A Mercedes That's All Klasse

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If you were very successful and wealthy in 1972 you probably had your heart set on a luxury car. A Rolls Royce was maybe out of your range, or perhaps a bit ‘old money’ for your taste. Indeed, what you really wanted was the Mercedes that was the forerunner to the famous S-Class line, the W108/109. And if funds could be stretched you really wanted the 3.5L V8 option. It said to the world you had class and taste. Over 50 years later this 280SE V8 still projects good taste and is perhaps more classy than ‘class’. And it could be yours. Read on...

The Mercedes S-Class has become the benchmark for luxury and innovation. It’s the model that Mercedes lavishes with all the new developments they have been working on. Over the generations the S-class has debuted electronic ABS, Electronic stability control, soft closing doors, adaptive cruise control, the list goes on. Now, technically, the W108/109 was not the first S-Class – that honour goes to its successor, the W116 – and the “S” in the name merely stands for “sedan”. But, even if not by official name, it is basically the first S-Class.

This car was sold new in NZ in October 1972 and has had 3 private owners. One thing Mercedes still hadn’t introduced was the 6 digit odometer, so it’s difficult to tell if the 47,400 miles is on its first time around. But we can ascertain that it has only travelled 14,000 miles in the last 29 years.

It looks in great shape for its 50+ years and still sports the original Becker Mexico Cassette player that looks in great cosmetic shape and worth a tidy sum on its own.

This generation of Mercedes still looks beautiful today. They are elegant, comfortable and practical. But they are also thirsty and will require specialist fettling from time to time. But as affordable classics go, this looks like potentially good buying with an auction estimate of $19,000 - $21,000.

The auction is on the 7^th February at Turners Auckland. More details here.