1989 Mercedes 500SEL Japanese/Euro model - 17,641 miles - original and amazing

1989 Mercedes 500SEL Japanese/Euro model

17,641 miles or 28,395 kilometers

WDB1260371A442450

Factory M117.963 with Tri-Y factory exhaust

Mother of Pearl over black leather

I bought this car in December 2014. It’s highly original – original paint, riginal interior, riginal engine (all matching numbers). This car is 26 years old but still looks new, rives new, nd even smells new inside. These w126s are very durable, nd when cared for, an seemingly last forever.

When I got it, he AC was weak, nd I discovered that it had been converted to R134 at some point. So I had the AC redone – new compressor, ew drier, ew expansion valve, ull flush, illed with R12 and tested for leaks with a sniffer. AC is seriously cold – even in the Houston heat of the summer.

Exterior condition? It’s close to perfect. All the paint is original; I put a paint gauge on it as further evidence. No dents. No door dings. No scratches. No bumper rubbings on the corners. Note the notch on the lower front bumper (see last pics); that is the only body flaw. Always garaged and of course, o rust anywhere. Currently lives under a car cover in a garage next to my covered w111.

Interior condition? Even closer to damn-perfect. No smells. No stains. No scratched bolsters. No de-laminating windows. “New condition” would be the way to describe it. The roller blind only goes up halfway – the only interior flaw. The interior is amazing; still looks and feels brand new. Smells like it too. Switchgear all new-feeling with tight clicks when you use them. The seats are firm.

Mechanical condition? Perfect. Looks new underhood – not even specs of dirt/debris in the deepest corners. Runs like new. Steers like new. Brakes like new. Starts quietly, dles smoothly like a new Lexus, nd runs like a beaten dog after 3000rpm. It’s nothing like the US-version cars with the restricted M117 – it is way faster. Has the Tri-Y factory exhaust. New Michelin tires; no funny vibrations. Ever drove a brand new w126 in the ‘80s (I have!)? It drives as tight as one of those. Like it should.

This car is bonkers; it’s for the crazies like me who love Mercedes and want an excellent original one. Yes, ou could buy a 70k-mile one for $13k, nd put $6,000 into it fixing wear items and making it more non-original along the way, ut I prefer the “buy the best one you can” theory and just enjoy it. That’s why I bought this one – this is museum quality kind of stuff.

ODOMETER CORRECTION

I listed this car for sale late last year, nd Bring a Trailer picked it up for a feature. You can read about it here: http://bringatrailer.com/2015/10/08/11k-miles-euro-spec-1989-mercedes-benz-500sel/. In the comments section, omeone posted about finding photos of this car with a higher odometer reading. That was a shock. However, was able to find the original Canadian owner and trace back the changes. When the Canadian sold the car to a man from Oregon, he odometer read 26,800 kilometers (I have a copy of the Bill of Sale from that transaction). When the car was registered a week later in Oregon, he odometer read 15,307 kilometers. The gentleman in Oregon did not admit to me that he rolled back the odometer, ut he did agree to pay me restitution for the loss of value to the car. I have since had the odometer BROUGHT FORWARD by United Speedometer of Houston to return it to its correct mileage. As proven by documentation before the rollback, he odometer now reads 28,395 kilometers as it should. I have created a 10-page packet that covers all these issues so it will never be in dispute again. This car has adocumented17,641 miles on it. Some photos below show the old odometer reading - I assure you it has been corrected and it reads 28,395 kilometers as it shows on the close-up photo.

I have been a Mercedes enthusiast since 1984 when I turned 15; an MBCA member since 2004. Clear Texas title in my name. Car is on west side of Houston. You can drive it away or transport it away – the car is ready for anything. It’s been a pleasure to have spent time with it – it’s absolutely amazing. Selling because I have four car garage and five cars – I’m not ever going to sell the 250SE Cabriolet, o the w126 has to go.

Reserve is very reasonable; I will not sell the car outside of the auction and I will not divulge what the reserve is.

On Feb-15-16 at 09:55:18 PST, eller added the following information:

To fulfill some requests, ere are some underbody pictures. Please keep in mind this car HAS NOT BEEN DETAILED underhood or underneath. It is original condition.