Pagoda SL Group
W113 Pagoda SL Group => General Discussion => Topic started by: abe280SL on April 01, 2009, 05:39:08
-
Its not just a car...it is part of the family which brought joy and fond memories. We use to drive to the Santa Barbara Zoo every Thursday when he was 3-5 years old. Now our kid is in his second year of college and we see him every few months. Driving the red sl reminds me of the great times we had as a family and those Thursday afternoons. I am glad I never sold the car when I had the opportunity.
I recently bought an 83 Porsche SC from a guy that didn't have the time to enjoy the car since his kids were in grammar school and high school. His little boy asked if he could hug the car before I drove it away...kind of brought tears to my eyes. I told the owner he might regret doing this some day and promised him that if I ever decided to sell the car I would try my hardest to find him first.
Sorry, if I sound a little mushy..but my wife and I really miss those times.
I hope that this post might persuade some of the younger guys with families to think about it twice before selling their car. You
might end up regretting it....don't want to be part of that "sold, but not forgotten" crowd.
abe
-
Yup, I remember driving to school and learning how to shift in my Dad's '67 250sl in Naples, Italy when I was 5. Now I'm the proud owner of.... my Dad's '67 250sl :) Hopefully I can carry on the tradition one day.
Just the smell of the car takes me back to those days when I was a kid. I also remember being fascinated with the glovebox light for some reason, lol.
-
What a terrific anecdote. Thanks for sharing.
-
I cannot agree more, I also remember going with my Dad on his 1965 230 SL and loving to hear the engine rev.... Now the car is mine and I'm taking my little ones for rides on it and they love it as much if not more than I did with My Dad... 8)
-
Abe, you have just reinforced my commitment to never selling my 230SL. My four-year old constantly hounds me as to when "our" car will be ready for our weekend cruises. So I've asked my restoration workshop to hurry it up !
I can only imagine the great memories & fun when we do the stuff that you have mentioned. They are indeed priceless.
Beautiful car by the way.
-
I think many of us have an emotional attachment to these cars....mine is the memory of a fraternaty brother at college who use to borrow his mother's white 280SL, when his 4-door MB sedan was in the shop. This was probably 1974-75, and we use to cruise around campus 'being cool'. He still has that 280SL, and now I have my 250SL, and we still both are 'really cool'. 8)
-
He still has that 280SL, and now I have my 250SL, and we still both are 'really cool'. 8)
You're cooler...and we know why.
-
Starting a little later than most at 48 we just had our first child three weeks ago. Unfortunately the car is still under reconstruction after two and a half years. I told my restorer that it really doesn't matter when I get the body back because I probably won't have time to put it back together until she goes to college.
I really look forward to going for rides with her and maybe I will let her in on my weekly 6AM Sunday ride through Chagrin Reservation here in Cleveland. I do worry about those aluminum doors in a crash.
I mention this a couple of times a year and maybe this is the time to do it again. If you replace the steering wheel with an aftermarket(Nardi) wheel keep in mind that you lose the collapsible section of the steering column which is actually in the original wheel itself. Under the cover is a stamped mesh tube that collapses in a crash. I am not the safest person in the world as all my broken bones and missing digits will attest to but I still want people to be aware of this.
-
Hey Shveg, better late than never! And John, if there is cool, and there is cooler, then there must be coolest :D
I was a high-schooler when I first took "my" car for a spin.. it won't be long before the first of my three princesses will want to do the same. And she giggles after everything she says...Yikes.
time flies...
-
I grew up around my grandfathers '66 230sl and as a child I always loved the car, after his death the car sat unused at my grandmothers for probably 10 years, with family driving it only when they visited and then never often. At the age of 12 my uncle had the car and I can remember being in the luggage area behind the seats as he drove my mother and I through the mountains in San Diego. When I was around 17 my mother took possesion of the car, and it became the sunday cruiser or the emergency vehicle, when all others failed it would always start up and get you where you needed to be. Now at age 28 I am the proud owner of my grandfathers car and love it more that words can explain. It is more than a beautiful car that I dreamt about, it is a family heirloom that will forever stay with my grandfathers decedents.
-
tbarrie - pictures???
-
I will post some soon, the car isnt in the best of conditions, but I am doing my best to slowly restore it.
-
great story
got a 62 bug that I do not drive much . some guy absolutly wanted to buy it .yesterday had to meet him at 3pm to do the transaction before 4pm when I have to pick up my 6 year old from school.he called me and told me he would only be there at 4:30 so I picked up son. told him in the car we might sell the bug and he was not to happy .when we got there I took the car out of the garage and the buyer said wow . my son was so so sad he never cries put his head on my sholder and told me but dad we has so much good times with the car I love hearby.at that point I knew I could not do it .so we still own the bug .
