Beschreibung:

Priced at a massive £7,249 in 1970, the Mercedes-Benz 280SE Cabriolet succeeded the 1960's 'fintail' 220 and its earlier 280 counterparts by responding to criticisms of a lack of performance. With this car - which should really have been called the 350SE - Mercedes-Benz increased the now favoured straight-six engine to the mighty 3.5litre V8 which was available in coupe and cabriolet form. The car was an instant hit. Built largely by hand in Sindelfingen, the large, five-seater convertibles possessed all the attributes of their marque and saloon counterparts but were steeped in character which may explain why they are still in strong demand today. Though the cabriolets are outwardly similar to the saloon cars, almost all the body panels are different, the interior trim is more luxurious, the body of the car sits almost one inch closer to the floor, plus, all the V8's were treated to stacked twin headlights and each enjoyed an extra helping of chrome trim to further dramatise the already overconfident front grille. We understand that only approximately 55 righthand drive examples of this model were produced between 1969 and 1972. From the cockpit this car does not disappoint. The driving position is spacious yet you're not lost behind the trademark oversize steering wheel. The seats, which were re-trimmed in 1998 at a cost of more than £5000, provide an elevated ride height from which to accurately steer 1.5tonnes and 16 feet of open-top motor car rapidly up and down through the four-speed automatic gearbox. A visually stunning car with the manual hood up or down, this Mercedes-Benz boasts a healthy history file depicting services undertaken, and these include an £11,700 invoice in 1990 from Nigel Cooper Coachwork Restoration for stripping, profiling, and repainting the car in its same blue colour. Once the August 2002 Classic & Sports Car magazine American Cover Car, we expect fierce interest in 'APP 83J' when she goes under the hammer at our September sale. With other comparable cars from this era commanding more than £100,000 in the retail market, we believe that APP 83J represents excellent value for money, and would further suggest that prices are likely to continue to rise for original examples such as this in the future. Having been little used but always dry stored in recent years, this car has come directly to the auction following a light service at Roger Edwards in Amersham. She is offered with V5C Registration Certificate, is recently taxed, and can be driven away by the successful bidder.