Abandoned 230SL - Should I or shouldn't I ?

[orphaned230sl]

Hi, I just sign up to this forum a little over a week ago and I was hoping if any of you knowledgeable guys and gals can help me with a decision.  Just recently, I came across a 230sl that was abandon at my sister's house for about 6 years by a tenant that moved out at about the same time. My sister want wanted me to help her tow the car to the junk yard but a friend of mine suggested that I claim the title to the car and restore it.  From a visual standpoint, the car itself doesn't look too bad (just very dirty from sitting outside and exposed to the elements for 6 years) but from an experience standpoint, I know absolutely nothing about these cars let alone try to restore one.  I have no keys to the car and as far as the history goes... nothing!  My sister did see the guy drove the car once before it died and left to sit for the next 6 years.  Trying to contact the guy for more info and possibly get access to the keys seems fruitless. My question is how hard is it to get one of these car going again or is it better just to haul it to the junk yard and be over with it? Thanks!

[Garry]

DO NOT JUNK IT.

I suggest you seek title to the vehicle.  Once you have done that you can then go to the Classic Car Centre in Irvine CA and get the Data Card for the car which will give you all the key details.  They can also supply a new key for the car.

The killer in all old cars is rust.  If it does not have a lot then you are on a real winner. There is lots written on the forum on how to bring a car back to life after it has been sitting for a long time.  6 years is not that much so even it it has a lot of just it is still quite valuable as a restorer to someone.  Looking at the photos it does not look that bad.  You will be in for a very pleasant surprise when you get it going and find out its value. Don't want to say more on that at this point but as I said at the start. DO NOT JUNK IT.

Garry

[Bonnyboy]

This is not legal advice but rather just hints to what I would do:  I suggest you get some legal adive on this - the car is most likely worth it. 

Check with your local tenancy branch and find out the rules for claiming ownership of abandoned vehicles
You may need a bill from your sister for 6 years of parking to create a claim / as well as a tenancy termination / eviction / forwarding addresses etc.
Find out if you are permitted to tow the vehicle out of your sisters yard so you can hide it from the previous owner ASAP in the event he returns for it or returns to trash it - he still owns it
Once you find out the process to claim ownership put the title in your name, clean it up, read the forums here and go through fuel, brakes, fluids and rubber items - remember safety first. 
The paint on these cars is wonderful and could turn out beautiful with some hard work.

My car sat outside for 10 years up near Alaska in very harsh conditions and looked worse than yours and cleaned up real nicely.  The mould in the interior comes off with saddle mould remover soap.

Up here in Canada we have to make a legitimate attempt to contact the previous owner with notarized documents etc. but it can be very rewarding if you are sucessful. 

Great find!

[orphaned230sl]

Thank you Garry and Bonnyboy (Ian) for your reply and suggestions.  I've researched about title transfer claims through my Department of Vehicles here in California and apparently, I have to go through a complicated procedure call a Lien Sale.  Once I submit my claim, the DMV will check on it's history (to make sure it's not stolen or been involved in a crime), track down the last registered owner and give him or her the opportunity to reclaim their car.  If after 30 days and no one show up to claim or if they cannot track down the owner, then the car goes up for auction.  The auction will last for 15 days I believe, and if nobody buys it, then it's mine.  The one thing I'm concern about are the keys.  I know you can order replacement keys once you've proven you're the rightful owner but being a 45 plus year old car, I'm not sure if the lock cylinder are the original or if they have been changed due to wear.  Is there anyway to check?  I'd hate to go through the long process and find out that I can't get the right keys to start the car.  Anyways, it's a beautiful automobile and I would love to get it on the road again so wish me luck for pursuing in this endeavor.  I'll keep the forum updated once I pass my first hurdle in getting the title claim.  In the mean time, here are more picture of the "orphaned 230sl"

[orphaned230sl]

Here's a few more pictures of the interior.  Two things I discovered that was interesting. One, I noticed the speedometer is Km/hr instead of Mi/hr and two, hornets like to build their hive inside the car!

[kampala]

This looks like a European model vs an American model based on the KPH  and based on the headlights.  Also based on the license plate and number this car most likely got those plates in about 1982.

Best of luck in bringing it back if you end up owning it. If you decide to sell it (once you own it) advise here.

[gerster]

Even if it's not restorable there are a lot of good parts on it to sell for a good price!

[Neil Thompson]

Discreetly slip it in the shed and sell the parts I'd suggest!

Neil

[Cees Klumper]

The auction may be where the plan breaks down. I imagine there are professional car dealers that are watching for these auctions and they'll know the value of this one. So you nay have to pay a few thousand for it to keep it out of the hands of others.

[Nate]

I agree with griffin1404. Hate to say it but parting it out or sticking it in a container and shipping it overseas may be your best bet.

[Bonnyboy]

Now I am not condonning this but a guy I met found a car abandoned in an underground parking garage and he wanted it.  Slowly he liberated items from the car and then went and contacted the previous owner showing photos of what was left.     I think if someone took the soft top, fuel injection pump, hardtop, seats, hood, trunk, few guages, radio, headlights and maybe a door or two for good measure, what would be left would be mostly a parts car.   If the car were then cleaned up real good there won't be evidence of what was "lost along the way".   It may be worth less to a potential purchaser.

[Flyair]

If you don't try, you will never know the newer to the question you asked, so….

