1988 Mercedes-Benz R107 - 300SL

We are delighted to be able to offer for auction this delightful Mercedes-Benz 300 SL. With just two previous keepers and only 58,280 recorded miles, it has a fabulous history with no fewer than 20 service stamps in the maintenance record book.

Finished in Champagne Gold with a mushroom leather interior and the optional rear seat, it was supplied to its original owner in Guernsey before coming to the United Kingdom in 2002 where it joined its next, and only other, keeper.

Always garaged, it is in an outstanding condition, making this is your chance to get your hands on a fully fettled, low-mileage example of one of the greatest and most highly regarded cars Mercedes-Benz has ever built.

The metallic Champagne Gold coachwork looks fabulous. Few convertible sportscars of the period are more elegant than the R107 and the colour scheme shows this one’s iconic lines off to perfection.

The condition is very good too with straight, dent and ripple-free panels, good alignment and consistent panel gaps, and a deep lustre to the paint. Even the wheelarches and sills, both notorious areas for rusting, are smooth and free of corrosion. The jacking points also look to be original and strong.

The chromework is very good with only a light patina, most of which should polish away and what little pitting might remain could be very easily ignored. However, we have noticed that the rubber trim on the nearside front corner of the bumper is perished, and the same trim on the rear bumper is wibbly. As a result, we can see the new owner will almost certainly want to replace them as they do let the rest of the exterior down a little. 

The 15-inch OE alloy wheels are in great shape and are completely free of the sort of scuffs and rim damage that mark a carelessly driven car. Shod with Michelin tyres on the front and Barum on the rear, all four have a decent depth of tread. 

The matching brown folding roof is good too, fitting well and free of damage and wear. These fabric roofs seal very well and offer a genuine alternative to a fixed-head coupe, even without the optional hardtop. Of course, it furls and unfurls as it should, and when lowered sits neatly underneath a solid, body coloured tonneau cover.

However, this one appears to have been stored in the lowered position, which has left it a little wrinkled and marked. We’ve no doubt that a deep clean and re-proofing would revive it nicely.

And, when you’re preparing the SL for winter, there’s a proper factory hard-top for you to fit too. Finished in the same Champagne Gold as the rest of the exterior, it is in nigh-on new condition both inside and out.

The mushroom leather interior is almost the same colour as the coachwork, enabling this SL to blur the lines betwixt inside and out when the roof is down. The result is a more elegant, streamlined look than we normally see and is one we thoroughly approve of.

And the leather seats are in an unusually good condition, showing barely any wear at all. They are still as firm and comfortable as they were when they were first fitted, and while they do have the odd small mark, there is nothing at all to worry about, much less repair.

The rear seat is in a great condition, and the backrest folds down to provide a carpeted luggage area that is both practical and preserves the leather surface of the seat beneath.

The wooden veneer is similarly good, being shiny and free of cracks and damage. The door cards are in an excellent condition too, as are the dashboard, switches and instruments. We pressed and prodded pretty much everything, and it all seems to work as it should.

The inside of the folding roof is free of damage and is nice and taut, but it does have the odd small rust stain. There is no such problem with the headlining of the factory hardtop, which is clean and free of any damage or marks whatsoever.

The carpets are clean and fit well and are protected by overmats. Lifting them shows solid floors, albeit ones that do have the odd small sport of surface rust. No holes of course, but this is a developing problem and will need catching sooner rather than later.

A Blaupunkt Lausanne CD31 headunit is fitted.

The boot is very clean and neatly trimmed. Home to the spare alloy wheel and a tool roll, its floor is as solid as the rest of the vehicle but it could do with a hoover and a new tyre fitting to the rim.

The vendor commissioned new front brake calipers, discs and pads plus a master cylinder last summer. This work, along with sorting out a mild misfire, cost him well over £850 and has left the car fighting fit: we’ve driven it and can report that it “drives exceptionally well” and is a “gorgeous old thing.”

The engine bay is pretty good. Not perfect, as there is some surface corrosion to address, but the engine and its ancillaries are very nicely presented. If we are being fussy then the underbonnet sound-proofing is perished but its replacement is very firmly a ‘nice to do’ job rather than an urgent one.

The underside is very good too, being largely finished still in its factory paint and underseal. Solid and well-preserved, it’s in need of nothing but regular power-washing to keep it looking good.

The Mercedes’ MOT certificate expires in April 2021 and, as might be expected given its history and mileage, was gained without a single advisory point. This means that the online MOT history shows nothing of concern whatsoever and confirms the car’s low mileage.

The car comes with a number of expired MOT certificates plus a sheaf of invoices and bills to confirm the recent work that has been done to it. It also comes with its Guernsey registration document, the very well stamped maintenance history booklet, the original owner’s handbook and storage wallet, and the factory build sheet.

NB. The Guernsey registration document shows four owners. This is because the car’s first owner registered it in both his business and personal names. It then passed through the hands of two car dealers, who also added their names to the document. So, while the record reflects four name changes the reality is that it only had the one owner while it was there.

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of this and other paperwork to support our claim that this car has been maintained to the very highest standard.

If you’d like to inspect the car prior to placing a bid – something we would encourage – then please use the Contact Seller button to arrange an appointment.

NB. We know that many of you will be limiting your social exposure over the coming days and weeks, so if you’d rather not come to see the car in person, please give us a call and we can shoot a personal video of the car honing in on any areas you’d like us to concentrate on.

Or, even better, why not contact us with your mobile number and we can set up a WhatsApp video call? You get to direct us in real-time, giving you a virtual personal viewing experience while maintaining the lockdown. We like to call it ‘The Market’s 2020 Vision’…

A Champagne Gold Mercedes SL is the epitome of elegance, reeking of class and 1980’s decadence in equal measure - and it’s matching mushroom leather trim adds a delicacy that is often missing when it’s been ordered with the more usual grey or black leather interior.

Of course, it helps that this is an especially good example. While you might think that you want a concours SL you really don’t if you’re buying it to actually drive; what you want is one like this, one that is capable of winning its class at your local classic car show but isn’t too valuable to park on the street when you use it for a weekend away somewhere sunny.

And, with its separate hardtop, it’s a true multi-season, inter-continental grand touring car as home in St Tropez as it is the ski slopes of Zermatt.

Which brings us to the question of what we think it will sell for. Rating a solid nine out of ten for condition, we think it will sell for between £23,000 and £30,000, which feels like a bit of a steal to us, especially when you remember that the reserve is set even lower…

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; 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’.

If needed, please remember we have a network of trusted suppliers we work with regularly and can recommend: Classic & Sportscar Finance for purchase-financing, Footman James for classic car insurance Thames Valley Car Storage for storing your car and AnyVan for transporting it.

BORING, but IMPORTANT: Please note that whilst we at The Market always aim to offer the most descriptive and transparent auction listings available, we cannot claim they are perfect analyses of any of the vehicles for sale. We offer far greater opportunity for bidders to view, or arrange inspections for each vehicle thoroughly prior to bidding than traditional auctions, and we never stop encouraging bidders to take advantage of this. We do take a good look at the vehicles delivered to our premises for sale, but this only results in our unbiased personal observations, not those of a qualified inspector or other professional, or the result of a long test drive.

Additionally, please note that most of the videos on our site have been recorded using simple cameras which often result in 'average' sound quality; in particular, engines and exhausts notes can sound a little different to how they are in reality.

Please note that this is sold as seen and that, as is normal for used goods bought at auction, the Sale of Goods Act 1979 does not apply. See our FAQs for more info, and feel free to inspect any vehicle as much as you wish.