Just read Coochas' story of his car ... I wonder how many of our W113s were similar "hand-me-downs."
My car, like yours, was purchased slightly used for my mother. It's a 1967 230SL that my parents purchased from the local Mercedes dealer in Long Beach, Calif., in January 1970. She adored the car and made frequent trips from Southern California to Las Vegas with her best friend. It was always garaged and well cared-for.
A decade later, I was just out of college and living in Grants Pass, Ore., when my parents decided to sell the car. I always loved it. I had washed it from the age of 13. I had driven it to the prom. I persuaded my parents to sell it to me for $10,000, at a rate of $125 a month. One of the smartest purchases I ever made!
I drove it for a couple of years in Oregon, but eventually drove it back down to Southern California and put it in storage while my career as a journalist took me to Portland; Juneau, Alaska; and finally Detroit. I finally had the SL shipped to Ann Arbor, Mich., where I put it in storage again while taking it out for a drive now and then. By this time, it needed some work, and by the time I had saved enough money, I got some engine work done and had it resprayed. Then I left journalism and moved to Finland to take a job as a speechwriter at Nokia, but the car had to stay behind. Finally, after moving to The Netherlands for another job in 2011, I decided I wasn't getting any younger, and it was time to complete the restoration and enjoy the car. Fortunately, there is a shop nearby that specializes in '50s and '60s SLs, and they crew there did a great job getting the car back in like-new shape.
My only regret is my mother died last year before getting a chance to ride in her fully restored SL. She would have loved riding in it again, but at least she knew it was still in the family and in good hands. I had it appraised for insurance purposes last year at EUR 80,000. Not a bad investment, though I'm not sure I will ever sell it. I consider it a family heirloom.
