A great, honest example of the 2.3L, six-cylinder W113 with the popular manual gearbox
Complete with its all-important original hard and soft tops
Boasting a highly original and period correct condition throughout
The Appeal
The W113 was a watershed car for Mercedes Benz. It was charged with replacing both the ageing 190SL (W121) and the highly regarded 300SL (W198) whilst continuing to build on Mercedes Benz’s reputation as a premium maker of sublime sports coupes. As a result, Mercedes took no chances and every aspect of the new car received attention from a team of engineering and design luminaries including Fritz Nallinger, Friedrich Geiger and Paul Bracq. When the car was launched in 1963, such was its exclusivity and quality, that it retailed for twice as much as a Jaguar E-Type of the period.
Our car is an interesting example with an interesting back-story and lots to admire. It’s in a very good overall condition but still has the potential to be further improved by a new owner if required. All the key W113 attributes are here including that, now, renowned “pagoda” removeable hard top. With W113’s becoming harder and harder to find, our example may offer a buyer a more attainable car with the potential to retain, improve and enjoy it for many years to come.
The History and Paperwork
Our example was bought brand new in Germany in 1966
It was bought by an American Serviceman posted there at the time
Around a month after buying the car, he returned to his native California
Needless to say, he took the 230SL with him and used and enjoyed the car for many years
When he passed away the car was bought out of probate and imported to the UK
It was registered here for the first time in December 2021
The current owner and vendor bought the 230SL from that second owner
The car is complete with its current V5 in the name of the owner
The original owner’s manual / service handbook is also present
The car’s original German registration plate is also on hand and included
Registered as a historic vehicle the car is MOT and VED exempt
The Interior
A delightful period-correct cabin finished in the more popular MB-Tex material
Finished in a “Cognac” colourway and complimentary hues of brown
In a great overall condition with just a few minor areas of age-related wear
The design of the 230SL’s interior is deceptively advanced for a car of this period. Thanks to designer and safety guru, Béla Barényi, Mercedes Benz had become pioneers in automotive safety at this time. The W113 followed on from the pioneering W111 saloon by featuring a “rounded” interior with all potentially dangerous edges and corners being softened and contoured.
Luckily this results in an aesthetically pleasing design, too. The commodious seats are upholstered into supportive, vertical box-pleats with a practical and hard-wearing perforated finish. The seats fold forward for access to the useful rear, carpeted luggage space. The seat hinges and mechanisms are heavy-duty, deeply chromed examples too.
The carpet set appears to be a more recent addition but are clearly high quality with leather bound edges and consisting of a “Berber” woollen weave. The dashboard is an appealing combination of painted and machine finished metal and brown vinyl. The large white on black, VDO gauges sit behind the white Bakelite steering wheel. The original Autovox, push-button radio is fitted.
The hardtop is trimmed with the correct perforated headlining. There are a few minor potential areas of further improvement in here. These include a broken door handle, a slightly damaged window winder and some non-structural cracking to the steering wheel.
The boot space is wide but shallow but perfectly adequate for weekends away. The boot is home to the full-sized steel spare wheel, jack and tool kit.
The Exterior
The exterior has been deliberately left as original as possible
The majority of the paintwork is understood to be original to the car
Seemingly a car that has benefitted from spending most of its life in sunny California
This pure white colourway suits the W113 so well and really helps accentuate the delicate yet purposeful design of this iconic coupe. A small and light car by today’s standards the W113 is quite short and wide, a configuration that helped endow it with very impressive, class leading stability and handling.
The car looks great and delivers one of the most recognisable coupe shapes in automotive history. With the hardtop affixed, the bevelled, “pagoda” design really draws the eye. There is plenty of glass area helping to endow the car with great visibility, a light and airy cabin and a surprisingly fresh and contemporary design language.
On close inspection there are a number of age-related minor dings and scratches in evidence. This is a 57-year-old car remember, so a few superficial car park marks are only to be expected of course. The front bumpers and front grill exhibit a few of these marks but the owner confirms that replacement items for these are included in the sale and can be fitted by the new owner if required.
The front of the car exhibits some of the key W113 features such as the three-pointed star inset into the grill, directly inherited from the 300SL, and the distinctive Bosch “fishbowl” headlamps. To the rear the chromed, half-bumpers and compact taillights help further contribute to the clean and pure design of the W113. Some damage is present to one of the rear light lenses.
One of the key features of the W113 was its combination of removeable hardtop and neatly stowed soft top. When not in use the hood was hidden away beneath a hinged hard tonneau cover making for a very neat and, very Germanic, hood arrangement. The soft top appears to be original and does exhibit a few small holes and scuffs. The rear plexiglass screen is in good, uncracked condition, however. This hood damage appears to be a relatively easy repair for a specialist. Alternatively, replacement hoods are widely available for the W113 at surprisingly reasonable cost should that be deemed necessary.
The car sits on 14-inch steel wheels. These are fitted with the familiar Mercedes Benz wheels trims which are finished in a combination of body coloured paint and chrome. The large three-pointed star take pride of place in the centre of the trims.
The Mechanics
Our car features the original 2.3L straight-six M127 petrol engine
Power is fed to the rear wheels via the highly respected 4-speed manual gearbox
Our owner reports that the car is in a good mechanical condition throughout
The W113 was never about tyre-smoking, outright performance prowess but instead favoured sophisticated high-speed touring together with tidy and engaging road manners. As such the venerable 2.3L straight-six M127 engine was considered more than sufficient at launch. This is a well proven unit and originally delivered around 150bhp. That was enough to originally give this light car a 10-second 0-60mph time and a top speed of around 120mph. Not Jaguar E-Type territory but more than sufficient for the period.
Our example presents very well under the bonnet with clear signs of recent maintenance in evidence. The underside of the car also seems to be in a fine fettle, most likely aided by a life on the salt-free roads of California. The exhaust system appears to be a recent addition further reinforcing the impression of regular and thoughtful maintenance.
Summary
Despite its obvious success, the W113 was built in quite modest numbers by today’s standards. Our car is one of just 4,945 230SL’s produced in 1966. Add into the mix the ravages of time and these cars are becoming significantly hard to find and prices are rocketing as a result. Concourse condition cars have appreciated to the point of unobtainability for all but the significantly wealthy. That helps to make more original and honest cars, like this one, all the rarer and appealing.
Our car remains in a highly useable condition and ticks all the key boxes. It features the highly regarded manual gearbox and both hard and soft tops are present and correct. It is reported to run very well and retains the potential to be improved further still by its new owner. Reason enough, in isolation, for this to represent a significant and rarely seen ownership proposition. Bid today to avoid missing out.
Notice to bidders
This item is sold on an ‘As is Where is’ basis. The condition of this item is the opinion of the seller and may differ from your own opinion. Photos and listing descriptions are for guidance purposes only*.** Car & Classic do not warrant listing accuracy. Full inspection is recommended. Viewings are at the seller’s discretion. Buyer is responsible for delivery and collection of any item purchased.*
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