Mercedes-Benz SL and SLC 107-Series 1971-1989 E-Book

Andrew Noakes

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2017

Beschreibung

As one of the most remarkable models that Mercedes-Benz has ever created, the 107-series was a sales success for nearly two decades and has been an automotive icon for far longer. Elegant styling, effortless performance and superior build quality are central to the appeal of the Mercedes-Benz R107 SL and C107 SL models. This book details the complete history of the model from its design in the late 1960s, its launch in 1971, its development through the 1970s and 1980s to the end of production in 1989. Accompanied by over 250 archive pictures and original images, Mercedes-Benz SL and SLC 107-Series 1971-1989 - The Complete Story reveals the story behind the racing SLs and the works rally SLCs, and provides a valuable guide to buying and running these cars. Superbly illustrated with 260 archive and original colour and black & white photographs.

Leseprobe

MERCEDES-BENZ

SL AND SLC 107-SERIES 1971–1989

T H E  C O M P L E T E  S T O R Y

Andrew Noakes

THE CROWOOD PRESS

First published in 2017 by

The Crowood Press Ltd

Ramsbury, Marlborough

Wiltshire SN8 2HR

This e-book first published in 2017

www.crowood.com

© Andrew Noakes 2017

All rights reserved. This e-book is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of thistext may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 78500 366 0

CONTENTS

Introduction and Acknowledgements

Mercedes-Benz 107-Series SL/SLC Timeline 1966–89

CHAPTER 1THE SL LINEAGE

CHAPTER 2DESIGNING THE 107

CHAPTER 3DEVELOPING THE 107

CHAPTER 4PUTTING THE LID ON: THE SLC

CHAPTER 5THE SLC RALLY CARS

CHAPTER 6THE RACING SLs AND SLCs

CHAPTER 7THE 107 LEGACY

CHAPTER 8OWNING A 107-SERIES SL/SLC

Index

INTRODUCTION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

INTRODUCTION

Mercedes-Benz achieved extraordinary things with the R107 SL and C107 SLC. Look at how long they remained in production and how many were sold, at the celebrities that owned them and the place the cars have in so many people’s affections, and it’s hard to believe these were cars born into an era of uncertainty, confusion and change. It was such a confusing era that even Mercedes’ own people struggled to understand and agree what form their new car should take, and how they could make it relevant for the brave new motoring world of the 1970s.

The cars they created turned out to be good enough not just to last the expected lifespan of a generation of the SL-class, but near enough two generations – at the time the longest a Mercedes model had ever survived in production. It lived on long after pundits had written it off as an antique, surviving into a new golden era when it sold more than ever and cemented its place as a genuine automotive icon. And apart from regular engine updates and improvements to the equipment list, the 107-series cars hardly changed from the day they were launched in 1971 to the day production finally came to a close in 1989.

With Mercedes in the middle of its self-imposed exile from racing, the SLs and SLCs would never be able to have illustrious careers as works racing cars, but even in motor sport they made an indelible mark. It was left to a few privateers – including AMG, then a separate company – to race the 107-series and despite the lack of factory help it won races and championships. And it proved to be a bigger success in the world’s toughest rallies, enjoying genuine success in epic events that stretched for tens of thousands of kilometres across South America and Africa. It might have achieved even more success on the loose but a further campaign with the SL was stopped before it ever really got started. So we will never know.

What we can be sure of is that the R107 SL captivated a generation or more of buyers, owners and enthusiasts who were enthralled by its speed and its elegance, by its safety and surety as much as its quality and efficiency. It was a car that appealed across age barriers and across continents, generating a wealth of enthusiasm that began way back in the early 1970s and continues right through to the present day.

The story in the pages that follow is one of a methodical, logical carmaker letting its hair down, allowing itself to think for a moment about what might make buyers not just respect its achievements but also be excited by the glamour of what it could do. It’s the story of some of the motoring world’s finest engineers, cleverest designers, clearest thinkers and most talented drivers, but not always the story of them getting it right first time. As we will see as the story develops, it’s a tale just as often of overambition or over-caution as it is one of the right solution at the right time. But above all this is the story of a machine that became one of the best-known and longest-lived products its brand has ever made, and one the best loved.

