How fast do you drive your 280SL?

[CromeYellow]

Mine is a four speed.  My restoration mechanic advised keeping it around 70mph on freeways because going say 90mph or 100mph will put too much strain on the transmission because it is only a four speed.

At 70mph I notice about 4000 rpm in fourth gear.

Not that I want to go 100mph regularly (or ever) but just wondering.

Before I had it restored I didn't think about this sort of thing much, I just drove it.  Now I am more careful, I suppose.

[thelews]

What a load of BS if the transmission is healthy.  I drive mine 90 with no problem.  The previous owner drove the car 375 miles from CA to NV in 4 hours.

[Jonny B]

I would agree, these cars are quite ready for those speeds (once you complete the break-in of course) They were designed for those speeds and the high (to what we are accustomed to now) revs. 

[su8pack1]

In 41 years I only broke 100 once and it felt fine.

[mdsalemi]

Though the last "long" trip I took was one of two hours out and two hours back, those two hour jaunts were generally at the 4,000 RPM range, which puts the speed close to 80 as indicated. That was recently.

Over the years there were many events I drove too, all about the same: 4,000 RPM, between 75-80. It's hot as all get out in the summer, so noisy I need ear plugs. But many of those events had me driving 5-8 hours at a clip.

Mine's an automatic FWIW.

[Cees Klumper]

There's been a few discussions on this 'top speed' topic in the past. I recall a story by one of our founding board members, Albert de la Torre Chavalera, that he once toured a very long distance (600 miles?) in a Pagoda at an average speed of, as I recall, 115 miles per hour. The fastest I recall going was that same 115 MPH, once in The Netherlands and once in Switzerland, for brief periods of time. I converted my differential from the original US delivered 4.08 to a 3.69 ratio.  The strain would not be on the transmission so much as on the engine.

[Benz Dr.]

Well.......I won't say where I was, or what year it was, or which country I was in, or who was driving, but I was in my car doing about 130 MPH at the time. A 5 speed car is good for an extra 10 MPH and I'm running a 3.92 instead of the standard 4.08 so it was really wound up. Full 6,500 RPM - for a mile or so.

[Bonnyboy]

I found a speeding ticket that my Dad got in "my" car and it was for 194 kph.   He said the car felt great at that speed but that was 35 yrs ago on the open highways up near Alaska.   

I drive like a grandma considering the new laws about demerit points and losing licenses but can cruise all day at 110K which is just a bit under the limit. 
 

[thelews]

cruise all day at 110K

Hope it doesn't get carboned up.

I love watching BaT videos of people driving these cars, especially 190 SLs.  They barely go over 3K rpm and 30 mph.  Are they afraid the car is going to fall apart?  My experience is the 190 SL feels great at 80 mph. Not to mention the very LARGE percentage that ride the clutch.

[mdsalemi]

...Albert de la Torre Chavalera...once toured a very long distance (600 miles?) in a Pagoda at an average speed of, as I recall, 115 miles per hour.

I find that exceedingly challenging to believe. Where? If true, or even remotely true, that puts it in the Cannonball Run territory, even if it's only 25% of the distance.

Many of the cars that have completed the Cannonball Run (NY to LA) have been highly modified. Laser jammers, fuel cells, radar detectors, thermal imaging, etc. Many that claim to have completed it at a certain speed were unsubstantiated.

I cannot think of but a couple of places where this might even be close to possible in the USA. Interstate 40 in the southwest? Across Montana on I-90? Certainly not in Europe as that distance, 1,000 km will take you from the North Sea to the Mediterranean or from Iberia to the eastern bloc, across some of the most densely populated countries in Europe.

I have no doubt that a well sorted Pagoda is completely capable or running 600 miles/1000 km at high speed. Where to do this is the issue--the geography, not the car.

[Jack the Knife]

I find that exceedingly challenging to believe. Where? If true, or even remotely true, that puts it in the Cannonball Run territory, even if it's only 25% of the distance.

Many of the cars that have completed the Cannonball Run (NY to LA) have been highly modified. Laser jammers, fuel cells, radar detectors, thermal imaging, etc. Many that claim to have completed it at a certain speed were unsubstantiated.

I cannot think of but a couple of places where this might even be close to possible in the USA. Interstate 40 in the southwest? Across Montana on I-90? Certainly not in Europe as that distance, 1,000 km will take you from the North Sea to the Mediterranean or from Iberia to the eastern bloc, across some of the most densely populated countries in Europe.

I have no doubt that a well sorted Pagoda is completely capable or running 600 miles/1000 km at high speed. Where to do this is the issue--the geography, not the car.

If someone could get a hold of the man who completed the Peking-to-Paris in his 230SL, it would be fascinating to hear about how fast he drove and for how long. That race is largely across steppes. Same goes for some of the Pagodas that competed in the Panamericana, where there are plenty of straightaways (and also plenty of mountain driving, of course!). Anyway, Miami to Pensacola is 674mi. Plenty of flat. Plenty of cops, too. I mean, really, there are plenty of places in the US where one could do this. All of the middle states, from Texas to North Dakota and Montana... the Canadian portion of the Great Plains... (just don't get caught, that goes for anywhere, but especially Canada!); then outside of North America there's the steppe all over Argentina, Warsaw to Yalta is relatively flat. Then there's the outback...

