Mercedes 220 SEB Coupe – £49,995

Standard Equipment

Finished in Blue Green (H268) with a Brown Leather Interior, Wood Dash and Door Cappings, 13″ Steel Wheels with Chrome Embellishers and Coulour Coded Hub Caps, 4 Speed Automatic Gearbox with Column Change and Power Assisted Steering

Additional Equipment

Motorola 818T Radio

Model History

The Mercedes-Benz W111 was a chassis code given to its top of the range vehicle including 4-door saloon and 2-door coupes and cabriolets. The W111 model number was initially attributed only to 6-cylinder cars with 2.2 litre engines. The luxury version with a big-block 3-litre engines was given the chassis code W112. The entry-level vehicles with 4-cylinder engines were called W110. All three versions W110, W111, and W112, in both 2 and 4-door bodies and were built on an identical chassis.

Design of a replacement for the two-door Pontons began in 1957 and as most of the chassis and drive train were to be carried over from the saloon, the design focus was placed on the exterior styling. Some of the prototypes show that Mercedes-Benz attempted to give the two-door car front styling almost identical to the up-coming Pagoda roadster, but ultimately favoured the work of engineer Paul Bracq. The rear bodywork however, persisted, and, although officially still called a fin tail the rear end design went without chrome fin highlights.

Production began in late 1960, and in February of the next year the coupe was premiered in Stuttgart for the 75th anniversary of the opening of Mercedes-Benz Museum. The convertible followed at the Frankfurt auto show a few months later. The car was almost identical to the coupe, with the soft-top roof folded into a recess behind the rear seat and covered by a tightly fitting bag. Options included a sliding sunroof for the coupe, automatic transmission, power steering, and individual rear seats.

Exterior

The body of this Mercedes 220 SEB Coupe is in exceptional, original condition. When we first viewed the car we could see that the body panels were very good but we couldn’t open the boot or bonnet as the keys had been lost and it was very difficult to see if the car was any good underneath. It was with some intrepidation that we first put her up on the ramps! As it turns out we needn’t have worried. The underside is in amazing condition and totally solid with no signs of corrosion as is the engine bay and the boot area is factory perfect. We are pretty sure nobody has ever used the tool kit or jack such is its condition.  The chrome work had all survived in pretty good condition and the only parts that required re-chroming were the rear over riders.  The paint work came up well with a couple of days cleaning and polishing but there were some abrasion marks to the flanks, a small amount of rust in the sill covers and some micro blistering across the front panel and bonnet that required dealing with.  You can see on our project page that we carefully stripped the body, flatted back the paint work to bare metal where required and then repainted.  The result it simply beautiful and something our paint shop can be very proud of.

Wheels, Tyres and Brakes

The wheels are Mercedes original equipment 14 inch steels with chrome embellishers, and body coloured hub caps.  They have been fitted with a brand new set of Michelin 7.25 R13 tyres.  These are the correct style for the period and look a treat on the car.  The brakes have had a full overhaul during our mechanical restoration with new flexible brake lines, re-built master cylinder, wheel cylinders, calipers.  The pads and shoes are new with the discs and drums having been refinished.  The car now brakes beautifully slowing the bulk of this big Mercedes very efficiently indeed!

Engine and Transmission

We have had long debates over how much ‘restoration’ should be done to the engine bay and have decided to let someone else make that decision! Where the body needed sorting out the engine bay is exactly as we found it and could be detailed as required by the new owner. If it was up to us, we would leave it alone, but sadly we won’t be keeping the car. The engine and gearbox have been treated to a huge service replacing all of the fluids, many of the pipes and hoses and installing a brand new stainless steel exhaust system.  The ignition system got a complete overhaul with a new distributor cap, rotor arm, HT leads, plugs etc. As with any car that has laid unused for a period of time the engine mounts and suspension bushes had seen better days and these have all been replaced with items from Mercedes Benz.  The engine is in wonderful condition with good compression and runs very smoothly.  The automatic gearbox lives up to its reputation for being a little course, but changes positively and is quick to ‘kick down’ when you give the throttle a prod.

Interior

The interior is simply beautiful.  When you open the door there is a wonderful waft of yesteryear smelling of good quality leather.  The wood dash is in great condition having been shielded  from the sunlight for so many years it has not faded or split.  The gauges are all in working order as are all of the switches.  The seats are very plush and unbelievably comfortable and feel as if they have just come out of a very exclusive drinking club.  The headlining is also in fantastic condition and virtually unmarked.

Road Test

One of the most exciting days in the last year was our first trip back from the MOT station.  The 220 is not the quickest car in the world but it does move you in a way that few other cars could! It is so unbelievably smooth, seeming to iron out the road imperfections leaving you in total comfort.  The youtube video below was taken on our trip over to our paint shop.

History File

This Mercedes has had a total of 4 former keepers, the first 3 being in the UK where it covered the bulk of its 19,000 miles before being bought in 1990 from Bramleys and taken to Ireland when it went into a large private collection. It lay untouched in a barn until we woke it up at the end of 2011. The car has an original book pack, with the service book containing a few dealer stamps helping to confirm the mileage is correct. Originally supplied in Glasgow it moved to Worthing in the late 70′s before moving to Woking in the early eighties. It stayed Surrey until Bramleys bought the car in 1990.

We have put together a massive archive of photographs showing it lying in its Irish barn through our restoration. Added to this there is a hard copy of all of the text from our blog posts on our website.

Whilst every effort has been made to check the accuracy of the information above, some errors in compiling the information may have occurred and we cannot accept liability for loss or damage arising from misleading information (other than for death or personal injury caused by our negligence or breach of duty). You are therefore strongly advised not to rely on the information provided in respect of vehicles, and to examine the vehicles and to check the accuracy of the information supplied before deciding to purchase a vehicle described below. Your statutory rights as a consumer are not affected by this statement.