, knob and accessory to make sure it all works. You don't want to have to be repairing the heat/AC units on these cars, or other electrical items. These are are great cruisers but not very good sports cars, so I assume you want luxurious straight line performance or for toodling around town. Also gas consumption is quite high in case you were wondering--highway miles aren't too bad, maybe up to 15-16 mpg, but city driving will be down to 10-12 mpg.
Thanks.
Barrym
"Front Wiper Failure to Park. The wiper motor gets power from two sources. One is from the switch on the stalk. The other is from the battery via the ignition switch, but in series with this path is a switch internal to the wiper mechanism which opens up once per cycle. If the second circuit is functioning, when you release the stalk switch, the second circuit still carries current to the wiper motor until it reaches the wiper position where the internal switch opens. At this point, if the stalk switch is disengaged, the wipers park. If the second circuit isn't working, either because of a faulty wiper park switch (inside the wiper mechanism) or because the external wiring isn't delivering current to this switch, then the wipers park immediately when you shut off the stalk switch, as you describe. First thing I'd check is the wiring."
I agree with your description in general. However, I didn't turn off the stalk switch. The wipers just stopped midway on their return to the starting position.
Barry
I have heard in a fintail it is a horrible amount of work to replace this part, I hope it isn't the same for you.
Barrym
Thanks for the input.
Barrym
Help please.
I suppose if the car passes a RIGOROUS checkover, and I do mean rigorous, you might take a chance---but you have to be prepared to suffer a total loss if something big gives way, like a transmission or the engine. Naturally I'd have the mechanic pull the wheels and check the rotors and calipers (brakes), check the exhaust system for bad mufflers and pipes, check for engine leaks, power steering leaks, transmission leaks, differential leaks. Check for RUST. Check ALL the switches and dials and knob and make sure everything works perfectly. The heating/AC systems on these cars is very expensive to fix.
These are great cars but they are expensive to repair. You should figure, on average, $200 a month to keep one on the road, plus your gas and insurance, etc., of course.
Good luck--and spend the $$$ to have it checked really well before you buy it. Spend a couple hundred if you have to, and save yourself a lot of grief later on.
Also keep in mind that this car will continue to depreciate. It's not going to become a "classic" anytime soon, and will be worth less each year for some time to come.
The asking price is about right for the miles---it's no bargain but it's fairly price more or less.
Earlier V8 SLs can be money pits if the miles are high and there has been neglect. Chronic ailments include faulty AC/heat systems, poor gas mileage, and handling like a Buick. Worst years are probably 75-77. And repairs can be pricey if a major component is involved. expensive. You'd be better off spending a little extra $$ and getting a clean low miles 560SL.
I suppose if you found a 450SL that was a)very well cared for by one or two owners, b) cleaner than clean and c) low-priced and d) passed a rigorous inspection---then okay, go for it!
Otherwise, for your needs, the 560SL is your baby I think.
12K might be a little low for a good one, but 15K ish should be workable given enough time.
For reference, I looked at a pristine 1988 560SL a couple years ago, 70K miles, diamond blue on grey...quite excellent, and I am a picky person. They wanted around 15K for it.
Here's what's on Ebay: 560SLs for sale
You might also check "completed listings" to see what sold, and how the market values the various years and miles. A very rough guide - about $15K at 50k miles, about $10k at 100k miles, but many didn't meet reserve at those prices. That's just what people were willing to bid.