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1976 Mercedes-benz 450sl - 18k Orig. Miles, Silver/red Leather, One Family Owned on 2040-cars

Year:1976 Mileage:18854 Color: Astral Silver /
 Red Leather
Location:

Santa Barbara, California, United States

Santa Barbara, California, United States
Transmission:Automatic
Engine:4.5L V8
Body Type:Convertible
Vehicle Title:Clear
Condition:

Used

VIN (Vehicle Identification Number)
: 10704412029084
Year: 1976
Exterior Color: Astral Silver
Make: Mercedes-Benz
Interior Color: Red Leather
Model: SL-Class
Number of Cylinders: 8
Trim: Two Door Convertible
Drive Type: RWD
Mileage: 18,854
Options: Leather Seats, Convertible
Sub Model: 450SL
Power Options: Air Conditioning, Power Windows

Offered for sale is an absolutely stunning, mechanically excellent, effectively one family owned 1976 Mercedes-Benz 450SL with an amazing 18k original miles and finished in rare and desirable Astral Silver (DB 735) over a red leather interior. Delivered new on February 10th, 1976 by Mission Viejo Imports to Mr. and Mrs. Eddy O’Brien of San Diego, the car would remain in their care for 29 years, used only sparingly as a weekend driver by Mr. O’Brien until his death in 2005. Having not had any children, he willed his car collection (including this SL) to his godson, a resident of Prescott Valley, AZ. When he took possession of the 450SL it had a mere 17k miles on the odometer and he continued his godfather’s limited use, accruing less than 1,000 miles in his nine years of ownership before we were able to acquire it earlier this summer. 

As the pictures show, the previous owners’ care has yielded an exceptionally beautiful and incredibly preserved example, undoubtedly one of the finest, lowest mileage R107s in the world. Free of any accidents, the original body is entirely straight, retaining uniform factory correct panel fits and gaps and cloaked in a gorgeous, factory correct Astral Silver finish that is deep, lustrous and consistent, marred only by the most negligible of imperfections, one of which are significant enough to appear in any of the pictures or detract from the car’s considerable overall appeal. The brightwork is in excellent original condition, as is all of the glass and rubber, and the car retains its original color-matched hub-capped steel wheels, a somewhat uncommon option for mid-1970s examples but one that is in our opinion far superior aesthetically as compared to the more common “Bundt” style wheels. Neither the hard top nor the soft top were ever used with any regularity and they are both consequently in excellent original condition. Having spent its entire life in Southern California and Arizona, the car’s original undercarriage is entirely dry and solid. 

The car’s interior is entirely original and equally as clean, the red leather seats exhibiting only the mild patina one would expect of a very low mileage, nearly 40 year old car and the carpets and interior panels nearly flawless. Everything works, including the power windows, power antenna, original Becker radio and air conditioning system, which still blows ice cold. The trunk is clean and entirely original, housing the spare wheel, battery box and complete original tool kit. The car also comes with all of its original books and manuals (including the stamped service booklet), a stack of service records and some of the original sales documents.

Despite its sparing use, the car was always professionally maintained and is also mechanically strong, the original, numbers matching engine starting easily, idling consistently and pulling strongly and smoothly through each of the automatic transmission’s gears. Compression is excellent across all cylinders, the car drives and brakes straight and true, and the ride quality is excellent. We recently took the car on a +/-100 mile weekend jaunt up to the Santa Ynez Valley for an afternoon of wine tasting, and I’m happy to report that the car performed beautifully without any issues to note, despite the nearly 100 degree temperature. The 4.5L V8 is smooth and torquey and the car’s a joy from behind the wheel, whether tooling around town, winding through the canyons or bombing down the highway. 

This is an excellent opportunity to acquire a true investment grade R107 SL that checks all the right boxes for the discerning collector or weekend enthusiast: incredibly low original mileage, gorgeous and desirable color combination, strong original mechanicals and an excellent, effectively one family owned Southern California provenance. If you’re in the market for a collector quality SL, it’s unlikely that you’ll ever find a better example.

We want this car to go to great home and would be happy to discuss it further and answer any questions, so please feel free to email us or call us at 805-708-2404.

GOODMAN REED MOTORCARS

We’ve always had an appreciation for classic European cars and over the years have created an eclectic personal collection. We only buy cars that we’d personally be interested in owning and generally only sell them to make room for other acquisitions. We try to give accurate descriptions of the cars we’re selling, but we’re enthusiasts, not experts, and we encourage and are happy to help facilitate personal or professional inspections. But please do so before bidding, as the alternative harms our ability to make sales to other interested parties who have done their proper due diligence before bidding. 

For U.S. buyers a 10% non-refundable deposit is required within 3 days of the auction’s end, the balance to be paid within 7 days of the auction’s end. Foreign buyers must pay in full within 7 business days of the auction’s end. Buyer is responsible for shipping costs, however we’d be more that happy to help with recommendations and arrangements. The car is listed locally and we reserve the right to end the auction at any time should it sell prior to auction’s end. Thanks for your interest.

