W113 Pagoda SL Group > Body, interior, paint, chrome, and cosmetic items

Differnces between the 230sl in each of the years 64.65.66.67

(1/1)

mcreasy:
What are the differences between the years of the 230sl series or are there any at all? Thanks Mary

JamesL:
Basically, very little changed. The devil is in the detail. There'll have been material changes on trim and screws and the like throughout. So if you were to ask, for example, did the windscreen wipers change over the period, someone (likely Achim!) would tell you the VIN number from which they changed

But notionally, from 10 paces, very little changed

And welcome!

Norm:
Laurence Meredith, in his book "Original Mercedes SL, The Restorer's Guide to 300 SL, 190 SL, and 230 / 250/280 SL models to 1971," lists 110 "production changes" for the 230 SL from Chassis number 3 to 19832.  While I do not challenge the above assertion that "from 10 paces, very little changed", nor do I infer that Meredith's book is 100% accurate, I encourage you to purchase a copy of Meredith's book to answer your question.  It is one of many books available on the subject and will provide a wealth of additional information for you in the future.

If someone wants to challenge me on the number of changes listed in the book, let me state clearly that I counted quickly and without my glasses on! ;D ;D

P.S., I did not see any changes in the windscreen wipers.  ;)

And let me add my welcome as well!!

Norm

66andBlue:
Probably the most visible difference on the outside is what central Europeans affectionately call the "udder". But you have to lie on your belly to see it. Much easier to open the trunk and notice where the spare tire is located. Up to VIN 113 xx xx 07205 (except #06069) the tire stood upright on the left in a well (that sticks out on the bottom hence the phrase "udder")  whereas on later car it is lying on the right.
Many other differences are discussed here: http://www.sl113.org/forums/index.php?topic=2133.0
All of these changes are detailed in a book entitled "Mercedes-Benz 190 - 280 SL, Vom Barock zur Pagode" by G. Engelen. This is the authoritative book on Pagodas, but available only in German. See: http://www.sl113.org/wiki/Documents/Start

What is your car's VIN?

al_lieffring:
There were many changes some cosmetic, some were technical, but these were usually changed during the regular production run, not necessarially as a new modey year change. for example the change from tubular steel to cast iron on  the exaust manifolds was in the middle of the 1965 production run. That era seems to be when many of the changes in the 230 occured, but again incrimentally, not as a single jump like a model year change. Checking the Vin number against the production records is the only sure way to determin the model year of a 230sl. Knowing when some of the more obvious changes happened does makes it easier to guess the model year.

Navigation

[0] Message Index