no rear side moulding...option? Resto decision?

[teahead]

Seeing several recent Pagodas w/o the rear trim. 

Wondering if some cars got it, some didn't?  Or they ALL got it, but owner(s) decided to leave them off?

I kind of like them off.  I mean, who would door ding you back there anyways?

[teahead]

Referring to the rear quarter panel (or Wing as they say in UK).

Here's mine w/how most are.

[Jack the Knife]

All the period photos of the car I've ever seen have that rear trim. I think it was just to continue the line of the door trim. I agree that it looks better without.

[rwmastel]

All Pagodas had them.  Leaving them off (and fixing the holes) is an owner's choice.

[Cees Klumper]

Original designs are very difficult to improve on. Seing both variants, my personal preference is 'with'. But as Rodd says, personal preference.
Not to go off-topic, but I am pondering whether to go bumperless on my '61 Alfa Giulietta, or not. Very tough choice!

[stickandrudderman]

Personally I think you devalue your car by not having them.
If I'm asked to do a PPI I will notice that immediately and mark the car down.

[JamesL]

The phrase "Does my bum look big without them?" comes to mind...

[Mike Hughes]

Practically speaking, when cleaning my Pagoda after a run home in the rain, there is noticeably less road schmutz adhering to the rear coachwork above the trim than below.  This is particularly so after a wet run up the 7/10ths of a mile gravel road from the highway to our home in the mountains.

[mdsalemi]

Personally I think you devalue your car by not having them.
If I'm asked to do a PPI I will notice that immediately and mark the car down.

Agree 100%. One of the most challenging things in a restoration of an older, unloved car is sourcing all the missing bits. While MB and other suppliers cite the vast availability of many of the parts for Pagodas, alas, there are a lot of parts NLA, and all the trim bits are high on that list.

[john.mancini]

WITH! 

[montefautin]

I have lost rear reflector on 65 230sl driver side. Do u have any resource for replacement?

[rwmastel]

This is a thread about side moulding, so it might have been better to start a new thread about side markers and where to acquire them.  Regardless, I see you're a full member so you do have access to the Vendor List here:  https://www.sl113.org/wiki/Suppliers/Start

[Jack the Knife]

I believe the above pre-production example has been posted around here a lot. Credit for this image is from Curbside Classics' excellent write-up on the career of Paul Bracq. There are a number of things about the bottom car that may not have been noticed, aside from the rear trim being left off. This was an earlier prototype -- actually of a 220SL, not a 230SL:

• The wheels use many more vents, especially in the rear, perhaps hinting at 4-wheel discs that didn't materialize in the debut. Wheels are also polished rather than painted.
• 300SL-style door handles
• Note upward curve aft-ward on the door as well as a bulge there reminiscent of other 50s sports cars rather than the closer-to-straight line we got
• Completely different hard top with a more rounded rear glass... probably nixed for cost reasons
• Slightly more curvaceous rear below the bumper

The differences from the rear are pretty apparent when you look straight-on from the rear:

• No visible exhaust (I like this!)
• Chrome plate touching the two bumpers
• More bulbous rooftop to allow for the curvature of the rear (the Pagoda roof is more interesting to me, although having the greenhouse like this would have been functionally nice)
• One can just barely see a different heater vent configuration inside... can't find any more inside photos, sadly

[rwmastel]

• The wheels use many more vents, especially in the rear, perhaps hinting at 4-wheel discs that didn't materialize in the debut. Wheels are also polished rather than painted.

I think those look like full wheel covers/caps with body-color painted wheels beneath.  I don't think the wheels are polished, the covers are (partially).

- I prefer that hard top with the dome curve and curved rear window, but I don't know what we could car our cars, other than w113!
- I prefer the cut down doors as well.  Very sharp.

Like you alluded to, it looks like the design team was still trying to pull themselves out of the 1950's.

[Jack the Knife]

I think those look like full wheel covers/caps with body-color painted wheels beneath.  I don't think the wheels are polished, the covers are (partially).

- I prefer that hard top with the dome curve and curved rear window, but I don't know what we could car our cars, other than w113!
- I prefer the cut down doors as well.  Very sharp.

Like you alluded to, it looks like the design team was still trying to pull themselves out of the 1950's.

Yeah, it makes sense that they ditched those elements especially if you consider some of the oft-forgotten about competition... notably the Facel Vega Facellia, which was introduced in 1959! It is somewhat Pagoda-like in its lines. Or like a nicer Sunbeam Tiger.

I'm sure you've seen the rendering of the Pagoda with Bracq's late 190-style top, which was also present on the so-called 300SLX (a real looker). And though our handles are functionally better, it's hard not to like those cool flush racecar-like handles like the 300SL had.

[AdelaidePagoda]

Jack the Knife: I could not agree more, about those 300SL style door handles. They would have been a superb carry of the tradition if they had been included on the 230SL and beyond. So sleek, elegant, aerodynamic and ahead of the curve technologically.

Tesla has included the flush door handles throughout their entire range, chiefly for aerodynamics and hence energy savings, however from a design perspective they allow for the architects lines to flow unimpeded. Bracq certainly would have preferred flush door handles but production costs and volume overruled that decision.

Some would say you can’t improve on Pagoda perfection, although when you kindly share some of these historic photos on this forum, I am not so sure? 🤔