First of all, I am so happy to have found this great Website and my thanks to all the fellow Pagoda owners for the wealth of information that they have contributed.
I saw my first 230 SL in a parking lot near where I worked back in 1964. I immediately fell in love with the car and began saving every penny. I was 20 years old at the time. In the fall of 1966 I placed an order for a 230 SL (but due to the order’s timing was changed to the new 250 SL) and took delivery in May of the following year. Unfortunately after only having the car for a couple of months, another car made an abrupt left turn in front of me and the Mercedes crash worthiness was put to a test. No injuries resulted but the car was a wreck. After spending nearly two months in a Mercedes Dealer Body Shop, I got the car back but things were just not same. In June 1968, I ordered a 280 SL identical to the 250 SL (White with Cognac interior) and took delivery in September, trading in my old 250 SL. Most of the 70k miles that are on the odometer were driven during the first 8 years of ownership. After that came marriage, children and other life’s priorities and the SL became an occasional weekend car then eventually stored away in the Garage. Ten years ago I retired and we moved from Southern California to the central part of the state where we now live, towing the Mercedes behind our U-Haul. The car continued to sit until one day my neighbor introduced me to an independent Mercedes mechanic who really enjoys working on the old ‘Benzs. After spending a few months at his shop I got the car back and am happy to say she runs beautifully. Surprisingly the car was in great shape. Hoses, belts, braking system, clutch, exhaust system, fuel system, cooling system, heater control levers and tires were the main areas of replacement/repair. The car is rust free and has it’s original paint which looks as good as it did 42 years ago. The soft top is also original and was amazed to see that it is still in excellent condition after being folded up for nearly 30 years! Even the plastic rear window is still crystal clear. The interior upholstery is MBtex showing very little wear but unfortunately the tunnel carpet was damaged when the shifter bushings were replaced so a replacement is on order from GAHH. There is more work to be done but in the mean time, my wife and I feel like kids again when we are out driving our old friend.☺. A few pictures are posted on the “Photo Gallery” section of the Forum. Thanks for reading my “novel”.
49er