1982 Mercedes-Benz R107 380SL with Quartz Cloth (268)

Finished in Thistle Green metallic, this 380 SL was given its pre-delivery inspection at Alan Day Ltd, on the Finchley Road in November ‘82, with it subsequently being registered in Feb ’83 for the first owner to collect. Specified with a limited slip differential, air conditioning and 15-hole light alloy wheels, in the 41 years since the first owner collected it it’s changed hands a number of times, these owners, collectively, having added 71,504 miles to its odometer.

The most recent owner is the most relevant since the first, having purchased it at auction in ‘21 before instigating a thorough mechanical and cosmetic overhaul to return it to the condition it presents itself in today. A great opportunity to buy a 380 SL that’s had lots of money spent on it recently, in a classic colour combination that’s ready to drive away and enjoy this coming summer.

A car that’s benefitted from a lot of work and money spent, a good deal of it here at the SLSHOP, this is a car that’s ready to be used and driven by its next owner. The bodywork is in good overall condition, it having gained a neat grey twin pinstripe line along its flanks at some time in its life. There’s also a boot spoiler, which isn’t on the car’s official delivery options but is period correct and an expensive original accessory. The hood, unusually, was specified in brown, with the hard top also coming with the car. Mechanically it’s sound, with plenty of recent work underlining that, though, with a bit of time, and not much money, this 380 SL could be improved further. We’d spend 5 minutes to remove the solitary mudflap on the driver’s side, and a bit more time to attend to the surface corrosion on the cross bars behind the grille – this cosmetic, opposed to critical. It’s all there, though, the interior is in good condition, though deeper cleaning would lift it further.

There’s a stamped service book up to around 50,000 miles, after which there’s evidence of maintenance with plenty of garage receipts for work undertaken, and a host of MOTs verifying its mileage. In the history you’ll find the bill of sale from an auction at DT Mathewson & Sons, the auctioneers featured in the television series Bangers & Cash (If you were wondering, it features in Series 7, Episode 9!). The buyer, and current owner’s extensive and expensive recommissioning via classic garages, before work at the SLSHOP was instigated, is clear from the sheaf of invoices, money well spent to get it to the condition it is in today.

A car that’s tantalisingly close to being in excellent overall condition opposed to good, this 380 SL can be driven away and enjoyed all summer without worry, but with its next owner also able to add value over the winter months by undertaking some easy, effective, DIY jobs to raise it to the next level. A classic R107 colour combination, with its 3.8-litre V8 being praised when new for its smoothness, that something this entire car exudes to this day. We’d remove the single mud-flap, fill up the tank and enjoy it, and suggest you do, too.