Pagoda help!

[Ally]

Hello everyone!
I was hoping to get some information from genuine Pagoda enthusiasts. I am based in the UK and am looking to buy a Pagoda. Do you think it is possible to find a decent example for less than £12k? I am willing to do basic mechanical/engine work/bodywork. The people I have spoken to so far are of the opinion that £15k is the minimum. I appreciate that 280's achieve premiums and am more than happy to look at a 230 or 250. I have also been told to steer clear of 250 california coupe's (although I would be more than happy to own one).
I am a genuine fan of Pagodas and need your help!
Many thanks,
Ally

[Cees Klumper]

In the UK, Pagodas are a bit more expensive than elsewhere I believe. You can get a California Coupe if you don't mind not having a convertible but it will be difficult to sell it in the future.

I would expect that if you look around long and diligently enough, 12 thousand pounds will get you a decent enough Pagoda, particularly outside the UK (LHD).

Good luck,

Cees ("Case") Klumper in Amsterdam
'69 white 280 SL automatic

[JamesL]

Ally

I reckon you'll be hard pressed to find one for £12k - basic self-work yourself or not

That said, the most likely place to find one will be the MB Club - Gazette. Join the MB Club and monthly the Gazette arrives. There's a few in there this month. None at 12k though but they tend to be better value than dealers, and better looked after cars than on ebay

[Kemal]

Welcome , Ally

I had looked for a pagoda for a very long time ... until I found my one last year just outside London .'
I had been to 'Chelseacars' [ All tired looking , the cars that is ]' Classicchrome' again all tired looking .
Good examples were found at 'Silverarrows' , however his colours were not to my liking & his prices were more then I wanted to pay .
I had taken a lot of advice onboard from this site regards buying the best one possible as I didn't want to spend time or money later on .

I bought a US import in great condition [LHD] with air-con .& restored etc by Roger Edward's as well as Bramley car specialists .
[ Before me, she belonged to a car classic car collector , & he imported the car from the US ]
I hasten to add, I paid more then double the amount you want to pay & I recently got told that I could get at least £7000 more then I paid . [ Not selling of course.]


I do wish you luck , and would love to hear more .

Regards
Kaman

280SL Manual 69

quote:Originally posted by Ally

Hello everyone!
I was hoping to get some information from genuine Pagoda enthusiasts. I am based in the UK and am looking to buy a Pagoda. Do you think it is possible to find a decent example for less than £12k? I am willing to do basic mechanical/engine work/bodywork. The people I have spoken to so far are of the opinion that £15k is the minimum. I appreciate that 280's achieve premiums and am more than happy to look at a 230 or 250. I have also been told to steer clear of 250 california coupe's (although I would be more than happy to own one).
I am a genuine fan of Pagodas and need your help!
Many thanks,
Ally

[jameshoward]

Ally,

You've probably picked the best place to start. Don't do what I did and buy a car then find out what I should have looked for. There's some top info on this site and a thread down a few from this one has some good info in it about what to look for. Have a scan thru until you find one in a similar vein.

Good luck.

James

[Ally]

Thank you for your replies chaps! This forum is invaluable.....so much great advice. Over the past few weeks I have seen two Pagodas both at around the £12k mark. They both sold within a day or so (I procrastinated as i wanted to gain as much knowledge as possible before buying). In retrospect a California coupe selling for £10k was a great option. It was mechanically sound but the interior and body were tired. At the very least I am heartened to know that pagodas at that price do occasionally pop up. I will def keep you all posted
Regards,
Ally

[Ally]

Hello Cees,
Where outside of the UK do you recommend? I would prefer an EU car as I believe the importing process is less rigorous than with US models. Any advice?
Regards,
Ally

quote:Originally posted by cees klumper

In the UK, Pagodas are a bit more expensive than elsewhere I believe. You can get a California Coupe if you don't mind not having a convertible but it will be difficult to sell it in the future.

I would expect that if you look around long and diligently enough, 12 thousand pounds will get you a decent enough Pagoda, particularly outside the UK (LHD).