Hope it doesn't get carboned up.

I love watching BaT videos of people driving these cars, especially 190 SLs.  They barely go over 3K rpm and 30 mph.  Are they afraid the car is going to fall apart?  My experience is the 190 SL feels great at 80 mph. Not to mention the very LARGE percentage that ride the clutch.

I saw a pretty nice BMW E9 auction where the guy drove it in a very slow and depressing circle around a suburban culdesac. Par-for-the-course for BaT driving videos. Doesn't show much confidence in the car! Guys like 911r make up for it.

[mdsalemi]

If someone could get a hold of the man who completed the Peking-to-Paris in his 230SL, it would be fascinating to hear about how fast he drove and for how long. That race is largely across steppes. Same goes for some of the Pagodas that competed in the Panamericana, where there are plenty of straightaways (and also plenty of mountain driving, of course!). Anyway, Miami to Pensacola is 674mi. Plenty of flat. Plenty of cops, too. I mean, really, there are plenty of places in the US where one could do this. All of the middle states, from Texas to North Dakota and Montana... the Canadian portion of the Great Plains... (just don't get caught, that goes for anywhere, but especially Canada!); then outside of North America there's the steppe all over Argentina, Warsaw to Yalta is relatively flat. Then there's the outback...

Sorry, not believing it. Don't care about the mileage from Pensacola to Miami, you go through densely populated areas, heavy truck traffic, construction etc. That makes it challenging to do the speed limit much less above 100 MPH. You try it and let me know how it works out. Choose any car you want. Oh, if you get caught in many places doing that speed, not only do you lose your license they'll confiscate the car. Ask the dang fools who are NASCAR wannabes driving their "I think I'm cooler than you" Dodge Challengers and Hemis on I85 in the Charlotte area. But I digress. There's just a few brief areas where these ridiculous speeds are remotely possible, certainly not hundreds of miles worth. The real documented high speed runs across the USA were done in a different era.

Not getting caught is one thing. Finding a traffic free, truck free, construction free area in which to do this is darn near impossible. I did suggest I40 and I90 as possibilities. I do a LOT of driving and cannot seem to find some that meets that criteria. Always behind something, always in a construction zone, always boxed in by trucks behaving badly, you name it. I've tried just to maintain 70 and find it nearly impossible.

[Jack the Knife]

Sorry, not believing it. Don't care about the mileage from Pensacola to Miami, you go through densely populated areas, heavy truck traffic, construction etc. That makes it challenging to do the speed limit much less above 100 MPH. You try it and let me know how it works out. Choose any car you want. Oh, if you get caught in many places doing that speed, not only do you lose your license they'll confiscate the car. Ask the dang fools who are NASCAR wannabes driving their "I think I'm cooler than you" Dodge Challengers and Hemis on I85 in the Charlotte area. But I digress. There's just a few brief areas where these ridiculous speeds are remotely possible, certainly not hundreds of miles worth. The real documented high speed runs across the USA were done in a different era.

Not getting caught is one thing. Finding a traffic free, truck free, construction free area in which to do this is darn near impossible. I did suggest I40 and I90 as possibilities. I do a LOT of driving and cannot seem to find some that meets that criteria. Always behind something, always in a construction zone, always boxed in by trucks behaving badly, you name it. I've tried just to maintain 70 and find it nearly impossible.

There really is no need to be so abrasive.

Regardless, your experience in North Carolina is not consistent with my experience in Florida -- for better or worse.

[Cees Klumper]

From the archives almost twenty years ago we had this discussion already - some things never change. Good to see a good many of us are still around debating top speeds:

https://www.sl113.org/forums/index.php?topic=1581.0

[MikeSimon]

I have to laugh. I have a couple of cars that are significantly faster than any W113SL and I have hardly been able to exceed the speeds quoted here since I am living in North America. The fastest I ever went on a public road was in 1991 in my ZR1 one evening on 402 between London,ON and Sarnia on the way back from Toronto. I wanted to see if the 6th gear would still pull or if it was just an overdrive.
What's the point, really?

[Jack the Knife]

What's the point, really?

Racing, if one is into that.

[mdsalemi]

There really is no need to be so abrasive.

Regardless, your experience in North Carolina is not consistent with my experience in Florida -- for better or worse.

Not abrasive at all. When bold comments are made, such as it's possible to drive from Miami to Pensacola at 100+ MPH average speed, they need to be addressed. I believe it to be impossible for totally legitimate reasons. Any devil's advocate conjecture is merely that. This run is as impossible as any 600+ mile ride at that consistent average speed in Europe or USA, the few [proven] Cannonballers not withstanding. These sound like fish stories, or that hole in one that nobody saw. Remember the comment was that a founding member drove his Pagoda for 600+ miles at 115 MPH average speed. It's hearsay, and unproven, and I suggest darn near impossible.