-
I wish that every single car that my family has owned had been kept in a dry barn instead of being sold on or traded in, my grandfathers ivory Volvo Amazon where I used to steer while sitting on his lap (I only found out years later that he steered with his knees), my mothers Fiat 500 that always stalled in the wrong places but had a full-length sunroof, her later Mini that we used to cram several kids, dogs and luggage into, my fathers green Morris Traveller (with wood on the outside) that my childhood girlfriend and I used to slide down (it was parked on a slope) without giving any thought to the fact that jeans had rivets in the 70's (we even poured sand and gravel on it to go faster). Remember my dad shaking his head in disbelief when he saw it - and the DIY respray using a reversed vacuum cleaner and how the droplets of green paint was carried through the air across a whole factory yard and onto the side of my uncles white Jaguar Mk II that became a sick shade of green (now we laugh at this, not so much then...).
Now my own kids love to ride in the Pagoda and in my 82' Land Rover and who am I to deny them the right to own and drive these cars later on if they want to?
Financial crisis or not, I'll hang onto my cars for as long as I can...
-
Had a vintage '66 Mustang for several years...sold it to buy a 1971 280SL. I missed the Mustang but had the Pagoda to fill the void.
A few years later (after an incident with a garage manager in New York City) I sold the 280SL and retired from car ownership and from unhappy garage managers.
After two Summers with no car, no car shows, and no verbal abuse about my car from other Pagoda owners, I was lonely. I began the quest to replace the Havana Brown and happily found a lovely Euro version 1969. 'Ole Beige' is my constant nice weather companion
I probably won't let her go until I can't open the door any more.
Richard M, NYC
-
I still have the first car I ever owned. A '68 Camaro. I've had it 32 years (on May 23 or so).
My Dad had Mercedes' when I was a kid. This was the driving force in me buying mine less than 3 months ago.
I've talked to a million guys who have said "I should have never sold that one ...". That scared me into keeping mine all of these years (of course that is not the only reason).
I'm part of the same club as you guys that keep them, if you'll have me, even though my "old" one is a Camaro, not an SL.
-
Cool story. that is why I am a member of this group. The friends I have made all have their own stories of howthey got their SLs.
I am happy that the memories of my dad will be preserved both in life and in print when Michael salemi finishes the Pagoda style book. I remember bonding when I was young with the 280SL and having more fun when he offered to drive the car with the top down with me on Saturdays and Sundays . He was the only one in our neighborhood who owned the coolest car their was at the time.
I regret my dad not being around to help me with restoring his car, but he left me a lot of love and passion to push forward so one day IT will look fresh again.
I agree it part of my family too it will never go while I am alive no matter the price offered.
Bob Geco
member #15
1968 280SL
-
Just by chance our son is back from college. I showed him the "hi fi" system I installed in the car with an ipod connection.
We took the car out for a drive just 1/2 hour ago 11pm down a dark country road with oak trees and white picket fences...with the stereo on. It was the best 20 minutes I have had in a long time. As we parked the car he told me that the sl has always been his favorite car. I told him about this thread and after reading it he said "dad, that was really cool". :)
abe
-
My 4 year old daughter loves my Pagoda more than her mommy's 08 X5. I have already told her that it will be hers one day....but no boyfriends are allowed to sit it in.
Yep, the Pagoda is definitely family...
-
What great stories. If I may, here goes mine. Being the original owner of a 250SL, which was picked up at the Mercedes factory in Germany in November 1967, I can readily relate to those feelings about my car. Three kids learned how to drive in it. It has been driven to proms and other special occasions by my kids who are now in their mid to late thirties. My youngest daughter enjoyed it probably most and has threatened to put a contract on me if I ever considered selling it. Just kidding about the contract-I think. If anything happened to that car it would be losing a good friend. This car will be passed down to future generations. Cheers Jim
-
bump.
Thought some of those thinking of selling your car might want to read this again.
abe
-
When I was to marry all my friends said: "Guess it's time to get rid of the Porsche". My reply: "Never !"
When I was about to buy my first home my friends said: "Guess it's time to get rid of the Porsche". My reply: "Never !"
When I lost my job my friends said: "Guess it's time to get rid of the Porsche". My reply: "Never !"
Had it since '87. It's not leaving the stable.
Then I added an '85 380 SL. So, I would either drive my daughter to school in the Porsche or the SL. She loved it.
For those beautiful weekends the 380's folding rear seat came in handy. Jaunts along the Delaware River to a cool town called New Hope in PA was a favorite drive. It's where all go to show off their toys and enjoy good (if not interesting) company.
Now that the 380 is gone I need to get the 280 in shape. Perhaps next year we'll be enjoying the ride.