Mercedes-Benz SL-Class for Sale

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Auto blog

Race Recap: 2015 Canadian F1 Grand Prix is better behind the front

Mon, Jun 8 2015

As of Saturday afternoon in Montreal, Canada, it was all about the number four. Lewis Hamilton put his Mercedes-AMG Petronas on pole position for the fourth time at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, and now his tally of pole positions matches his race number: 44. Nico Rosberg lines up beside him, which is the fourth time that particular one-two combo has occurred this season. Ferrari spent three engine development tokens to try and close the gap to Mercedes, Kimi Raikkonen making the most of it with third position on the gird. His teammate Sebastian Vettel got the worst of it, however, when the MGU-K unit failed during Q1, leaving him 160 horsepower down and out at the first hurdle. Valtteri Bottas put a revitalized Williams on the grid at fourth, ahead of a Lotus lockout of the third row with Romain Grosjean leading the way in fifth, Pastor Maldonado just beside. Nico Hulkenberg got the first Sahara Force India into seventh – the team is still waiting on the upgraded B car that should be available for Austria – ahead of Daniil Kvyat in the first Infiniti Red Bull Racing and a "pissed off" Daniel Ricciardo in the second Red Bull. Sergio Perez made it two Force Indias in the top ten, a welcome result from a team performing below expectations of late. When the lights went out, at the very front it was much ado about not that much at all. Hamilton got away clean and stabbed across the track to close the door for Rosberg, giving Raikkonen a chance to take the inside line into Turn 1 in an attempt to clear Rosberg for second place. That didn't happen, leaving the two Mercedes' to run in grid position for the entire race. It wasn't boring – Rosberg stayed close, rubber-banding the time gap to the leader from a little more than one second to just under four seconds, and Montreal is famous for race-rearranging safety cars and on-track incidents. But none of those occurred, so Hamilton crossed the line 2.285 seconds ahead of Rosberg after 70 laps to earn his fourth victory in Canada and the first-ever victory for the Brackley, UK-based Mercedes team. Valtteri Bottas drove his Williams to third position, the first podium place for the team this year and a welcome salve to heal the team's wounds from a poor showing in Monaco. That placing came courtesy of being in the right place at the right time, which was not far behind Raikkonen when the Ferrari driver spun at the hairpin on Lap 28 after his first pit stop.

Formula 1 seeking independent engine supplier

Mon, Oct 26 2015

Formula 1 could get a new engine supplier in the near future, if Bernie Ecclestone and the independent teams gets their way. According to Autosport, the FIA is soon to open the contract up for bids, and there are already several manufacturers that have expressed interest. Currently Mercedes, Ferrari, Renault, and Honda supply engines – both to their own premier teams (Red Bull and McLaren for the latter two) but also to other teams like Williams, Sauber, and Toro Rosso. Because the new turbocharged V6 hybrid power units cost those four suppliers so much to develop, they're charging their customer teams big bucks – around $20-30 million per season – to provide the engines. These costs are much higher than the $10 million or so it used to cost to purchase a V8 engine under the previous regulations. Ecclestone figures it's time to bring in another supplier who will not run their own team and not play favorites, but will supply engines to private teams at a lower cost. There are already a number of potential suppliers under consideration. One of them is said to be Cosworth, which has a long history in the series stretching back to 1963. The British firm stepped back between 2007 and 2009, returned in 2010, and dropped out again after 2013. The development could be of particular benefit to Red Bull, which has been unable to find an engine supplier and could be forced out of the series as a result. The team has long been powered by Renault, but that relationship has grown sour. And the other three engine manufacturers have not been forthcoming in offering an alternative arrangement for the team. Related Video: News Source: AutosportImage Credit: Cosworth Motorsports Ferrari Honda Infiniti McLaren Mercedes-Benz Renault F1 engine contract

Gullwing America turns SLS AMG Roadster into stunning 1955 300 SC redux

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Gullwing America specializes in what it calls "retro styling meets modern technology." It's next demonstration of that is the convertible above, a stylized recreation of the 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SC (inset) supported by the structure of a 2012 SLS AMG Roadster. Commissioned by a client in Eastern Europe, the resulting car is called the 300 SLC.
The hand-formed aluminum bodywork required just a few changes to the SLS AMG Roadster, namely reworking the headlights into a stacked arrangement of LEDs and relocating the pop-up spoiler behind the cabin. The retro grille and long, straight hood evoke the past, the custom exhaust, height-adjustable suspension, 21-inch wheels up front and 22-inch wheels in back, however, stray a little further from history. The 300 SLC will come with a hardtop and be one-of-a-kind, making it even rarer than its inspiration, of which 92 were made.
If you have any more questions, they can probably be answered in the high-res photo gallery above and press release below.