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I just gotta say
Aug. 4th, 2009 09:54 pmI finished fitting the radio to the SL and tidying up the interior. With a full tank of gas and nowhere to go, I put down my books and just went to get fuel, Saint-Saëns 3rd on the "these songs are always in the car" SD card, all the dash tightened up, and super unleaded making the car a bit happier...
And with the soothing glow of early-90s Mercedes instruments (just lit white, like an Opel), and that tired but still comfortable seat, and the sweep of the single wiper, all snug with the hardtop fitted, I can only think one thing.
I shouldn't have waited to get one of these. When I got the RX8 and thought about a classic, or when I looked at the C6 (okay, the C6 is practical and the SL isn't)... I should have put a LOT more thought into just buying a really good 500 SL.
It combines the serenity I used to feel driving the 200TE, the confidence I had in that era of Mercedes construction, the slightly American twang of a good V8, softtop or hardtop, good boot space (particularly with the rear seat area not having seats on mine) and just the right balance of technology and good old fashioned engineering - even the fuel injection still uses a mechanical distributor.
It is, much as I said about the W124, near automotive perfection. Mine's possibly one of the scruffiest and cheapest ones you'll find, but as I see it, I could have paid £8,000 for one three years newer and be no better off in terms of jobs to do - so new suspension and tyres will see it restored to proper handling but starting from a lot lower base point.
If you're not just about screaming power or driving like a cock, but are quite happy sometimes just to putter about knowing that there's more power under your right foot than any off-the-shelf 90s Japanese import was ever allowed, I strongly recommend looking at an SL. There are very few 18 year old, tired and abused examples of high performance cars that I can imagine feeling so confident in that I'd happily drive it to Glasgow right now (albeit below the speed the out of balance wheels (or maybe prop) shake at).
And with the soothing glow of early-90s Mercedes instruments (just lit white, like an Opel), and that tired but still comfortable seat, and the sweep of the single wiper, all snug with the hardtop fitted, I can only think one thing.
I shouldn't have waited to get one of these. When I got the RX8 and thought about a classic, or when I looked at the C6 (okay, the C6 is practical and the SL isn't)... I should have put a LOT more thought into just buying a really good 500 SL.
It combines the serenity I used to feel driving the 200TE, the confidence I had in that era of Mercedes construction, the slightly American twang of a good V8, softtop or hardtop, good boot space (particularly with the rear seat area not having seats on mine) and just the right balance of technology and good old fashioned engineering - even the fuel injection still uses a mechanical distributor.
It is, much as I said about the W124, near automotive perfection. Mine's possibly one of the scruffiest and cheapest ones you'll find, but as I see it, I could have paid £8,000 for one three years newer and be no better off in terms of jobs to do - so new suspension and tyres will see it restored to proper handling but starting from a lot lower base point.
If you're not just about screaming power or driving like a cock, but are quite happy sometimes just to putter about knowing that there's more power under your right foot than any off-the-shelf 90s Japanese import was ever allowed, I strongly recommend looking at an SL. There are very few 18 year old, tired and abused examples of high performance cars that I can imagine feeling so confident in that I'd happily drive it to Glasgow right now (albeit below the speed the out of balance wheels (or maybe prop) shake at).