As for my experience, I've only lived in NC for 2.5 years. Most of my driving, in the 48 years I've had a license, has been in the various places I've lived: CA, PA, CT, NY, MA and MI. Not to mention many trips to Europe where I've done plenty of driving, N to S and W to E. No I've never lived in Florida, but have driven the congested parking lots that are I75 and I95 in FL. I think you'd be hard pressed to avoid I75 on that impossible jaunt. There's just simply too much traffic, trucks, construction and other impediments, the law being only one of them.

Though I've cruised at that aforementioned 4000 RPM which is under 80 MPH, it's still screaming fast in a Pagoda. In a 70 or 75 zone, it is darn near impossible to get pulled over, so I don't worry about the law. It is challenging to try and maintain that speed when those trucks and traffic get in the way.

What I will completely believe is the honesty of Mike Simon. A lonely road...the 402 through desolate farm country of SW Ontario...a fast car...a quiet temptation...and a quick sprint up to some ungodly speed before common sense prevailed. Not a claim of 600 miles at that speed. Thanks for bringing this down to earth Mike!

[Cees Klumper]

When I had my 1996 Alfa GTV turbo, I once needed to drive deep into Germany with still long stretches of no-max-speed highways. On the way back to the Netherlands, I ended up tagging along with a few fast driving cars for an hour or so, at 135 MPH (220 KPH). What struck me was that, after a while, that speed seemed perfectly normal. When I hit the Dutch border near Arnhem and I had to get back down to 65 MPH (around 100 KPH) it seemed like crawling - until I got used to that speed again.

[Benz Dr.]

I have to laugh. I have a couple of cars that are significantly faster than any W113SL and I have hardly been able to exceed the speeds quoted here since I am living in North America. The fastest I ever went on a public road was in 1991 in my ZR1 one evening on 402 between London, ON and Sarnia on the way back from Toronto. I wanted to see if the 6th gear would still pull or if it was just an overdrive.
What's the point, really?

That's an area with not too much traffic most of the time. The west end near Sarnia is quite flat but it is patrolled by the OPP and they have no problem writing tickets. 30 MPH over the limit is automatic impound these days.

[Jack the Knife]

To those that can speak German, is there any mentioning of sustained speed on straightaways in Spa-Sofia-Liege? I do know the speed of the entire race was like 65km/hr average over 5500km.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOWc7-vv5cs

[Bill Sgro]

I think it was 1996 returning to Cleveland from Star Fest in Portland OR driving on I-90 through Montana where the speed limit was reasonable and prudent (I recall that you would usually be pulled over exceeding 90mph) I think I got my 1970 280SL automatic to 122mph.  There was nothing left.  I was disappointed because I thought the top speed was 127mph.   

I had a Sony Camcorder and recorded it (like an idiot).  I still have the tape somewhere, but no camcorder to play it back. 

I remember the car was fine at that speed.  I should locate the tape and digitize and post it. 

My car is very at home at 80mph.

[Raymond]

With my T-5 transmission, for short bits, I've been over 110 mph and the engine is quite happy and the car seems quite at home.  I couldn't dare that speed in my BMW E30.  Too twitchy.  I didn't log the Pagoda's RPM at 110, but at 3,000 RPM my GPS says 72 mph.  Years ago, I ran on an Interstate at 90 mph for more than an hour.  Cees is right about the perception of speed over time.  Michael is right about the scarcity of long, unobstructed stretches anymore.  The car can do it, but that isn't why I drive it.

[ja17]

Back in the day, Mercedes engines were designed to run at redline all day long. Only if your engine has a history of good health and good maintenance, should you expect such durability!! I used to cruise at 90mph for extended periods of time in my 4cyl 190SL back in the day. The second stage of the carburetion system on those cars did not even kick-in until around 3,500 rpm.

[roymil]

I just took mine out today for a Sunday spin on the local toll road.  I didn't plan it but there were no other cars in sight and for some reason it just kept going faster and faster.  I'm sure you all know that nervous feeling you get when pushing up over 4000rpm and hearing all the noise, well honestly, it just went away when I got over 5000 and above, it just seemed to sound better and better and kept pulling pretty hard.  I might have pegged it except I remembered I still need to bleed a line and the idea of hard braking cured any need for more speed today. 

When I got home to check the idle on a warm engine, it was as smooth as I've ever heard, nothing to adjust at all, not overly hot, just a happy engine.   Something to say for those Italian tune-ups.  I don't know exactly why, but that engine runs better now.   A good day indeed.  Bare in mind I've personally been through every part of the engine, driveline, and suspension over the last 3 years and I know this car very well.  I wouldn't recommend fast driving unless you know yours equally well.  3 years ago I took it out after 18years in storage, having only worked on the engine but with original suspension and rotted bushings and mounts all around.  It was a complete basket case over 40MPH...don't do that

[Paul99]

When we bought our 230SL the lady owner who bought it at Mecedes in Chelsea London brand new said she put the top down and drove it to the coast flat out. 120MPH.  Game girl!