The 107-series SL and SLC deserve a special place in motoring history because they came to define what an entire class of car was about, embodying the perfection of those virtues for nearly two decades. That the cars are still held in such esteem today, that they are still regarded as a paragon that in some ways exceeds any of the generations that went before or have come along since, is all too easy to understand.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Any study of the history of anything relies in part at least on the reports of those who were there at the time, and I would like to thank all the journalists and commentators whose contemporary reports and opinions I consulted while researching the 107-series story. As always they are too many to list, but their contribution has been invaluable. In addition I would like to thank: the staffs of the press offices of Mercedes-Benz in the UK and Germany and Mercedes-Benz Classic, Jonathan Ashman, Serge Beankens, Paula Goddard, Paul Gover, Bruce Greetham at The SL Shop, Philippe Hubert, Nick Hull, Caroline Hunt, Paul Kooyman, Brent Martin, Chris Meaden, Simon and David at Pfitzner Performance Gearboxes, Kari Pykäläinen, Owen Ready and Risto Takala. The information, insight, photographs, leads and help in all sorts of other ways that they have provided have contributed enormously to telling the 107-series story in depth. The errors and omissions are all my own.

MERCEDES-BENZ 107-SERIES SL/SLC TIMELINE 1966–89

1966

First discussions inside Daimler-Benz on a replacement for the W113 Pagoda-roof SL.

1968

Daimler-Benz board decides 107-series will be a roadster, not a coupé or targa.

1971

R107 SL launched as 350 SL for Europe and 350 SL 4.5 for US market. Hardtop SLC Coupé is added to the range later in the year.

1973

4.5-litre 450 SL introduced into Europe. 350 SLC competes in Tour de France.

1974

6-cylinder 280 SL added as a response to the oil crisis.

1976

450 SLC appears in Texaco Tour of Britain.

1977

Alloy-block V8 engine introduced in the 450 SLC 5.0.

1978

Works rally 450 SLCs appear for the first time, in the Vuelta a la America del Sud rally – Andrew Cowan’s SLC wins. AMG ‘Mampe’ SLC races for the first time.

1979

Hannu Mikkola wins the Bandama Rally in a works 450 SLC 5.0.

1980

Revisions for all models. Alloy-block V8s power new 380 SL and 500 SL models. Björn Waldegård wins the Rallye Côte d’Ivoire in a works 500 SLC. AMG SLC wins at the Nürburgring in its final race.

1981

C107 SLC replaced by the C126 SEC coupés, based on the W126 S-class saloons. R107 SL continues.

1986

Further revisions, including front air dams. New 300 SL 6-cylinder model and 420 SL V8. 560 SL for US market.

1989

R129 launched at Geneva show to replace the R107 SL.

CHAPTER ONE

THE SL LINEAGE

Of all the great names in motoring and motor sport, few have achieved as much as Mercedes-Benz, and none can boast such an extraordinary breadth of ability. The Mercedes-Benz brand has become synonymous for quality and engineering excellence across a wide range of types, sizes and applications of vehicles. What other brand not only makes passenger cars and commercial vehicles, but also builds taxicabs and tractors – and puts the same logo on its limousines as it does on its off-road trucks? Most automotive companies would be content to excel in one area. Mercedes does it all over the automotive spectrum.

The origins of the marque date back to the 1880s, and the stories of three men – and one woman – who between them founded and named the companies that came together to create the Mercedes-Benz brand.

THE PIONEERS

Carl Benz was born in the German town of Mühlburg, near the border with France, in 1844. He was the son of a railway engine driver. After studying engineering at the nearby Karlsruhe Polytechnic he set up his own business, Benz & Cie, a few miles north at Mannheim in Baden-Württemberg in 1880. There he made two-stroke stationary engines to power pumps, mills and electricity generators. In 1885 he put one of his engines into the back of what was little more than a pedal-powered tricycle, for which he was awarded a patent in January 1886. He was soon selling copies, many of them going to France, and by the turn of the century Benz & Cie was the biggest carmaker in the world with total production exceeding 2000 cars. By then the company had moved on to four-wheeled vehicles, but they still had much in common with the original tricycle of a decade before. Meanwhile competitors were now building more sophisticated machinery, and it took Benz a long time to realize that his company’s designs had to evolve to keep up.