This Slammed Mercedes 280S is Actually Awesome
I’m not a big fan of slammed cars. I prefer function over form, that’s why I like race-prepped cars, and drivers cars rather than trailer queens. I am, however, not above aesthetic. When a truly inspirational flow of a car is apparent, I definitely stop and take a second or third look. Why? Because of the builder. If the builder has a true eye for what he’s doing, then everything makes sense. It makes the car better. The builder is showing that there can be both form and function. That’s what this is, it’s both form and function.
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This is a 1969 Mercedes 280S. It was built by Mike Merkt and his dad over the course of a few years. Mike proves with this old Merc that form can be both beautiful and functional. Mike had an ambitious plan for this car. He not only wanted it to remain as stock-looking as possible, but also to make this old Benz turn heads as if it were a brand-new supercar. He succeeded.
The stock springs have been cut to drop the car as low as possible without sacrificing the bumpers to curbs and speedbumps. The exterior has been cleaned up with the use of Euro-spec headlights, and a couple of items have been shaved off like the antenna to give the car a sleeker, more modern look. Oh, and the engine has been replaced.
Now, before I go into this, please don’t just run away after I tell you what he did. Trust me, it’s worth it to keep reading. Still with me? Good. He dropped a Chevy small block into the engine bay.
Unlike most builds nowadays with a Chevy small block, he didn’t get some brand-new crate motor right from Chevy. Mike did this old-school and got a 1975 355ci small block from a Nova, dressed it up a bit with some parts, but keenly made it look freaking immaculate. The entire engine bay is like that — not because he doesn’t drive the car, but because he made the choice of hiding and tucking every wire, tube, and hose inside the engine compartment. The reason he pulled the old motor was that it just wasn’t powerful or reliable enough to actually do what he wanted.
In the end, that engine bay, coupled with the rest of the car make this one of my favorite modified old imports ever. The skill with which everything was done is just mind-boggling. It’s the kind of engineering that is usually saved for the most upper-class of supercars, and right now it’s sitting in a ’69 Mercedes. Just glorious.