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Retro

This Seventies V8 Mercedes SLC is going cheap

This 450 SLC coming up for auction could cost you less than a new Sandero

Published: 15 Apr 2021

This week’s classified comes courtesy of auction house RM Sotheby’s, but this isn’t a hunk of classic German unobtanium. Rather, it could prove cheaper than a brand-new Dacia Sandero.

It is a Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC, one of 2,993 models built in 1975, and RM reckons it could fetch between $10k and $15k – that former price a little over seven thousand pounds.

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For this outlay, you’re getting a really very old car and therefore should view it with not just your eyes wide open, but the eyes of friends, family members, heck, even your dog. Open them (and possibly your wallet) wide and see the SLC’s really very old 4.5-litre V8 up front, producing 227bhp. Well, it did back in 1975.

The V8 has covered just over 120,000 miles over the course of its really very long lifespan, and there are a few dings and things to look out for. We’re told there’s been just one owner since 1999. It’s painted in blue, features a beige interior, gets 15in alloys, yellow foglamps, electric windows and even air conditioning.

The party piece however, isn’t the V8. Or the blue. Or the yellow. Or even the electric windows. It is the fitment of a Blaupunkt stereo. If this means nothing to you, congratulations on the gifts and boons of youth!

The SLC of course, remains an entirely desirable Mercedes-Benz. It’s the coupe variant of the R107 SL Class Merc, itself one of the car world’s most recognisable nameplates. This, or a Sandero?

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