Mercedes Benz 1966 230sl on 2040-cars

History of the Model  (From Wikipedia) -

The Mercedes-Benz W 113 is a two-seat roadster/coupe, introduced at the 1963 Geneva Motor Show, and produced from 1963 through 1971. It replaced both the legendary 300 SL (W 198) and the 190 SL (W 121 BII). Of the 48,912 W 113 SLs produced, 19,440 were sold in the US.

The W 113 SL was developed under the auspices of Mercedes-Benz Technical Director Fritz Nallinger, Chief Engineer Rudolf Uhlenhaut and Head of Styling Friedrich Geiger. The lead designers were Paul Bracq and Bela Barenyi, who created its distinctive, patented, slightly concave hardtop, which inspired the "Pagoda" nickname.

All models were equipped with an inline-six cylinder engine with multi-port fuel injection. The bonnet, trunk lid, door skins and tonneau cover were made of aluminum to reduce weight. The comparatively short and wide chassis, combined with an excellent suspension, powerful brakes and radial tires gave the W 113 superb handling for its time. The styling of the front, with its characteristic upright Bosch "fishbowl" headlights and simple chrome grille, dominated by the large three-pointed star in the nose panel, paid homage to the then already legendary 300 SL roadster.

W 113 SLs were typically configured as a "Coupe/Roadster" with a soft-top and an optional removable hardtop.

History

By 1955, Mercedes-Benz Technical Director Prof. Fritz Nallinger and his team held no illusions regarding the 190 SL's lack of performance, while the high price tag of the legendary 300 SL supercar kept it elusive for all but the most affluent buyers. Thus Mercedes-Benz started evolving the 190 SL on a new platform, model code W 127, with a fuel-injected 2.2 liter M180 inline-six engine, internally denoted as 220 SL. Encouraged by positive test results, Nallinger proposed that the 220 SL be placed in the Mercedes-Benz program, with production commencing in July 1957.

However, while technical difficulties kept postponing the production start of the W 127, the emerging new S-Class W 112 platform introduced novel body manufacturing technology altogether. So in 1960, Nallinger eventually proposed to develop a completely new 220 SL design, based on the "fintail" W 111 sedan platform with its chassis shortened by 30 cm (11.8 in), and technology from the W 112. This led to the W 113 platform, with an improved fuel-injected 2.3 liter M127 inline-six engine and the distinctive "pagoda" hardtop roof, designated as 230 SL.

The 230 SL made its debut at the prestigious Geneva Motor Show in March 1963, where Nallinger introduced it as follows: "It was our aim to create a very safe and fast sports car with high performance, which despite its sports characteristics, provides a very high degree of traveling comfort".

Legacy

The W 113 was the first sports car with a "safety body," based on Bela Barenyi's extensive work on vehicle safety: It had a rigid passenger cell and designated crumple zones with impact-absorbing front and rear sections built into the vehicle structure. The interior was "rounded," with all hard corners and edges removed, as in the W 111 sedan.

The W 113 was also the first Mercedes-Benz with radial tires.

Models

230 SL (1963-1967

Production of the 230 SL commenced in June 1963 and ended on 5 January 1967. Its chassis was based on the W 111 sedan platform, with a reduced wheelbase by 30 cm (11.8 in), recirculating ball steering (with optional power steering), double wishbone front suspension and an independent single-joint, low-pivot swing rear-axle with transverse compensator spring. The dual-circuit brake system had front disc brakes and power-assisted rear drum brakes.   The 230 SL was offered with a 4-speed manual transmission, or an optional, very responsive fluid coupled (no torque converter) 4-speed automatic transmission, which was popular for US models. Of the 19,831 230 SLs produced, less than a quarter were sold in the US.

The 2,308 cc (2.3 L) M127.II inline-six engine with 150 PS (110 kW; 150 hp) and 196 N·m (145 lb·ft) torque was based on Mercedes-Benz' venerable M180 inline-six with four main bearings and mechanical Bosch multi-port fuel injection. Mercedes-Benz made a number of modifications to boost its power, including increasing displacement from 2,197 cc (2.2 L), and using a completely new cylinder head with a higher compression ratio (9.3 vs. 8.7), enlarged valves and a modified camshaft. A fuel injection pump with six plungers instead of two was fitted, which allowed placing the nozzles in the cylinder head and "shooting" the fuel through the intake manifold and open valves directly into the combustion chambers.   

Mercedes-Benz Chief Engineer Rudolf Uhlenhaut, who was as competent behind the wheel as any racing driver, demonstrated the capabilities of the 230 SL on the tight three-quarter mile Annemasse Vetraz-Monthoux race track in 1963, where he put up a best lap time of 47.5 seconds vs. 47.3 seconds by Grand Prix driver Mike Parkes on his 3 liter V12 Ferrari 250 GT.^[7]

History of this Car –

The Original Owner bought this car in 1966 on MB’s European Delivery Plan and used it to tour Europe for three months.  The car was brought back to the states and used sparingly enough to accumulate only 62,567 miles by the time it was sold to a family friend twenty-three years later in May, 1989. 