Good luck,

Cees ("Case") Klumper in Amsterdam
'69 white 280 SL automatic

[jameshoward]

Ally,

I imported a US model. The process is probably a little more of a hassle than driving, say, to France and picking up a car then driving home, but deal that you can get importing a car with exchange rates where they are at present might outweigh some of the hassle. I have a very good forwarder (shipping agent) who can make the arrangements if you want. It is not expensive, either although you should find out if there are any taxes to pay.

James

[Ally]

Thank you James!
I need to look into the tax situation a little more closely. A rust free Californian Pagoda sounds a great option especially considering the current exchange rate!
A

quote:Originally posted by jameshoward

Ally,

I imported a US model. The process is probably a little more of a hassle than driving, say, to France and picking up a car then driving home, but deal that you can get importing a car with exchange rates where they are at present might outweigh some of the hassle. I have a very good forwarder (shipping agent) who can make the arrangements if you want. It is not expensive, either although you should find out if there are any taxes to pay.

James

[AGT]

Ally

I would endorse the importing from the USA route if you can live with LHD.

I imported a 230SL last year and the costs were £1,000 approx for shipping and insurance, £50 customs duty and VAT at 17.5% of the Bill of Sale value of the car. So a $20,000 car probably costs you around £12,500 shipped to the UK and taxes paid.

I paid a fair bit more than $20,000  for my 230SL and it is a gem (I writing this I issue an open invitation for everything to go wrong and massive bills). I paid £12,000 for my 280SL and it was a howling canine which I have spent a fortune getting fixed. To my well burned wallet there is no contest and I just don't believe that you could find a UK car for around £12,000 which is not a money pit. Try a new question on what the forum thinks you could get in the USA for $20,000.

Assuming you document the purchase properly, re-registration of a US car in the UK is straightforward although it is necessary to MOT the car. My cars have LHD lights which require masking of the light beams to pass the MOT but this has not been a problem. Replacing the light units to get the dipped lights to throw the other way is expensive.

Good luck and have fun.

Regards
Andrew
1966 230SL
1969 280SL (woof, woof)
1989 420SL
2007 S320CDI
2007 BMW 535d M Sport Touring

[Khurram Darugar]

Ally,
     Pagoda's of any year are registered as "historic vehicles" by the department of Customs and Excise.  Historic vehicles only have to pay 5% import duty.  However there is a catch.  You need to contact customs and exise with your chassis number and sale price prior to your motor's arrival in the UK port; in my case it was bristol.  They will then issue you with a document, i forget the technical name, which specifies the amount in £'s of the actual vat that has to be paid on your historic vehicle.  You then give this document to the clearing agent and basically save your self 12.5%.
Kay



Kay
Euro 280sl LHD Auto.

[jameshoward]

Ally,

So basically, don't be put off buying a US car. Spend as much as you can, though. I wish I'd spent more. I've ended up spending it here instead on spares.

As I understand it, a California coupe is the one without the convertible hood. I have a friend who has one here. If I may suggest, have a really really long hard think about buying such a car for the UK. You may find you regret the fact that you might not be able to drive it in our typical weather. I think my friend sorely regrets buying one. (And as Cees says, selling it will be hard).

JH

[gnj588d]

Hello Ally.A bit of advice,If you dont know these cars inside out,get someone who does.I have never seen a good car for 12000 The most dangerous price range is 15 to 20 thou,but dont be put off i have seen the odd bargain.Join the Merc club if you want to stay on first name terms with the Bank manager.You will find this group invaluable  Take care and good luck {keep us informed} Mike Rutledge Liverpool

[Cees Klumper]

Hello Ally - the only country on the mainland that I can say anything about is The Netherlands. Here, there are constantly about a hundred or more Pagodas for sale, sometimes at quite reasonable prices I think. My impression is that in Germany our cars are more expensive than here in Holland. France, Belgium etc I have no information on. In short, I can recommend The Netherlands. There also are several sellers here that specialize in importing Pagodas from the US. Although I am personally getting tired of the inevitable claim that every car 'came straight from California' (implying there will be no rust) there are probably some good buys in that lot as well. Although I think your best bet is getting a good car straight from the current private owner, who for whatever reason is looking to sell.

