1973 450SL Project Car With M116 Eng. and 4 Speed Manual Trans. Not Running

1973 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class Soft and Hard Top Description

1973 Mercedes 450SL project car for sale. The car comes with both a convertible top in good usable condition. The goal of the project was to restore and convert the car to the 350SL euro spec model. A lot of hard work completed. I am offering it up for sale in the hopes that a R107 lover will pick up where I left off and finish the restoration. Note: If you prefer to have an automatic transmission I have a 4 speed auto from a 300SEL that was professionally rebuilt a few years ago with a torque converter. Please let me know if you are interested in this auto transmission and I can include it along with the single pedal box and auto shift selector in the sale for no additional charge.

A little background:

When I bought the car I found that the floor panels were rusted but all of the structural elements of the frame were in very good shape. The rocker panels are in excellent shape with no rust around the jacking tubes. The trunk floor andtoolboxwere rusted but the spare tire well was in great condition. The only other rust was at the bottom of the rear wheel well on the right side and an area around where the battery tray sits. The air box has no rust. All rusted sections replaced or patched with welded sheet metal.

Work completed:

Left and right floor panels are replaced. The trunk floor and tool kit box are replaced. The rocker panel end caps in the front wheel wells are replaced. A rust spot under the battery tray was cutout and patched with welded sheet metal. The rusty area in the rear wheel well was cutout and patched with welded sheet metal. All internal metal surfaces were rust protected before installation.

The car had the recalled front subframe replaced with a MB factory upgraded front subframe (not the kit upgrade) that looks almost new.

I sourced a 350SL M116 engine and some other euro parts for this car from a totally rusted out 1972 350SL. The transmission was sourced separately and came with the shifter and shift rods. Unfortunately, the required longer propeller shaft and rear trans mounting plate were not available and not included in this sale. They are still needed to complete the restoration. The rebuilt engine and transmission are installed in the car but none of the connections to the engine compartment have been stated. Most of the new hardware required such as radiator hoses, coolant lines, power steering hoses, vacuum line to manifold are included.

The car was stripped down to metal and the front fenders and doors removed to allow proper cleaning of the interior surface, no rust was found. After stripping the left rear panel was found to be slightly creased horizontally above the rear wheel well. The crease was pounded out using auto body hammer and dolly and the properly sanded and prepped for two part epoxy direct to metal primer. After applying the primer the body panels were skim coated with body filler and sanded down using long auto sanding blocks. Any exposed metal during sanding was recoated with the two-part primer prior to the reapplication of the skim coat.
Additional mechanical work completed and new parts included:

Used M116 engine rebuilt with new main and cam shaft bearings and new piston rings. All seals and gaskets replaced. Bores were properly honed with 30 degree cross-hatch.

Used distributor rebuilt and fitted with aftermarket electronic points system

New distributor vacuum advance cylinder

New water pump

New timing chain and chain guides

New hydraulic chain tensioner.

Valve job with new valve guides and seals

New oiler tube support bushings in heads.

I have some oil lines but I am not sure of their age. I would recommend taking then to a hydraulicline supplier to have the rubber hoses replaced. Enough lines are included so the proper fittings can be attached.

Manual transmission rebuilt with new needle bearings and seals.

Used 4 speed shifter rebuilt and lubed

New shifter rod bushings (not installed)

Trunk lid replaced with used rust free lid because original had rust bubbles along the rear surface.
Front suspension rebuilt with new top A-arm, bottom ball joints and inner bushings.

New Front subframe bushings

New Rear trailing arm bushings

New Rear subframe bushings

Power steering pump and steering box rebuilt with new seals and gaskets

New steering rods and center rod.

New factory power steering hoses. (not installed)

4 New Bilstein Shock Absorbers

Used 3.07 differential from the 450 SL rebuild with all new bearings and is properly shimmed and preloaded. (The disassembled 3.9 diff from the 350SL will be included but will have to be placed in the towing vehicle due space limitations inside the car.)

Pinon gear preload was set using a calibrated torque meter.

Rear hubs rebuild with new bearings

New rear axles.

New MB silver colored engine compartment firewall liner

New metal brake lines and rubber hoses.

