Hemmings Classic Car – October 2019

Show Star

Built for display, this

unique 1971 280 SL

demonstrated Mercedes-

Benz’s finest engineering

By MarkJ.McCourt

PhotograPhy by Jeff Koch

t

here were indications this SL wasn’t a run-

of-the-mill example, but it took a trained

eye to see them. Since the 280 SL’s 1968

debut, Mercedes-Benz employees had

built each one of the firm’s touring sports cars

with care. But the well-equipped car from the

final year of production was something special,

and its marque-expert caretaker would uncover its

extraordinary past while ensuring its preservation

into the future.

By 1971, the SL was established as a legend-

ary model in a line of sporting postwar two-seat-

ers. Having originated with the racing-derived,

“Gullwing” door-equipped 1954 300 SL coupe

and its image-conscious contemporary counter-

part, the open-top four-cylinder 190 SL, that duo

had evolved into the singular 230 SL of 1963. This

thoroughly modern and civilized convertible split

the difference in character between the exotic

300 and tepid 190, offering spirited performance

along with the comfort and safety expected of

a modern Mercedes-Benz. In a quest for more

torque, the 230 evolved into the larger-displace-

ment 250, and ultimately became the 280 on

these pages.

Philip Lutfy was no stranger to “W113”—

chassis SLs, as this generation of removable roof

Benzes was internally designated by the auto-

maker. Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car readers will

remember the retired physician from the 2015

feature (“Mercedes Family Album,” issue #120)

celebrating his parents’ 1959 220 S coupe and

1963 300 SL roadster. This Phoenix, Arizona, resi-

dent has owned 20 examples of the “Pagoda” SL,

representing a significant portion of the 100-plus

Mercedes cars he’s bought and sold, restored and

collected through the decades.

“The Gullwings were noisy, and hot inside in

the summer—the roadsters were better since you could drop

the top—but the W113s were not so obnoxious. The 230, 250,

and 280 were quieter, and much cooler inside, even with the

hardtop on,” Philip tells us. “They have good visibility from

windows all around, and they’re lighter; with power brakes and

power steering, they’re more delicate, and easier to drive.”

Better passenger accommodations were designed into this

generation of SL from the start. While it shared the 94.5-inch

wheelbase of earlier models, it was now based on a shortened

220 SE “Fintail” platform. The steel unit-body, with aluminum

doors, hood, and trunklid, incorporated crumple zones for

occupant protection, and its crisp, fresh styling was primarily

attributed to future head of BMW design, Paul Bracq. The re-

movable hardtop that added comfort and safety gave the car its

92 hemmingSclaSSiccar october 2019 I hemmings.com