As one of the last examples produced this Pagoda was first delivered to the USA in 1971, and lived in the dry climates of California, explaining the simply gorgeous condition, resplendent in metallic blue paintwork, which positively glistens in the sunshine. She was imported to Holland and was treated to a restoration, including but not limited to, a repaint, various new trim pieces, rubber seals, re-chroming and detailing, and was bought to England by the previous owner.

He had the interior refurbished in 2015 to the sumptuous finish you see here. The seats, door cards & fascia trim all in parchment hide & match perfectly the 'Super-wool' carpets which, whilst non-standard are much more comfortable, even luxurious compared to the standard teutonic fare. A nice finishing touch is the inertia reel seat belts, colour coded to match the paintwork & fitted with period correct chrome buckles. Specified with sundym glass, air conditioning, power assisted steering, head rests, top-tint windscreen, bumper over riders and automatic transmission, this SL certainly has all the equipment one could wish for, and would have been regarded as super rarefied when on the streets when new. The original Hard Top was treated to a new headlining, wood refurbishment & leather grab handles too.Since I owned the car I have entrusted it’s care to Steve Redfearn who is rightfully regarded as the guru of all things Pagoda. He advised the car was not performing with the verve they’re famous for and it was agreed to strip the engine down and investigate. The final outcome was to completely rebuild the engine from top to bottom at a spend of over £15K. Since then we have commissioned any work Steve considered necessary and sometimes purely indulgent, resulting in a car that those who know them regard as one of the best they’ve driven.

We have recently refurbished all the heater controls so everything there works smoothly, the speedometer was also refurbished and the original clock was fixed. All the dials and switches work as they should. The original Becker Europa radio needs restoring or updating as a new owner would want. The air conditioning needs some updating to work with new gases. We have subsequently priced the car to reflect this.

The car has always been garaged and hard waxed. It comes with a comprehensive file of invoices and sales invoices and a copy of the data card.

This 280SL, in such a striking colour combination and being in such fantastic condition, with a virtually ‘new’ engine, represents a wonderful opportunity for those wishing to enjoy elegant motoring. If you want a car that stops people in the street to take pictures or compliment you this is the perfect choice.

1971 Mercedes 280SL. 88,000 miles.