Taking the Pagoda to a car show

[knirk]

Hello
I know that most of you here on this site would like to keep your Pagoda as original and perfect as possible. And how perfect is usually a question of time and money.
Some of the restore work we do include getting parts that is desirable, but not correct according to the data card, or serial number.
If you should get your car judged in a car show – what positive or negative effect would these parts or modifications have:

Euro headlight and away with the horns,
Baroc aluminium wheels (that came in 1969),
Air condition,
Cruice control,
Not the original body or soft top colour,
Not the original interior colour
Not the correct rear axle ratio (if they crawl underneath to check)
Electronic ignition
Stainless steel exhaust
Nardi Steering wheel,


Per G. Birkeland
69 280 sl aut 834
Norway

[Richard Madison]

Per:

My experience is with car shows in the USA. Many shows are for any marque so you can have a Pagoda next to a Ford Mustang. The Mercedes category might be "Best Foreign Car".

In these shows, the judges don't know the details of every brand so they look for cleanliness, workmanship, completeness rather than perfect originality. The items on your list probably won't matter. It's about the same in a Mercedes only show since the judges don't know every Mercedes model.

In a national Mercedes show or a show for SL's or Pagodas only, the judges probably have experience with specific models. Here your list items can affect the result.

In my experience, there is no deduction for an item that was available from a dealer at the time the car was first delivered...so there would be no deduction for a Nardi wheel...also safety items like seat belts for the third rear seat are not deducted.

The usual concours guide is "dealer delivered condition"...changes to paint color, electronic ignition, axle ratio, interior color or material can all lead to deductions. (Electronic ignition would usually be a much smaller deduction than a body paint color change.)In a serious concours judging even hose clamps are examined.

Deductions can get a little complicated. In the rules of the Mercedes Benz Club of America (MBCA), a paint color change is a 5 point deduction but only 3 points if the new color was available at delivery time; also the number of points deducted varies for 'Concours' or 'Street' category.

In the West Point 2004 event in New York on 23 May 2004, it will be a "Friendly Judging" intended to help the Pagoda owners learn more about the cars condition rather look for absolute perfection. The judge comments will be general, and the judge rating sheets will be given to the owners to keep for guidance.

Take a look the rules of the MBCA for an example at http://sl113.org/forums/index.php?topic=398,rules

Richard M

P.S. My car, sometimes called the 'Brown Beauty' or more accurately the 'Brown Jalopy', is very original but it's not in like-new condition so even with originality, my trophy shelf is nearly empty.



'71 280 SL, Tobacco Brown, Cognac interior, Tan top, Jump Seat, 80K orig miles, NYC. Can be seen at www.panix.com/~rmadison/mercedes.shtml

[knirk]

Thanks Richard, that answered most of my questions. Anybody knows if the class system and judging rules are the same in Europe?

Per G. Birkeland
69 280 sl aut 834
Norway

[Tom]

Per,

If it is an MBCA sponsored show, they will deduct points for non original accessories such as the Nardi wheel.  I had euro lights on my USA spec car and they did not deduct for this as they were available for the car somewhere in the world.  If you have anything other than a Mercedes or Interstate battery, they would deduct for that.  I actually took a Concours Judging Class taught by Pete Lesler who knows our car well.

Most judges don't go under the car so you are generally safe there.  Cleanliness is a big deal anywhere-make sure you get all of the bugs off the radiator!

Non-MBCA shows are much more forgiving.

Best,

Tom

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1971 280sl Tunis Beige Metallic (restored & enhanced)
1971 280sl Tobacco Brown (low mileage stock)
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