Blackwall v Whitewall W113 History
The extensive book on the development and marketing decisions for the 190SL thru the W113 versions by G. Engelen shows many, many photos of the W113 models over time.
Ref:
Mercedes-Benz 190SL -- 280SL Vom Barock zur Pagode, G. Engelen, 3rd Edition, Motorbuch Verlag, 1997, Stuttgart
Only a very few photo's show the cars with whitewalls. All the marketing photos used --- with models driving or standing around one, at ski villeges, on runway with fighter jet, and every other venue show the car with blackwall tires.
The car premiered at the Geneva Autoshow in early '63 with blackwalls, but at the Frankfurt International Auto Show in June '63 with the narrow band whitewalls.
Only a few of photos shown are with whitewalls ---- only some in the '61 & '62 development models in the Sindlefingen development labs display room are shown with the wide whitewalls --- none are with the narrow band whitwalls at that tine.
One of the 3/4 page photos is entitled "The Sindlefingen Glaenzstueck" (roughly translated as the Sindlefingen Gold Piece or Piece of Brilliance) and shows the car with the Blackwall, noted as being Radial Phoenix P110's.
There is also a several page color spread of the eary 230SL in various views and driving action shot--- a signal red one. This is a set of photos taken for a marketing spread of some kind or another... it's got blackwall tires. The same signal red 230SL (or one just like it) is shown with a silver 190SL in another color page (in the section on the 190SL) with the blackwall tires while the 190SL is shown with the narrow whitewalls.
Also of historical significance is the Options price list for the German dealers --- shows that for all 3 versions of the W113 the standard tire (included in base price) was the Radial Blackwall. The conventional (non-radial) whitewall tire was a higher priced option for the 230SL & 250SL in '66 and '67 price lists respectively. The radial whitewall is listed as "not available" in those versions. However, the 280SL options price list from Nov '69 shows the
conventional whitewall as "not available", but with the
radial whitewall an option at higher price (modestly).
The point is only that the "proper" SL tire (blackwall v whitewall) is not necessarily a whitewall.
I
do not have original US dealer marketing materials for the '63/'64 or later SL's so I cannot say whether the US marketed version sold the SL's only with the whitewalls or whether this was an option as in the German marketing Options Prices.
While looking for some history on the Firestone Phoenix tire I came across a classic car dealer (San Diego) with a georgeous '71 280SL for sale (now sold) that has a photo of the "original Phoenix" spare tire still in the trunk --- that picture shows a Phoenix Blackwall though it's certainly possible that there's a whitewall on the other side of the tire as mounted on the wheel-stand in the trunck.
http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:f5EYJPDY1ZgJ:motoringinvestments.com/mbz.htm+Firestone+Tire+History+230SL&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=usThe matter of whether the blackwall or whitewall is the "proper" or "correct" tire for the W113's is therefore only a matter of taste & economics (whitewalls were a higher priced option).
Considering that nearly every photo in Englene's book that show the car in some marketing or pre-marketing scene for every model of the W113 are shown with blackwalls, and that the Standard base tire was the radial blackwall in Germany indicates that the whitewall tire may have been more a matter of taste for a segment of the popular culture at the time (mid- to late-sixties). Furthermore, because the whitewalls were a higher priced option it is very likely that those who could afford the SL at the time would have opted for the higher priced optional whitewalls (less than a 1% adder to the base-price Automatic)--- as a further visible distinction of wealth (economic status) if not purely of taste. For example, the radial whitewall option for the '69 280SL was a DM 180 additional cost or ~$45 (set of 5). Consider this added cost against the added cost of leather interior at at DM 800 (~$200 ==> a 3.6% adder to the base price).... radial whitewalls were a more visible (at distance) distinction at 25% the adder for leather. The base-price for the 280SL (automatic) in Germany at the time ('69) was DM 21,860 or ~$5465. Based on the number of W113's I've seen advertised for sale over the years, the leather upholstery option was a very, very rarely selected option, so that even the big spenders who could afford the SL in the 1st instance were hard-pressed to add another nearly 4% for leather.... but whitewalls were only a 0.8% adder... so probably selected as an option in the US market at the time due to the narrow band whitewall being more popular &
upscale... our 1st new car purchase (no trade-in, cash purchase) was a '70 VW... and we opted for the whitewalls --- i.e. bargained for whitewalls to be included in the price previously quoted for the standard blackwalls.
But, the whitewall tire was not the "proper" designated tire for the SL's so those who choose to use the blackwall (price for whitewalls being prohibitive perhaps) on their SL today are not compromising it aesthetically unless they like the look of the whitewall on the SL better. I was at a classic MB auto restorer (body & paint shop) yesterday (taking my wheels to be repainted back to body color from black) and the owner showed me a restored 300SE cabriolet who's owner had opted to have his whitewalls mounted backwards --- blackwall showing... he liked the look better but had purchased the whitewalls so that he could eventually sell the car with whitewalls.
Blackwall vs Whitewall on the W113's is therefore purely and only a matter of personal taste and to a lesser degree, economics in availability.
It is also noted that the 230SL rallye version of the SL (marketed by MB as the 230SL Rallye version) of course didn't have whitewalls as an option. Wheels were optionally 5.5 JK x 13's or x 15's (steel or aluminum) with tire size options 7.5 x 13, 8.5 x 13 (Racing), or 7 x 15. The winning 230SL in the '63 Spa-Sofi-Luettich rallye used the 15 inch wheels (with 1mm larger bore & 167 horsepower). The 230SL team in the '64 race used 13 inch wheels, a 2.56L version of the 230SL engine (same bore as the '63 rallye engine, but longer stroke with 173 horsepower). Thus, perhaps a slight 'sportier' appearance of the SL is obtained with blackwalls --- a full-out sporty appearance with at least 3 if not 5 rallye lights AND no hubcaps even. ... and a number on the side, with sufficient spreckels of mud and dirt along the sides and windsheild.
I would therefore very much appreciate it if someone could elaborate on reasoning or verifiable basis for the "proper" or "correct" tire being the whitewall on the W113's.
Longtooth
67 250SL US #113-043-10-002163
'02 SL500 Sport
