Any mercedes 107 roadster owners here?

just sold my C4S and bought a 1985 380sl to play with - i've owned a few of these and fun little drivers on a nice sunny day. any other 107 owners here in the 996 forum? if so, what you got?

I had a '73 450SL, white on navy with navy soft top/white hard top back in 1990-1992 when I was on active duty in the Navy in San Diego. Pre-smog and I believe still had the small bumpers. I used it as a daily driver and really enjoyed it. Actually drove it up to Big Bear to go skiing on two occasions. I haven't watched the market on them for years, but at one time they had gotten ridiculously cheap. I'm sure the prices are starting to climb by now. BTW, that's a great color combo you've got there. Very classy and fits that body style perfectly.

I like the SLs. I am salivating over the SL65 Black Series cars. In a few years, you will be able to grab the $300k car in high five figures. http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/200...-black-series/

She looks right at home in Cap Hill/Queen Anne

I used to own an '83 380SL. Blue with grey interior. It was a "smooth" car to drive. Soaked up bumps and road noise well, and yet handled good in everyday driving. Sold it because the 944 S2 Cab that I bought was a much better handling car, but I still remember the quality "feeling" that the SL had. It had Euro headlights installed by some PO, and I always thought the American two-headlight units actually looked better than the single-Euro headlight. '83 380 SL

Beautiful groov. Have been contemplating picking up a mid 80's 560SL in the next 18 months as I think they are beautiful cruisers and are a bargain at today's prices. Enjoy it!

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thx - when i purchased it the wheels were aftermarket chrome - found a nice set of OEM aluminum. the 107 market is climbing - 560's are getting expensive but can still find nice examples in the lower teens good friend of mine has a 450sl that his mom purchased in 1973 when she won $45K in las vegas - nice cars

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560's are really nice - whats odd is i sat in a few and they seem to have a smaller seating feel - you'll love the sl when you find it - just fun simple cars

i have been looking at these lately. might jump in one. they see, reasonably priced right now and attainable.

I began my automotive career in the early 80's as a service advisor at the local Mercedes Benz dealership. Saw plenty of the 107s in for service and repairs. The techs told me that the V8s and most of the vehicle was practically bulletproof. The later 560s were pretty powerful. Also, plenty of good looking chicks drove them!

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only issue i have found, besides the single row timing chain needing to be replaced in the 81-82 models(possibly early 83's), is that the idle can jump around or idle at high RPM - this is a very common issue with these cars and sometimes the reason people sell which was the case with mine. mine idled at 1800 consistently after warm up. since the idle is computer controlled by several modules/valves it can be tricky to correct and expensive if done at shop. the most common repair is the idle control module which is located behind the glove box - i had to replace the one in this car. they cost about $150 if you shop right and a couple of hours to install. 2nd most common is the idle control valve located in engine compartment just in front of airbox. these are expensive new $1300 but used can be found for $2-300 other idle issues can be vacuum related which is sort of a bitch but doable after several hours of futzing around

Groove... Nice Car! I have always liked these. My uncle had a couple 380SLs. Lovely cars. BTW, when are we going to see pictures of your boat. You sold that beautiful C4S for cheap; now I want to know what you made that sacrifice for.

In the mid-80s I went looking for a 107, saw an ad for an '83 with very little miles, and when the seller backed it out of his garage (drywalled, with lighted oil-paintings on the walls) I saw there was another car under a cover. It was a mint unrestored silver-over-red leather '55 300SL Gullwing. Stupidly I passed on that '83 and instead bought a '74 for half the cost. Stupidly because when I decided to do a color change we discovered it was a rust bucket underneath. Ended up changing all 4 quarters and the floor pans, cost me as much as that '83. Nice car though, I only sold it because my kid got too big to sit in the back (had one of those aftermarket seats). I'd love another one but here the sudden downpours don't play well with manual tops that take 5 minutes in and out of the car to operate. I was looking at a 250SLK 6-speed manual recently, would love it but I have to have some kind of rear seat.

I had an '88 560SL and loved it. Lots of fun to drive, a classic design, and a German car with that old school Teutonic feel. I miss it.

