The Mercedes Benz 230SL and its successors 250SL and 280SL (1963 – 1971)

For the first time in the history of Mercedes Benz, the car was shown to the press two weeks before it was officially presented on March 14, 1963 at the Geneva Motor Show. In this way, he ensured that his reports came out on or before the car’s official launch date. This Benz was highly anticipated and no one knew if it would follow the mighty 300SL or the popular 190SL. He did not follow either of them. When the prof. Fritz Nallinger, chief engineer and member of the executive board, presented the new Mercedes Benz 230SL, internally called W 113, created something of a commotion. As Erich Waxenberger, Rudolf Uhlenhaut’s talented engineer, once remarked, the car looked as if a tree had fallen on top of it. The ceiling was, well… unusual. But it wasn’t just the roof that caused a stir, it was the performance of the car as well. Everyone was waiting for a successor to the legendary 300SL.

Of course, Daimler-Benz was adamant in its approach to the role of the new SL. It was neither a 300SL nor a 190SL. It was a high-performance sports touring car with superior handling characteristics that could carry two passengers plus their luggage in style, comfort, and most of all, safety. It was a very own Mercedes Benz. To demonstrate the sporty aspect, Rudolf Uhlenhaut, always available for a quick race, pushed the 230SL around a 1.5km round circuit near Montreux in the presence of the press. Most impressively, British Grand Prix driver Mike Parkes couldn’t drive much faster. His car wasn’t the SL though, his car was a Ferrari 250GT Berlinetta!

Although many of the technical features of the car were not new at all, it was the combination and its enhancements that made this Benz special. The undercarriage had recirculating ball steering and a dual-circuit braking system. Girling disc brakes were fitted to the front axle, while Alfin vacuum-assisted drums were fitted to the rear. For the first time in the history of Mercedes Benz, such a car could be ordered with power steering and the most shocking for most European journalists – automatic transmission. A sports car and automatic transmission? Absolutely impossible! It wasn’t just the press that thought so, it was the same with most of the European public. Not surprisingly, very few such cars were sold in Europe. The Americans were already one step ahead, for them the combination of sports car and automatic transmission made a lot of sense. And since Daimler-Benz thought of selling around 80 percent of the car abroad, this extra was certainly beneficial. The standard overhead cam Benz with a four-speed manual transmission with a gear ratio of 3.75:1. It was similar to the one used on the 220SE but with a shorter gear ratio of 4.42:1 instead of 3.64:1. It should ensure quicker acceleration, but it was not universally appreciated, so in 1965 the manual transmission was adopted from the new 250S/SE.

In 1967, two years after the launch of the 250 sedan series, the 230SL was succeeded by the 250SL. Its larger engine reduced somewhat lackluster performance at low revs. Unfortunately, it suffered from reliability issues at high speeds, something a sports car driver wasn’t too amused to hear. Although this problem was quickly resolved, the car was also famous for its relatively high fuel consumption. After just one year it was succeeded by the larger and quieter 2.8L engine. It offered 170 hp at 5,750 rpm compared to the previous 150 hp at 5,500 rpm, it also had slightly more torque and improved fuel economy.

While the Benz 250SL cost DM22,800 ($5,700) about the same as the 230SL, the 280SL was DM1,500 ($375) more expensive. In the USA the 280SL costs around $7,500.-, depending on the extras. However, the customers didn’t care, they loved the package and came running. In its five years, the Mercedes Benz 280SL managed to sell 23,885 units, more than half of which went to North America. The 230SL sold 19,813 units during the same period.