How did I get here, ...107 peace.
I acquired my first 107 four years ago, a 75 450sl that had sat for 8yrs with rear end body damage. Thanks to this forum and my MB indie mechanic telling me I wasn't serious about the car I learned d-jet and did the get her to go and stop part. Two body shops and many thousands of dollars later she became ready for paint only last Monday,..let this time frame be a lesson to newbies. I had paid $1,000 for this cheap Mercedes SL,ha ha ha ha ha !! :frown I finally paid the piper after 'lurking' for the best part of three years, becoming a Premium member is worth its weight in gold. Contribute or pay is the best way to go if you are going to resurrect a 107 as the information and help from this forum is invaluable. Anyway onwards and upwards, next came a 81380SL minus engine/transmission but "totally rust free" , not a bad buy for $700 and a drive to Sydney and back(1800km) So now I need an engine and transmission, I know I'll buy that 72 350slc with the awesome black leather interior for $300. Around this time(18mths ago) I decided to source a 5litre combo from a coupe and do the right conversion, build a 500SL geez how hard could that be. BenzWorld veterans should be laughing their heads off at this point in my 107 story, but wait there's more. Twelve months ago I line up a local MB business to supply and install the 500 conversion, 6 months later he tells me to take my business elsewhere(WTF) no reason given. By this stage of the saga I have my heart set on owning and bloody well driving a 5litre powered R107 and nothing is going to stop me. The search starts for a C126 of you guessed it, the 5litre variety. What's easier, buy that engine/tranny from Brisbane or buy the whole thing 2hrs further up the Sunshine Coast. I show off my 85 500SEC to my panelbeater and he forbids me extracting the mechanicals, nup bring it around tomorrow I'll fix those couple of small surface rust spots. This coupe was registered and I drove to Sydney and back for Christmas, I am now a very happy Benz nutter. So back to project 107 "breast augmentation" of my rust free 380. Off to Brisbane to pick up the other 500SEC,whole car minus seats and front suspension, another bloody Mercedes Benz. Luck would have it I live on a 150 acre property so there's more than enough room for all my girls(107's and 126's) Through mutual friends I find a Benz wrecker who specializes in resurrecting 123,124 and 126's and I decide to pay this man a visit. As I enter his office I spy the instantly recognizable grill of a 107 in the workshop. No no no no no,...run in the opposite direction, but no I didn't. This 73 450SL I later bought and sold the 72 SLC to him(good bloke) as part of the transaction. Why did I buy this car ?? Glad you asked. This silver with blue leather interior 107 has the rear seats(oem) and a crane conversion had been installed on the ignition system. Believe it or not that was my reasoning, what is it with these particular cars. Rowdie, Fonzi if you have any ideas why please feel free to enlighten the forum and me in particular as isthisdave has me wondering after reading his comment. Anyway back to project 500,soooooo two weeks ago a 1980 500SL with 59,000 miles is listed on Gumtree, a bit rough looking but hey only 3hrs away. Tuesday of last week I am on the Sunshine Coast and end up leaving a message on his mobile phone, oh well not to worry as I wasn't prepared to pay his asking price. Forty minutes into the drive home he returns my call,hi John it's John, blah blah blah blah blah. By the way I've dropped the price by $2,500 non negotiable, if you are still reading my sad little story you'll know what happens next. I turn the SEC around and hot foot it back up the coast, mechanically good, floors and boot(trunk) like new but there's a few surface rust spots and the black leather interior(another oem rear seat incl'd) is very average. As we part the owner tells me I will have first right of refusal as I'm the only prospective buyer who has actually been to see the car. You can imagine the smile on my face as I drove my good friends black F-350 banana back tow truck back from the Sunny Coast with a white (737G) 107 046 "The Real Thing" snugly chained down staring back at me in the rear view mirrors. :grin
More photos to come.