There’s always something to be said for a base model. Not necessarily the absolute miserly no-options stripper, but a car’s honest standard version, usually the biggest seller, is a worthy CCatch. I’ve found my fair share of W108/109s, including the range-topping 300 SEL 6.3, but for my money (i.e. if I realistically picked one), the 250 S would be top of my ‘60s Benz shopping list.
Yes, the massive 6.3 litre V8 is alluring, but the costs for buying one and keeping it roadworthy would be astronomical. As they should be, frankly – it’s the top of the range for a reason. But it’s not just that. Mercedes of the ‘60s are synonymous with straight-6s for me. I wouldn’t be tempted by a 4-cyl. Fintail either, I’d rather go for the 220 or the 230 S. They’re just right-sized for the era.
The great benefit of the W108/109 is that they all pretty much look the same externally, wheelbase aside. From the front, I’m not sure if there is anything to tell the models apart; the alphanumerics on the trunklid are chiefly how the onlooker can know if it’s a cheaper or a more expensive one. Virtually none of that conspicuous and easily identifiable base/medium/high-end trim commonly used by more manipulative carmakers, or even Mercedes themselves with the W111 and W112 saloons and coupé/cabriolets. W109s did have a little more chrome on their A- and B-pillars, but the differences were still minor.
Behind this august grille lies a 2497cc OHC 6-cyl. with twin carbs providing 130hp. For what is a relatively heavy car (1500kg curb weight), it’s just barely enough. But it’ll have to do.
The W108’s not-so-secret weapon has to be its Paul Bracq design. Keeping the best of the Fintail (i.e. not the tail), Bracq penned a timeless classic by eliminating the fussier aspects of its predecessor. The airier greenhouse with a lower beltline features Mercedes’ first curved side glass, enabling the usable width inside to be substantially improved. Externally, the car’s width only grew by 1.5cm, but the rear seat gained 7cm.
Compared to any late ‘60s American land yacht, the W108 looks almost narrow. But it’s really not. The German car’s use of space was far superior and its proportions are nigh one perfect, especially in this regular-wheelbase version. I’m sure the Golden Ratio is to be found in there somewhere.
The interior is just as well-preserved as the rest of the car, with a blend of earth tone ageing wood inserts and two-tone blue upholstery that definitely has my vote. The aftermarket A/C looks period-perfect, too.
It’s not quite as spacious as one might think back here, for sure. At least, three-abreast seating is more comfortable in this car compared to the Fintail.
The other reason I was glad to catch this Benz is that it has lived in Japan all its life, as the lone number 3 on the license plate shows. These plates are necessarily pre-1970 – two small numerals were required from 1970 till the end of the 20th Century. What is very interesting is that the American face is used here, with the quad headlights and the extra turn signals on either side of the grille.
I’m still not 100% sure about this, though. Given how many US military and diplomatic personnel lived in this country at the time, it’s not impossible that this car was actually bought in the US and shipped virtually new to Japan. That definitely happened in other cases, and the lack of fender mirrors could be a hint that this W108 found itself here by way of a Pacific crossing.
I’m agnostic about the quads versus the Euro-style lights, but I’m not super keen on those wart-like blinkers. That would be my one criticism of this particular car, which isn’t much. Otherwise, this is a straight and not-that-narrow case of “me want!”
Related posts:
Curbside Classic: 1966 Mercedes 250S (W108) – Cadillac Und Lincoln Kaput, by PN
Curbside Classic: Mercedes 300SEL (W109) – Trying To Make Sense Of The Magic Number “300”, by Don Andreina
Curbside Classic: 1970 Mercedes-Benz (W109) 300 SEL 3.5 – F In Math, But A+ For Everything Else, by T87
Curbside Classic: 1971 Mercedes-Benz 300SEL (W109) 6.3 – The Car, The Myth, The Legend, by T87
Cohort Sighting: Yes, The 300SEL Comes With More Chrome Than The 280SEL, by PN
CC Twofer: 1967 Volkswagen 1500 & 1969 Mercedes-Benz 280 S (W108) – Matching Numbers, by T87
Curbside Outtake: Mercedes Benz 280SE 4.5 – Oregon Style Patina in California, by Dman
The nincklers – those nipple blinkers – must go. And a W108 looks odd without Our Saint Of Aesthetics – that is, Don Andreina’s – Faberge Egg headlights. (Faberge bollocks, say I, but I am just I, and digress).
Paul Bracq did indeed do a good job of making the frankly Frankenstein Fintail grow out of awful gangly youth, but it must also be said that he made of it a car that’s a bit, well, boring. Perhaps he over-reacted.
All that rubbish expounded, this ‘ere 250S is a superb found object.
It wasn’t just a bit of extra bright trim on the A and B pillars; the whole window surrounds were in bright metal, making it very easy to distinguish the W109 from the W108.
The “wart-like blinkers” on this car were required in the US market, and make it quite certain that this was originally a US-market car.
I once rode in the back seat with two other guys in a 250S Automatic; there were five of us in total. It was in the hills above LA, the ac was on, and the poor little 2.5 six struggled mightily, and the transmission shifted furiously. It was precisely the worst kind of condition for a car like this, making it seem quite pathetic compared to a V8 American sedan that would have handled the drive effortlessly. These cars were made for the Autobahn, and a flat one at that.
