"‘Every driver who has more than a purely utilitarian interest in automobiles should drive a Mercedes-Benz 250SL at least once in his life. The car is an almost perfect yardstick against which to measure any other car. There are cars with better acceleration, cars with better brakes and cars with better roadholding. But there is no car we can think of that has such a remarkable good balance of performance, safety and comfort, and has them in such an absolutely civilised structure.’ – Car & Driver.
First produced late in 1966, the 250 SL used the same bodyshell as the 230 SL that had founded this spectacularly successful sports car dynasty and which it replaced. Minor improvements were made to the interior but the major differences were the new 2.5-litre six-cylinder engine, as fitted to the 250SE, and disc brakes instead of drums at the rear, which made it much safer. The new car’s top speed of around 120mph remained the same but the larger engine significantly improved flexibility and responsiveness. The 250 SL was built for just one full production year making it the rarest model of the ‘Pagoda’ range.
This example is presented in black with matching black leather interior, black hood and a manual gearbox. Also included is the factory hardtop which was originally from New York. We understand the engine does run but this is a restoration project and hence the extremely competitive guide price. These are sought after models and totally restored examples are fetching six figure sums in some instances."