﹒Matching-numbers example
﹒Over £14k spent on body resto
﹒Automatic transmission with power-steering
﹒Interior retrim
﹒Genuine UK right-hand-drive car

When the covers drew back from the box-fresh W113 SL at the 1963 Geneva Motor Show, an awed hush descended upon the room. This sylph-like new roadster was very far removed from the SLs that came before it, the dramatic gullwing coupes and racy roadsters being replaced by something altogether more elegant and modern. And in the fifty-eight years since, the allure hasn’t diminished at all; so-called ‘Pagoda’ SLs are just as much in demand today as they’ve ever been, and this is something that’s reflected in their values on the classic market.

 Three model variants were offered over the W113’s lifespan: the launch-spec 230 SL endured from 1963-67, the 250 SL ran from ’66-68, and the top-flight 280 SL from 1967 to the end of the line in ’71. So if you want an early Pagoda, it’s going to be a 230, and this means you’re getting a 150bhp 2.3-litre straight-six – a manual gearbox was available, but you’re far more likely to find an automatic, as we have here, and this suits its cruiser character very well. Roof options were threefold – you could spec a W113 with only a soft-top, only a hard-top (a very rare choice, that one), or most desirably of all, with both. That’s what we have here – the original Pagoda; simple, elegant, sublime.

 

‘Matching-numbers’ is a phrase much sought after in the classic car market, and that’s what we’re looking at here: an SL that’s still running all the fundamental mechanicals that were bolted in at the factory. Another massive plus point is that this is a genuine UK car – first registered with the DVLA on 12th August 1965, this is a pukka right-hand-drive UK-spec model. And it’s very clear, both from the paperwork and from the car’s condition, that it’s been very fastidiously maintained and looked after in no-expense-spared style. Indeed, there’s evidence of over £14,000 having been spent on body restoration within the last nine years, along with a full interior retrim, and much more besides. A recent full service was also carried out to a total of £1,400, with invoice provided. Looking for an honest, complete and fully sorted 230 SL? Look no further, your chariot awaits…

 

There’s a nice big file of paperwork with this car to verify its matching-numbers correctness and illustrate some of the impressive works that have been carried out in its past. The V5 shows the car as being first registered in the summer of ’65, and there’s a stack of old MOTs neatly ordered chronologically so you can track the mileage year-on-year. Important to note is that the car currently has an MOT that will expire in September 2021.

We can see that in 2012 a total of £10,000 was spent on a variety of works including replacing the sills and eradicating rust from the chassis rails, and extensive work throughout the chassis to remove corrosion and make everything straight and solid – this was a comprehensive job which involved the interior and suspension being removed, the car jigged, and the metalwork perfected with the absolute minimal use of filler. Further to these works, we find an invoice from 2016 showing that another £4,239 was spent on repairs, paint and realignment to the bonnet, wings, grille, hard-top, rear valance, nearside door, and offside rear arch; at this time, a classic radio was fitted to replace a modern item that had been swapped in, the car was waxoyled, and new whitewall tyres fitted. There are detailed invoices from the early 1990s of the interior being retrimmed at great expense by Clay Car Trimmers, and a thick sheaf of receipts that stretches back across the decades.

You can see from the photos just how wonderful the interior of this SL is. It was fully retrimmed by Clay Car Trimmers in the 1990s, but you’d be forgiven for thinking that it was a much more recent job because it’s all in outstanding condition; the brown vinyl and cream fabric have weathered the years superbly, and the doorcards and carpet are also in excellent condition.

 Being a UK car, it is of course right-hand-drive, and this one is equipped with factory power-steering. The dash is in excellent order with no cracking or weathering to the wooden top, and the retrimmed vinyl fitting very well. All of the correct switchgear is in place and the dials are all working. A classic Radiomobile stereo was fitted a few years ago, which has been converted to work with FM. It’s all solid and remarkably clean inside the boot, with the original spare wheel in place.

Resplendent in 181-code Light Beige with contrasting soft-top and hard-top in Havana Brown (code 408), this really is a beautifully presented Pagoda. A lot of money has been spent perfecting the metal on top and underneath, and it shows: the panel gaps are excellent throughout, there’s no hint of any corrosion bubbling up beneath the paint, we were unable to pinpoint any scuffs, scratches, dents or dings – it’s a car that’s been expensively restored and then carefully looked after.

 The hard-top is the car’s original. All of the correct trim and badging is in place, with the chrome in tidy condition with no corrosion or pitting. The light lenses are in good condition, as is the window glass (aside from a very slight blooming in the bottom corner of the windscreen beneath the period-accessory tax disc). The wheels are all correctly colour-coded, and have undented hubcaps and excellent whitewall tyres. And as is well documented in the paperwork, a huge amount of expense has been put into ensuring that the car is straight and solid underneath. This truly is a sublime example.

 

Being a matching-numbers car is very desirable, and also is the fact that this SL runs like a dream. The engine has seen relatively few miles for its age and always been properly serviced; today it fires on the first turn of the key, idles happily and pulls strongly. The characteristically smooth gearbox is a perfect companion to the torquey motor, shifting effortlessly as it should. The brakes and suspension are in fine fettle, with the car riding comfortably and pulling itself up straight, and the power-steering is working correctly. All the factory-fit oily bits are functioning as they should, and this Pagoda is fabulous to drive.

Well, what a car this is. Essentially any Pagoda is a good Pagoda, but this one has a lot of very important and desirable things going for it that mark it out from its peers: first of all, there’s the fact that it’s honest – a genuine RHD UK-spec car, with matching-numbers drivetrain. Secondly, there’s the amount of care and attention (and expense!) that’s been put into finessing the body, both to ensure it looks fantastic but also to eradicate all corrosion and make it solid. Thirdly, there’s that interior re-trim, which is just so right for the car and has been done so well. And fourthly – just look at it. Staggeringly pretty, isn’t it? We could stare at it all day… and it’s just as good to drive as it is to behold.

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