Yes, the W108/109 had a wider back seat thanks to the curved back, but the leg room was very modest indeed. It still sat on the same 108″ wheelbase platform of the fintail. There was a very good reason the lwb versions of the W108 (280SEL, 280SEL 4.5) became pretty much the defacto version (at least in So. CA) in its latter years.
If it’s going to be a six, make mine a 280SE, with the stick, please. And I’ll remember not to take four passengers on a hilly drive with the ac on.
Many years ago now (circa 2005), I picked up a 1969 230S sedan in this same exterior color with the dark blue BenzTex seats and a manual. In fact, the only factory option was the Thermo King A/C that once re-charged worked fantastic. It didn’t even have a radio!
Fun car, but I got tired of shifting while on our car cruises with the club. So I sold it and picked up a 1987 Chrysler 5th Ave to replace it. Very different cars for sure, but yet similar in many ways.
I like strippers, my favorite old Mercedes remains my base model (taxi spec.) 1982 240D that didn’t even have a radio when new .
-Nate
My family had a 1967 250SE with 4-speed stick. I rode in an automatic a few times and didn’t like it. I don’t recall the mechanical fuel injection ever giving any trouble so I’d prefer that over the carbs for the power boost.
What our car didn’t have but definitely needed was power steering. This was getting towards the end of the period where European cars of this class didn’t necessarily have PS, at least on the American market. It was okay when moving but parking maneuvers could be difficult, especially when the tire treads got worn down.
Regarding the rear legroom, other cars in use for our school carpool included a 2-door 1976 Buick Century and a 1974 Chevy Vega, so the rear legroom of the Mercedes seemed positively generous! The Vega you’d expect to be bad, but I still cringe when thinking about the back seats of the Colonnades. It’s a matter of perspective, I guess.
On the Mercedes models that had vertically-oriented headlights, I prefer the quad round setup. On the later models with horizontal headlights, I prefer the one-piece glass. I couldn’t say why.
During my shady used car days, I had the chance to drive many versions of the W108. It was a beautiful chassis. They drove well and were built like tanks. The size was pretty much perfect for me, as I don’t really like huge automobiles. The interior was superb, with beautiful materials. I drove a 300 SEL 4.5 for a few days, and it went very well for the day indeed.
What, then, were the small triangular lenses between the headlights for ?
They were the turn and parking/fog lights in non-USA market use of the stacked round headlights. US regulations required a larger tur signal, so the little amber lights were add (as in the featured car) inboard of the main headlights. There were later made larger, to look more like the optional fog lights available in non-US markets. Some owners have converted the little triangular lights back into their original functions.
Wonderful cars. In 1970, my brother bought a 1966 250S for his wife. It had a manual transmission, and would leave other cars floating their valves in anguish as it effortlessly sailed away on long, straight roads at high rates of knots. Mountain driving was another matter, and it took a lot of gear changing to maintain speed. Still, they both loved the car, and only sold it in 1988 or so.
In the late ’70s I had a ’72 220D. That wheezer could barely get up a floor in a parking garage, but otherwise a nice car. There is a 250S on sale near me; I stopped to check it out; it was pretty worn through and looked like a money pit.
I had a 1970 280 SE 3.5 sedan for over two years and literally it never had one problem, a reasonable achievement for what was then a fairly cheap, 24 year-old used car. The W109’s air suspension is intriguing but the thought of repair bills would have frightened me; the 3.5’s fuel consumption was bad enough. That car convinced me MB-Tex was the world’s best quality vinyl.
Nickname for those headrests was Biskuitrolles (in the English-speaking world usually “jam rolls” or “Swiss jam rolls”) or Nackenrolles (neck rolls, still sometimes seen on long-haul flights). The factory called them Kopfstütze (literally “head support” although the design project was the Kopfstützensystem (head restraint system)) and the early 600s (W100, 1963-1981) had only a rear pair as standard equipment. As late as 1971, in Europe, the W114/115 and 108/109 could be ordered with 1, 2, 3 or 4 headrests. In 1969 the design was updated, the new shape quickly dubbed the “croissant” or “rabbit ears” (the pagodaesque look a coincidence) though the factory only ever referred to them as the teilt (split) or offener Rahmen (open-frame). The “rabbit ears” were phased out from mid-1979 although the 600 retained them (along with its swing-axles) until the last was built in 1981. “Rabbit ears” probably is a better choice of nickname than “croissant” because the more eye-catching crescents are usually the ordinaires (made with margarine), the more desired croissant au beurre, (butter croissant) being uncurved.
1967 600 with “Biskuitrolles”, 1969 600 with “croissants” or “rabbit ears” and 1990 560 SEL with boring “headrests”.
Thank you for not shortening it’s full name to Merc.
My family’s one and only Mercedes was a similar 1966 250S. When everything was working it was a great car and the big rear armrest was a very effective demilitarized zone between me and my sister. The long trip car had a fold down armrest until she was in high school. Sadly it was long gone by the time I was 16, having thrown a rod in 1973-74 and the power windows were eternally troublesome.
The pointy turn signals were replaced by larger pseudo fog lights in 1968 or 69. I still like the looks and a neighbor had a white one for a while, along with his Landcruiser collection.