Body code number on door tab?

[pj]

Two photos here. Before the doors were removed, there's an arrow showing the tab that I'm talking about, high at the front on the inner surface of the door, but not hidden. Covered in paint, I never noticed anything on this tab until I saw the door after all the paint was blasted away. The 2nd photo is a close up on this tab after primer has been applied, clearly showing the number 166 stamped there. Can anyone explain the significance of this number? BTW, there's the same number on the passenger's door. If there's something about this in the TM, I didn't find it.

[Jonny B]

Does it match the number on the plate attached at the inside of the engine bay, where the secondary hood catch engages? The number at the far bottom right of the rage (this is the number stamped into the edge of the hood, the soft top cover and the transmission plate (and a few other places)

[pj]

I searched through the hundreds of photos taken of my 230SL since getting her in 2011, and I was amazed and disappointed that I didn't have a single shot that showed that body and paint number plate on the left front fender, just inside the hood. So today we visited the car at the body shop and took the picture. The ...980 on the lower right is a number that we've seen on the hardtop and I think it's on the data card, too. And by golly, there's a ....66 there, too! I presume this just means the doors are the correct ones that were on the car when it left the factory, so the important part of my question is resolved. I sort of wonder why it's 166 on the doors when it's just ...066 on the little plate, but unless someone has an interesting explanation, I'm not going to worry about that.

Thanks Jonny for telling me what I needed to do. This basic information is of course in the Technical Manual, under Data Card

[JamesL]

PJ

What are the numbers on your hood, trunk and soft top well cover? 

[pj]

Hi James,
the digits 980 are clearly stamped on the hardtop and on the soft top well cover. We can't see a number on the hood, although I'm not really worried about that because the paint there is pretty thick and we will find out next year when we do the front end. I don't think I've looked on the trunk before; the car's in the shop and I'll try to remember to check that before the trunk lid gets painted. The data card has both the 00066 and 00980 in the appropriate spots. But these numbers stamped on the doors are the first instance we've found of the ...66 digits on the car itself.

[J. Huber]

Well, like 400 others of you, I immediately went out to see if I had numbers on the door tab. Nope -- smooth as butter (is that the right phrase?)...

Now, it is also surprisingly nice paint on there -- which might mean it has been resprayed (when I had that done in 98) -- so the numbers might be under a few layers? Can anyone else see theirs?

[badali]

I looked at mine and there is no number showing.  My car has had only one repaint but the jams and inside areas were not repainted.  If there is a number on mine it was covered at the factory...  Maybe forever...  I have no plans to repaint the car.

[Benz Dr.]

If you study these numbers closely you will see that they're fairly large and not very deep. It doesn't take very much paint to cover this up as is evidenced by those who can't find them.

[badali]

All the other numbers show on mine...

[Jonny B]

I did check my 280 SL, and the numbers are not there. I do not believe the driver's door has been painted (I have the history back to day 1). Could it have been something done at the start of production, i.e. on 230 SL's. Although Brad's is a 230 SL, but it is a bit later.

??

[pj]

Well, I'm starting to feel really special. Dan's surely right that even a simple coat of paint could obscure these numbers on the door tabs, even if other locations where numbers are stamped on the car show through.

The second group of digits on the appropriate line of the Body and Paint Code plate are the digits that I usually see you all talking about, stamped or written on various body parts and mechanical surfaces. Does anyone have the digits from the first group stamped on their hood, trunk, hardtop, soft top cover, etc? If not, then perhaps we have uncovered the true meaning of that first group of digits: to identify the doors. Otherwise, what significance do those digits have to anyone else's car?

[Matt113]

Hello, if you go to this page ( http://www.motoringinvestments.com/MainPage.htm ) and click on "Free 280SL Buyers Guide" in the left hand column you will see a good explanation and example photos of those elusive numbers. Fascinating stuff!