Pagoda SL Group
W113 Pagoda SL Group => Question and comments on Originality => Topic started by: 1000nutsnbolts on December 05, 2023, 20:39:29
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I will soon be bringing my 1970 280SL into the shop for Winter work which will include going through the cooling system, refurbish/replace exhaust, PerTronix and then as needed while up front.
The car has the original FrigiKing a/c unit that isn’t working. I live in New Hampshire and working a/c isn’t a concern of mine as roof is off all Summer.
The master mechanic offers that he’ll remove the unit in its entirety and credit back a considerable amount towards the work that he will be doing. Maybe this reduces the overall bill by 25% to 30%.
Would you do it?
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A friend and I did similar. We took the A/C out of his car (we are in Southern California) and so no point at all for keeping it - oh yes, the unit was not operational.
He traded it to Vintage Euro for a new firewall pad and never looked back.
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Mine does not work either, nor do I care. I have the original sale paperwork that shows it as a dealer installed option, so I'll leave it in the car. Considered removing the compressor last winter, when doing some freshening, but did not have the bracket to allow that, so just left it. I do like to keep our cars as original / "period correct" as possible, so that is a factor.
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Unfortunately, "dealer installed" often subjected a vehicle to all sorts of metal butchery. Make sure that you are not opening a visual can of worms by removing a system that may be covering many unsightly holes that will require extensive patchwork.
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On Ebay, there are a few listed for $1200-$1600.
Per the Hagerty valuation tool, working ac adds 15% to the value of these cars.
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Thanks Jonny. Much Appreciated
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Whatever you do, keep the old parts. If you or the next owner ever want to go back.
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It would make sense that if you have an item in your car, it should be working. I think anything nonworking in the car would detract from its value. This includes a radio that doesn’t work, a window that may not roll up or , a speaker that doesn’t work and or air-conditioning that doesn’t work.
If you want to maximize the value of your car, make sure that the air conditioning if so installed is working. If not, probably best to remove it.
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I would agree with Michael. I would add that it's probably worth more if you removed it and sold it. A/C was a common dealer "add on", especially in the U.S. If it was a rare factory option, then I could see it adding value to your Pagoda. I was never a fan of the A/C on these cars. There's no way that I would pay an additional 15% for an A/C car vs. a non-A/C car, but that's just me.