1968 Mercedes-Benz 280SL Pagoda

Chassis Number: 11304422003903

It's certainly no secret that we do love a Pagoda, having been brought up with them as youngsters & then used them for tours on the Continent, our appreciation from them only ever grows stronger

Unerringly reliable, pretty to look at and easy to drive with ample performance they transport their passengers safely in both comfort and style

When new they were the first sports car to have been designed with an eye on safety and featured a rigid passenger cell and designated impact absorbing crumple zones in all four wings

Today they are still spritely enough but the feeling of solidity and sternness one gets when behind the wheel, or indeed in the passenger seat, pays tribute to the pioneering ethos of the designers who wanted people to feel safe inside the car

This is also part of what makes them such great cars for touring today, in addition to the rather large boot and rear luggage shelf

This particular example has been given a full engine out & body off restoration by ourselves, so the specification is very unusual and probably unique

A few years ago we thought it would be fun to find a rust free and mechanically healthy car as a base for creating our ideal Pagoda 

We chose to paint her in Wildberry, a 1990's Rolls-Royce & Bentley colour, as we thought it would look so good with the tan leather and beige carpets we chose.

A nice touch, we feel, are the Nardi wooden steering wheel, soft green tinted glass (including the fully restored hard top as well) and Becker Mexico Retro stereo, which, even if rather expensive, do add to the overall classic feel of this Pagoda

Obviously the original steering wheel can be refitted should the new owner prefers

There are those who would suggest you should stick to Mercedes own colours and as close to original as possible but our mindset is that if you are restoring a car its' not going to be original anyway so you might as well improve where possible

The restoration has taken roughly two years to complete, from stripping her down to a bare shell (all parts of the restoration have been photographed, as you would expect), all mechanical components removed and all interior trim too

Our team did all of the works except the mechanical works, to whom we entrusted our great friends at Steve Redfern Motor Co in Wimbledon - you couldn't ask for a better team to work with

The fresh fully rebuilt engine, fresh gearbox, original back axle, suspension and brake systems do really set this car off from the norm and without Steve and his team, this Pagoda would not be the best driving version we have ever had before - high praise indeed from our end

Similarly the colours really make this car and we really think this is prettiest Pagoda we have ever seen too