Very Nice One Owner Original Car With Both Tops on 2040-cars

VIN: 10704412025467 Year: 1975
Exterior Color: Light Ivory
Make: Mercedes-Benz
Interior Color: Parchment
Model: SL-Class
Trim: Convertible with Hardtop
Drive Type: Rear drive
Power Options: Air Conditioning, Cruise Control, Power Locks, Power Windows
Mileage: 120,600

Condition: Used: A vehicle is considered used if it has been registered and issued a title. Used vehicles have had at least one previous owner. The condition of the exterior, interior and engine can vary depending on the vehicle's history. See the seller's listing for full details and description of any imperfections. ... 

 I bought this beauty from the daughter of the original owner, who passed away a few months ago. She inherited the car but was not interested in it. So technically that makes me the third owner, but I call it a One Owner because only one person owned and used this car from when it was new in 1975 until now. It has the original paint and interior, and it looks and runs great. A full inspection was done by two mechanics and we agreed that it's pretty obvious the car has never been in an accident.

The motor runs smoothly and has excellent power. I have put about 200 miles on it, and it has not over-heated or acted up in any way. When it starts and drives there is no smoke (no blue smoke, no white smoke or anything that would indicate a problem). The transmission shifts solidly and smoothly. The brakes work well and there are no strange noises when cruising, turning corners or going over bumps. The steering does have some play in it so I suppose that means the steering box could use a rebuild.

The convertible top was used only a few times in the car's life, I am told, and it looks outstanding. It's in excellent condition inside and out. There are some marks/scratches on the plastic rear windows but overall the plastic windows are very good and are not discolored. All the other windows (the glass) are very good except there's a chip in the right side of the windshield. The hardtop is very, very good inside and outside. It does have a lot of little scratches and a few nicks on its chrome trim around the base of the hardtop, probably from being taken off and put on not carefully enough

The paint is extremely nice, especially considering it's 38 years old! Along the slight body ridge that runs along the sides, just above the pinstripes, the paint is getting thin in 3 spots. I have photos of this if you want to see them. There are the usual little nicks here and there but there are not a lot of them and they are all very, very minor. The chrome is all good. Again, none of these items are perfect. This is a nice, original car, and from 5' or 10' it looks absolutely fantastic, but a close inspection reveals the little flaws that come with age and use.

There is absolutely no rust anywhere in or under this car, which has been in Arizona its entire life and was garaged from new.

The interior is very nice but there are some flaws. The MBTex vinyl is 99% great, but there's a 1/2" rip in the left bolster portion of the driver's seat, and two other dimples or scuffs on the seat portion. The floor carpets are very good since they were protected from new by the floor carpet mats. The luggage area carpet is in good condtion and looks great from 5' away, but it is dried out from all the years. The plastic trim around the inside rear edge of the hardtop has a couple of cracks in it from the sun. The owner put a dash mat cover on for one reason: The dash has cracks in it. While Arizona is great for cars in many respects, it is hard on those vinyl dashes. The face of the dash is very good but some of the little black trim strips are missing (see photo). The cigarette lighter is present but not hooked up - it may not work, I don't know. The original Becker Europa II radio works fine, as does the power antenna. The power windows work well. The power locks do not, and there's a hum in the left door when the car's running, so a local German repair shop told me that means the system is working but that there's a leaking vacuum line inside the door. The cruise control is not working. The ignition works fine but you'll have to manually turn the key back to the "run" position after turning it to "start"; it doesn't spring back by itself. The clock ticks along nicely but the hands don't turn. There's shop here in Scottsdale that repairs these clocks but I don't know about elsewhere.

The trunk is clean (it does show signs of use) and includes the tool set and a Michelin spare that is used (maybe from the original set of tires). The original rubber trunk mat is old and cracking but it's still usable. The trunk-mounted battery is recent and strong. The battery box cover is missing a couple of the latch clips so I put a bungie cord over it. There's not a speck of rust down in the spare tire well.

The chrome wheels are gorgeous but they do have some pitting and other blemishes, noticeable on close inspection. From a few feet away they look really nice, very sharp. The owner of the car had new Hankook Optimo H724 tires put on all 4 corners, so they have just about 500 (five hundred) miles on them and they look great and handle nicely. I have the warranty for the tires.

The owner also had the whole exhaust system replaced within the last year or two at a cost of over $1,000, and also spent $900 having the air conditioning system re-done, so it blows cold. There is no paperwork on the exhaust or the AC work, but one look under the car makes it clear the complete exhaust is pretty recent, and when you look under the hood you can see the AC hoses are new and the AC pump looks refurbished (the owner's daughter claims that's exactly what was done).

I have the car's original Owner's Manual and also the chrome top removal handles and the "key" for the chrome wheel center caps.

This is a really nice driver that with some attention to the odds and ends could be a top-notch example. It's close to that now. It cruises great and is a joy to drive, but when I bought it I'd been thinking of a 280SL, and I still want one, so this nice 450SL is available. I have a lot more photos IF you are serious. Thanks.