New reconditioned front and rearcalipers.

New master brake cylinder.

Single pedal box replaced with used two pedal box with clutch pedal

New clutch slave cylinder.

I purchased a new master cylinder reservoir but it did not come with the nipple on the side for the clutch slave cylinder. Included is a used reservoir with the proper nipple.

Flywheel professionally resurfaced

New clutch disc, pressure plate and throw out bearing.

New upgraded 7-cylinder rotary A/C compressor with special mount.

New A/C condenser

The fuel tank removed, cleaned and inspected no rust. The tank coated inside with WD40.

New fuel pump installed with new fuel hoses and filter.

Used heater box was rebuilt and installed with a good qualityheatercoreand A/C evaporator. The door flaps rebuilt using good quality felt.

Nearly new MB OEM heater rotary fan

New cooling system water reservoir.

Most new cooling system hoses (not installed)

Dash has a plastic cover that is in good condition.

Good used Bosch fuel injection box for M116 (not installed)

Good used Bosch fuel injection system components for M116 includes cleaned fuel injectors, manifold pressure sensor plus an extramanifold pressure sensor, extradistributor contacts and extra throttle body sensors.

Distributor rebuilt and lubricated with new cap plus bonus extra new cap. New vacuumsensor. Crane electronic aftermarket point system.

Front and rear bumpers are in good condition. The chrome has some imperfections due to age but both front and rear bumpers have no rust or flaking chrome. The front bumper has minor damage that causes the rubber insert to protrude slightly in one area. The rear bumper has no damage. Two rubber inserts are included for the rear bumper one has some damage on one corner. The panels under the bumper are primed using the same epoxy primer as the body.

There are two exhaust systems included. One is a factory unit that was connected to the replaced 4.5L motor and is in good condition. I believe it should mate with the manifolds of the 3.5L engine but I can't guaranteethat it would be a perfect fit. The other is an aftermarket system that was connectedto the 3.5L motor in the parts car so I know it fits. This system is missing one hanger. The aftermarket system looks like it would be louder than the stock system if that is your thing.

The driveshaft is not connected and will need to be transported separately. As noted below the correct front driveshaft is needed before the driveshaft can be mounted.

Interior Components

The seats are in fair condition and need at least new cushions.

The interior panels are in fair condition with wear expected on a car this old.

The dash is in poor condition with a cracked top surface. It comes with a replacement plastic top.

Some knobs etc. may be missing or broken.

Good heater control panel.

Chrome trim pieces are in good condition with extra pieces.

Not completed (may not be fully inclusive as I might forget some details):

Body needs to be final prepped for painting.

All hardware for hood, doors trunk fuel lid needs to be installed

All body trim needs to be installed

All interior panels and hardware needs to be installed

Heater and A/C controls installed

Rear Manual Transmission mount P/N 107 680 05 75 not included and needs to be sourced (not available from MB Parts Center)

Front propeller shaft P/N 107 410 20 01 or 108 410 17 01 not included and needs to be sourced. (not available from MB Parts Center)

The original engine harness is intact but the rubber covers and some connectors may need to be replaced.

The hardtop has been previously repainted and may need attention.

Side windows need to be installed along with actuators. Windows and actuators will be wrapped and placed inside doors for shipping.

Shipping and Pickup

The buyer must pick up car using a trailer. Car has clear title but is not registered. Will help with loading. As many parts and extra parts as possible will be packed into the car interior and trunk. Larger parts such as the 3.9 diff, auto trans if desired and driveshaft will need to be tranported in tow vehicle. There are no side windows so a tarp or car cover maybe required if it rains during transport.

Buyer is responsible for all transportation costs and arrangements. There is no guarantee on the car or any provided components. Sale is final return not accepted. No foreign shipment.

Ideally I would like to sell and have the car picked up within a week from sale.
Thanks for any interest. I don't have time to part the car out so please no offers on separate parts I want to sell everything in one deal to someone willing pick the car up and has have additional space in tow vehicle for all of the spare parts I have available.

Many more photos here including pictures of all MB factory door and window seals included in sale:https://s1338.photobucket.com/user/wreimels/library/Mercedes%20450SL%20Project%20Car?page=1