Owned:                                1966 to 1989

Driven:                                 62,567 miles

Average annual usage:       2,720 miles

The Second Owner (a friend and coworker of mine) bought the car in 1989 and shortly after buying it had a minor accident at walking speed that damaged the grill.  He invested a considerable amount repairing the (minor damage) and upgrading the car’s appearance.

Entire car was repainted in its original color

New grill assembly

New carpet

New rubber moldings

Interior of trunk repainted

Bumpers re-chromed

Throughout the time of his ownership, the car was kept in climate controlled storage and never driven in rain, snow or any other type of bad weather.

Owned:                                 1989 to 2013

Driven:                                 2,983 miles

Average annual usage:        125 miles

I became The Third Owner in November of 2013 with car having 65,550 miles on the odometer.  I became aware of the car in 2012 when the second owner mentioned to me he had an old Mercedes in his garage that had not been driven in several years.  After I expressed interest in buying it, he spent a fair amount of time deciding whether or not he wanted to sell or have it made road-worthy and ultimately elected to sell it.  As a part of the sale, he had his mechanic:

• Drain and replace old gasoline

• Clean injectors

• Replace spark plugs

• Replace battery

• Replace hoses

• Change oil

After buying the car, I gave it to my mechanic who addressed a number of issues; many of which were associated with the car’s inactivity.  He:

• Replaced front main seal of engine

• Replaced cracked motor mount

• Replaced front shocks

• Rebuilt idler arm assembly

• Installed new steering damper

• Replaced leaking power steering hose

• Resealed water pump with new gaskets

• Replaced non-working thermostat

• Replaced exhaust system with complete new stainless steel system

  • Installed new chrome tips

  • Replaced rear exhaust manifold.  The front manifold was OK but I have a replacement that comes with the car

• Repaired non-working rear brakes

  • Replaced wheel cylinders

  • Installed new brake lines and adjusters

• Repaired non-working emergency brake

Current Condition/Assessment

Exterior – the 1989 respray was of very good albeit not show quality.  Body panels and gaps are all straight.  The paint shines nicely but does have several small chips.  There is no rust in the car.

A black convertible top was installed in the late 80s and appears to have been used very, very infrequently.  I erected it as shown in several pictures and confirmed that there are no tears or wear marks.  The rear window is clear.

Interior – The interior of the car is in very, very good condition.  Carpet was replaced in 1989 (using Mercedes parts) and still looks new.  Seats are original vinyl with a small tear in the driver’s seat.  The center console tray is not installed but will come with the car.  It is in near-perfect condition.  A set of sheepskin seat covers are included with the car.

All gauges work perfectly; heater, defroster, ventilation system and blower all work as new; clock works (but does lose several minutes a week); radio works; wipers work; interior lights all work. 

Mechanical – car drives as designed.  Handles well, maintains good oil pressure, temperature stays stable at 185 degrees.  Car tracks straight, idles smoothly, shifts correctly and accelerates in a manner consistent with what is written in road tests from the 60s. 

Weaknesses - the only known items in the car that do not work as designed are:

• Trip odometer reset control

• Air conditioner – the A/C system is complete and all components are installed correctly but does not blow cold air.  It would be tempting to suggest that all it needs is to be charged, but I suspect that would be an optimistic assessment.

The biggest area of disappointment is that the engine bay is not neat and tidy. The firewall pad is old and needs to be replaced and it appears as though undercoating was misguidedly applied to the engine compartment at some point in its past.

Car Comes With

• Removable hardtop

• Car Cover

• Complete tool kit with original tools in original vinyl case

• Some service records from the mid-70s and most if not all service records from 1989 to the present.

• All manuals and documentation from new including:

  • Mercedes Benz 230SL owner’s manual with supplement for changing wheels and original vinyl case

  • MB Type 230 spare parts catalog

  • MB worldwide service directory

  • MB world map of distributors and service stations

  • Becker Europa TR AM/FM radio
    

    • Operating instructions

    • Service directory

  • MB Service Booklet

  • Bosche world directory

  • MB Directory of dealers in the United States (May 15, 1966 edition)

  • MB Owner’s Service Policy and original owner’s ident-a-plate

  • Wheel change instruction card

  • MB 230SL Instruction Manual for Daimler-Benz Automatic Transmission

  • Kuhlmeister automatic air conditioning Operators Guide and owner’s warranty

  • MB instruction sheet for removing protective wax from chrome

  Prices from Hagerty's Price Guide are:
  

• Condition 1               $89,500

• Condition 2               $54,600

• Condition 3               $38,700

• Condition 4               $24,400