1965 Mercedes-Benz 230 SL Pagoda

This Mercedes-Benz W113 230SL was first registered in July 1965 and was a factory right-hand-drive car with manual transmission.

The car has gone around the clock plus a few thousand in terms of mileage, which isn’t bad for a 57 year old car with at least 8 different owners.

The current owner, our vendor, bought the car in 2019 from a deceased estate and has driven fewer than 700 miles since. Sadly none of the history came with the car but he understands that the interior retrim hadn’t been done long before.

The SL is finished in a dark blue and the body panels appear in a pretty good condition, nice and straight with even shut lines and no apparent damage beyond the odd small chip or scratch. The paint looks fairly strong with perhaps just a light orange peel effect close up. The lower sills have a body-coloured protective stone chip coating.

The chrome trims are bright enough but the front bumper and rear bumperettes have suffered some pitting and a few small dents here and there underneath. The nearside rear bumper also has a thumb-sized hole on the corner, possibly previous damage that has now rusted through. There is also a small dent in the front grille, centrally above the three-pointed star, which itself appears to have been repaired with some kind of glue.

The SL sits on original style 14-inch steel wheels with chrome beauty rings and body-coloured hubcaps, which are undamaged but would benefit from a good polish. All are fitted with Michelin Energy Saver tyres dating from around 2010 but still with good tread depth.

The black fabric soft top appears functional albeit a little tatty with patches and small tears here and there, particularly on the near side.

Removing the hard top roof for these models is a two-person job and, given that such classic cars rarely go out in the rain these days, the hard tops were often stored somewhere and forgotten.

Happily, this “Pagoda” comes with the rigid roof that inspired the nickname. It fits well and the paintwork is in the same “good but could be improved” condition as the rest of the car. There is a noticeable scratch around 6cm long on the front left section of the roof to note. The front leading edge has some bubbling starting to show too.

The headlining is in smart condition, with very light yellowing in places & the chrome trim presents well, with some pitting & a few sections on flaking chrome affect on the tailing edge.

The interior looks like it has been renewed or restored relatively recently, with the dash, upholstery and door cards having been retrimmed in a beige/biscuit coloured leather or MB-Tex leatherette with perforated seat facings.

The instrument panel looks period correct with its combination of black panelling and aluminium trims. A more modern Kenwood CD Radio has been fitted but this would be an obvious candidate to be swapped for one of the retro Becker-style sets with phone connectivity.

The oatmeal carpets look new and of the original square weave with vinyl bindings and are in fabulous condition throughout, with sacrificial floor mats bearing the brunt of heels and dirty soles.

One of the trim pieces on the driver’s door handle has come loose, the tonneau cover panel needs a firm shove to sit flat, and the inside of the folding roof is a little stained but otherwise the interior presents very well.

Under the front-hinged bonnet, the engine bay looks clean, tidy and well looked after. The head was likely cleaned up or recoated during the head-gasket work early last year, when it was also given a thorough service.

The undersides have a good coating of waxoyl or similar, along with stone chip paint on the lower sills. The underseal is flaking off in places, possibly where a car lift pad or jack has rubbed against it. All the suspension and steering components look in good order with relatively new looking dampers, and the exhaust appears to be a stainless system rearwards of the downpipes.

The boot is a rather spartan affair with only carpet lining on the floor. The full size spare wheel has the same tyre fitted as the road wheels and looks to be of the same age. Also present are the jack and wheel brace.

The SL’s most recent MOT expired earlier this year but the online record shows four tests from 2017 onwards. As an historic vehicle it is exempt from testing but we like to see owners getting an annual MOT as independent proof of a car’s roadworthiness should it ever be needed.

There’s very little by way of a history file with the car. There is a little paperwork relating to its purchase by our vendor in November 2019 and an invoice for head gasket replacement, steering bushes and an annual service in February 2021 by German car specialists PKF Engineering of Salisbury.

A history check suggests at least 7 previous owners and lists a number plate change in 1985, a colour change from red to blue in 1997 and that it was exported in August 2004. Where it went to and when it returned, we can only guess. The car does come with an original 230SL owner’s manual.

One of our team has taken the 230SL for a short drive and reports that whilst the engine starts and runs nicely, and the car itself drives well, the throttle is a bit notchy and can making it a challenge not to set off like a kangaroo. It should be noted that this is only at very low speeds, once some more throttle is applied, the car drives very smoothly.

The W113 “Pagoda” SL is an immensely elegant and desirable car that has attracted sporting owners from Juan Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss to David Coulthard and Nico Rosberg as well as celebrities from John Lennon and Sophia Loren to John Travolta and Kate Moss.

But like all SLs, prices vary wildly depending on the condition and specification - we’ve seen average asking prices for 230SLs like this, which were previously holding steady, rise considerably over the last year or so.

This one lacks history and could do with just a little TLC to get it back to top condition, but it is a pretty straight example, which we think will sell for between £60,000 and £70,000, with a reserve comfortably below that estimate.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; we are open weekdays 9am-5pm, to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.