Cees ("Case") Klumper in Amsterdam
'69 white 280 SL automatic

[hill]

I have a California coupe and love it. Even here in Sacramento CA. they cost about $1,000 less. We only get 50 days of rain mostly in the winter so it is no big deal. The tops are heavy and even with the hoist it is a two person job to align the top when lowering it. My car is a european model and was shipped here after 1 year in Belgium. This was quite common because they looked better than our models. While there are many "CA" car claims if the service receipts are from CA you probably got the real thing. Cars from certain parts of our coast  see more fog/rain than the UK. If you want I will email you my next copy of the Star magazine classifieds. Sorry about the rambling but when working on Porsches in the 70's I found out half of the 911's produced were sold in CA and the113 were more expensive cars at that time.

Happy Benzing
Darryl, Hill
350 SL4.5 #60
1967 250sl "California"

[Douglas]

Here's a California Coupe that doesn't look bad:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Mercedes-Benz-SL-Class-280-SL-1971-Mercedes-Benz-SL-Class-CA-Car_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ6338QQihZ015QQitemZ250112585190QQrdZ1

(No connection to seller, of course.)

Douglas Kim
New York
USA

[Ally]

Many thanks KD!
Thats great news....
All the best,
A

quote:Originally posted by KD

Ally,
     Pagoda's of any year are registered as "historic vehicles" by the department of Customs and Excise.  Historic vehicles only have to pay 5% import duty.  However there is a catch.  You need to contact customs and exise with your chassis number and sale price prior to your motor's arrival in the UK port; in my case it was bristol.  They will then issue you with a document, i forget the technical name, which specifies the amount in £'s of the actual vat that has to be paid on your historic vehicle.  You then give this document to the clearing agent and basically save your self 12.5%.
Kay



Kay
Euro 280sl LHD Auto.

[Ally]

Hi Darryl,
The Star classifieds would be greatly appreciated. I grew up in the Bay area and still have family there. I am planning a visit later this year and it would be handy to have an idea of whats available.
Thanks,
Ally

quote:Originally posted by hill

I have a California coupe and love it. Even here in Sacramento CA. they cost about $1,000 less. We only get 50 days of rain mostly in the winter so it is no big deal. The tops are heavy and even with the hoist it is a two person job to align the top when lowering it. My car is a european model and was shipped here after 1 year in Belgium. This was quite common because they looked better than our models. While there are many "CA" car claims if the service receipts are from CA you probably got the real thing. Cars from certain parts of our coast  see more fog/rain than the UK. If you want I will email you my next copy of the Star magazine classifieds. Sorry about the rambling but when working on Porsches in the 70's I found out half of the 911's produced were sold in CA and the113 were more expensive cars at that time.

Happy Benzing
Darryl, Hill
350 SL4.5 #60
1967 250sl "California"

[Ally]

Thank you for the advice Cees.
I have been looking at Dutch websites and you are spot on. The language is a bit of a barrier but I am making progress.
Cheers!
A

quote:Originally posted by cees klumper

Hello Ally - the only country on the mainland that I can say anything about is The Netherlands. Here, there are constantly about a hundred or more Pagodas for sale, sometimes at quite reasonable prices I think. My impression is that in Germany our cars are more expensive than here in Holland. France, Belgium etc I have no information on. In short, I can recommend The Netherlands. There also are several sellers here that specialize in importing Pagodas from the US. Although I am personally getting tired of the inevitable claim that every car 'came straight from California' (implying there will be no rust) there are probably some good buys in that lot as well. Although I think your best bet is getting a good car straight from the current private owner, who for whatever reason is looking to sell.

Cees ("Case") Klumper in Amsterdam
'69 white 280 SL automatic