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still waiting for owner of boat to return from alaska - he was supposed to be back in september. it turns out the diesel engine is a bit smaller than i was hoping - 160hp volvo - only cruises at 13 knots which was a huge surprise. many of these Luhrs boats have the cummins 250hp which pushes it at a 19-20 knot cruise - so only way i will buy it is dirt cheap boat is moored about an hour north of seattle and owner offered son to show it to me but since son can't make a deal i am holding out for owner to return longer i wait the less of the $400/mo. moorage i have to pay - also more inclined owner will be to make a deal i should know either way by end of november

Good luck Groovy! I bet changing the engine is going to be easier than the one in you former 996.

Owned an '84 Euro 500 sl for about a year. Replaced it with my current '03 C4 Cab. This was the second type 107 owned. Previous was an '88 560 sl. The European model felt "taughter" to me than my 560sl. It also had more hp than the 560 even though the 560 had a larger engine. I replaced the idle control valve, and flushed the power steering fluid - which improved the cars tendancy to "wander" at highway speed. Putting the hardtop on/off was a two man job. The top weights 90 lbs. The PO had replaced the OE wheels with Italian 16" x 7" ones. That was part of the "wandering" steering problem. And you are so "right" about the car looking right at home in Queen Anne. Since moving to this area in '05, I've seen so many 50 year old cars used as "daily drivers" especially in and around Ballard home of the largest concentration of retired Norwegian folks who all seem to run their cars forever.

not really sure how the R107 is fun to drive. They are nice cruisers and the bigger v8s have decent passing power, but its like a big sponge. While not bad for a trip to starbucks on a nice sunday morning, I'd much rather have a 280sl or a SEC.

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Easier Idk, but most likely never need to find out. When I had my 450SL my mechanic (a German factory-trained guy) said the only way to kill the engine was run it without coolant and oil, that maybe it would need a top-end at 150-200K and then good for another 150-200K, that he had several customers with over 500K on them. I can't argue with that. IIRC it did have a tendency to squat down on its haunches upon takeoff. At the time I bought mine I was choosing between it, a '67 Vette and an SC. Looking back I made the worst possible choice from a long-term value standpoint, but I did enjoy the car. And I assume you're talking the W113. The R107 was also made in 280SL version although it wasn't officially imported to the US. Someone I know had a gray market one.

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LOL. I was talking about his boat dude. (Read groovy's reply about the boat.)

did i mention the 380sl's IMS was changed out?

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280SL doesn't handle any differently than a 380SL 230SL doesn't handle any differently than a 380SL i know - i've owned both now my 190SL handled like crap - sort of like a bus and much worse than above cars my 66 911 and 59 356 handle much better than any of them - (got to photoshop the dust spots off that scanned photo damn it!)

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right, they don't handle worth a damn, but imho are much much better looking.

I'm going about it the other way - have a late 1985 Euro 300SL and am looking for a 911. I did a bit of tweaking which really made a world of a difference in handling terms - new firmer shocks and springs, new (partially improved) bushings on the front suspension. Now it handles like a much more modern car. Of course nothing close to a 911 but very enjoyable as a cruiser and it now takes the curves in strides, making countryside roads quite fun. I might look into upgraded sway bars next - the SL shop in the UK and Dkubus in Australia sell them.

I just picked up a '99 911, so the 560SL is for sale. We decided after so many years that we're really not convertible people. I've spent a lot of time and money bringing this one up to snuff, and it's time for someone to have it that really enjoys the top-down experience. Very nice car, but the older SL's are definitely not sports cars - just awesome cruisers.

Looks nice, @Einsteiger, what wheels are those?

Those are Mille Miglia Bello wheels. Italian made....and no longer made. I still have the stock wheels hanging in the garage.

Nice, hadn't seen those before! I'm debating Gen II Pentas, but good to see that there are other options out there for GenII cars, seems there are very few rims that fit them without larger spacers...

I bought these from a former co-worker who had them on his E-class. The offset is 23 as I recall, which worked out great for this car. No spacers

I want to buy a 560 sl 107 mercedes. What is out there 4 sale Steve [phone removed]