[orphaned230sl]

    Wow, thanks for those interesting replies.  At first, if someone suggested that I part this car out and make some money in the process, I would probably jump on the idea.  But after a week or two of researching and getting to know more about the car, I  think I'll try to breathe more life into this vehicle.  I mean the car seems to be in decent shape and I would hate to kill it prematurely just because I lack patient and knowledge to save it.  As far as the title claim goes, I feel that if it's meant to be, it's meant to be.  If not then well... I didn't really pay anything for this car so I didn't lose anything either.  Title claims aside, I think this would be a fun and educational project.  My main concern now is getting the proper keys to start the car, or else all this effort is for nothing.
    Well, my first set of paperwork will be submitted to the DMV tomorrow and we'll see what happens.  In the meantime, I found another surprise while trying to clean out the trunk of the car.  A 24"  X 35" color poster of the 230sl !!  Not a great find but still nice.

[stickandrudderman]

Griffin1404, Is it any wonder that we English are always portrayed as the bad guys in Hollywood?

I might actually agree with you, but I would never say it in public!

The best route for the OP is to go down the correct and proper legal path. That way if he ends up owning it his conscience will be clear. imagine investing several thousand dollars and man hoursonly for the original owner to turn up and claim his car?

[71Beige280SL]

orphaned230sl,

Please keep us posted. I commend you on trying to save her.

[JamesL]

If I am not mistaken, she was made in August 1964 - an early-ish 230.

Bring her back to life for her 50th birthday!

[orphaned230sl]

I'm still not sure when she was built.  Still learning and researching in trying to decipher the VIN tag. I was hoping she'll be a 1966, then she'll be the same age as me!

@stickandrudderman, I never realize we portray Englishmen as bad, I just thought we had terrible American actors with bad British accent. 
As with the claim from the original owner after the restoration, I don't have too much concern about that.  After the Lien Sale process goes through, the original owner basically gave up his or her rights to reclaim.

[JamesL]

Your VIN plate picture seems top have embossed on it: 05872

That suggests it's Aug 64  -5542 finished July and 6080 finished August, suggesting mid-late August. So you have 15 months!

http://www.sl113.org/wiki/DataCard/USModelYear

[orphaned230sl]

Thanks for the link James,  that was great info. I was wondering if you can help me answer one more question. When looking at the speedometer gauge, I realize it was in Km/h suggesting that it's a euro model.  Is there a significant difference between the Euro model vs the American model besides the gauge and the headlights?

edit- Oops never mind, I found the info through the search feature.

[Bonnyboy]

Mr. Orphan

Always explain that you have a euro car when ordering parts.  Even then the parts may be wrong.  Sometimes it takes a couple times to get things right as the local Mercedes guys only seem to have the numbers handy for the US models. 

The differences between Euro and US destined cars are subtle and many "so called experts" are unaware of all the nuances as even the differences can vary slightly over the years.  Others can give all the differences but I think most differences are related to safety and emmissions.

I have had two mercedes "experts" actually argue with me saying that my Euro 280sl is actually a misbadged 230SL because of the "hard pockets, no reflectors on side fenders, no head rests"  but then I showed them metric guages, no bumper over riders, fishbowl headlights and the serial number showing Euro car and they agreed with me.   

I have also ran across a local car where the headlights were changed and the side markers were removed and the owner was trying to pass the car over as a Euro car - he even said it was mandatory to remove the metric guages because it came to America.  He was just wrong - putting fishbowl headlights on a car doesn't necessarily make it a Euro car.

Good luck with your car.

Obtain the car to the letter of the law and you'll never have to look back.

[Neil Thompson]

If you can get the title great, if you like a challenge and have lots and lots of spare cash even better. If not, slip it away and..... dare I repeat myself, sell the bits! Good luck either way

[Raymond]

The laws in California are likely different than here in Floridia, but you may not need to go to auction to get the car.  Again, legal advice is warranted, but seek it from a Real Estate attorney.  If your sister had a lease with the fellow and he left owing her rent, she has a right to collect the rent.  You may be able to add reasonable interest from the time that amount was owed.  If your sister can put a lien on the car for the amount plus interest, that might put it out of the price range for anyone wanting to buy it.  You'd need to know the terms of the lease and California law for abandoned property.  In Florida, most leases allow for seizing and disposition of property abandoned on leased premises to satisfy unpaid rent. 

Just a thought.  There's more than one way to skin a cat.

[mdsalemi]

Hey, title is title, and if the car is titled (one reason why these title laws exist) it belongs to the title holder.  If it isn't titled that's another story.  This is an overly complex situation...there could be an awful lot of work, a lot of that dealing with bureaucracies, just trying to get legal ownership. It might be quite a mountain to climb here which could take a lot of time, a bit of money and patience.  If the car's ownership is proven, it might even belong to heirs if the person has left this life. What a mess.

Then comes the restoration part...

[orphaned230sl]

@ mdsalemi, that's is a good point about the complexity of this situation .  It's seems like a lot of work must be put in prior to the restoration and without a guarantee of a favorable outcome. That's is one of the reasons why I posted the question "should I or shouldn't I?".  But after spending the last few days reading the responses and getting to know little bit more about these cars, I think I've made my decision to go ahead with it.  As flyair stated above, If I don't try, I'll never know.  And in the end, if things works out, I have all you wonderful people to thank for.  All I can do now is wait for the bureaucrats to decide my fate and if there's any new developments, I'll keep everybody posted.  Thanks every body for your help and inputs!   

[Louis]

"Trying to contact the guy for more info and possibly get access to the keys seems fruitless. My question is how hard is it to get one of these car going again or is it better just to haul it to the junk yard and be over with it? Thanks!"

How hard have you tried to contact the previous owner / tenant ?