SL/R129: Our fourth anniversary
10-07-2006, 02:43 PM
#1
MBWorld Fanatic!
Thread Starter
Our fourth anniversary
Our Fourth Anniversary
I bought the car for my wife (read myself) on her 50th birthday.
So we have had the R129 for 4 years in early December 2006.
The impression of and the use of the car has changed significantly over time.
The first test drive in a R129 (not the one we bought) was at night in the rain with a sales person who couldn’t care less that I wanted to go around the block. The wheels spun around corners. Dash board lights were flashing. I had not much fun at all. I left thinking there would have to be much more to a car like that to make me want to pay $ 90 K for it.
A couple of months later we looked at a 1989 560SL (R107) and decided the image was nice, but I really like modern radios, A/C control, etc. The car felt a bit loose and I really babied it thinking it might break if I drove hard. Then I did hit the gas one and WOW that old thing tightened up and ran like the wind. Very impressive! What about the newer model?
It was nice Indian summer days of November that we started to take day time test drives in the R129. Top down was very nice. Hitting the gas seemed like punching the hyperspace button on a video game.
I eventually pressed on to buy the car for my wife’s birthday. It was a great gesture. Lots of brownie points. Then my wife’s buyer’s remorse set in. Months of why did you do that? That is a lot of money. We don’t really need 2 cars. We need to retire one day you know. Etc, etc. We came very close in the first 6 (winter) months selling the car.
Thankfully I was too stubborn to buckle under the pressure. Spring came. We took the panorama roof off (a scary experience the first few times). We started driving top down. Learned that to crank the stereo up gives the stereo a chance to perform better. We started having a blast doing all of our mundane errands on the weekend with new found enthusiasm.
At first it seemed foreign … like someone else’s car. Not just because it was bought as a previously owned car … but the whole idea of owning a Mercedes for the first time took a bit of getting used to. What would people think of us?
It took me a couple of years to feel comfortable about peoples’ perceptions about the car. People stopping to say what a beautiful car. What? It is 6 years old? My mother in law associating (they are Hungarian / German) the R129 (SL family picture) to the 300SL her boss’s daughter drove in the 1550’s was a turning point!
I caught my self once at a stop light with an unusual thought. I was in my Jeep admiring a brilliant silver car on a sunny day. A top down R129 going through the intersection in front of me. A very classy older blond lady driving. A picture of beauty, grace and elegance. Then I snapped into reality and thought HEY I have that same car at home! An indication that I had not yet really come to grips with owning such a beautiful car.
Then I got into exploring the driving capabilities of the car. 0 to 60 mph runs to see if I could get 6.1 seconds. 0 to 130 mph runs just to feel the endless torque. Highway passing, lane changes like a mad man. Regularly kicking down the transmission to “train” the transmission to be sharp. Cruising at high speeds when ever possible. Taking ramps too fast just to fell the ESP brake action. The whole learning / novelty bit lasted 2 or 3 years. I still resort to these things from time to time. I scared the crap out of my wife as passenger for all of that time. This is an awesome machine that really must be driven hard to be fully appreciated.
On a few long weekends on very windy foreign isolated roads we drove very slow top down. Hey this is as much fun or more fun that driving like a mad man! Slow cruising is great in this car.
We bought just when the R230 came out. It was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. The image of the R230 took away in my mind from the appearance of the new to me R129. Making the R129 look like an old car. I took me a while to learn to appreciate the beauty of the classic R129 features.
Then I entered the car detailing phase. Wash, remove the brake dust and quickie detail every weekend for a couple of years. Enjoying every second of washing. I never washed any of my other vehicles by hand ever.
This past year my wife has not been able to work. She has been the principal driver of the R129 (see we did need two cars). Her week day life has been made better by far by doing her traveling around in top down sunshine.
All in all owning the R129 has been one of the best things I have ever done. I wished I had done this much sooner in life.
I am now a tireless promoter of this car.
Truly one of the finest automobiles ever produced!
Thank you MB!
I bought the car for my wife (read myself) on her 50th birthday.
So we have had the R129 for 4 years in early December 2006.
The impression of and the use of the car has changed significantly over time.
The first test drive in a R129 (not the one we bought) was at night in the rain with a sales person who couldn’t care less that I wanted to go around the block. The wheels spun around corners. Dash board lights were flashing. I had not much fun at all. I left thinking there would have to be much more to a car like that to make me want to pay $ 90 K for it.
A couple of months later we looked at a 1989 560SL (R107) and decided the image was nice, but I really like modern radios, A/C control, etc. The car felt a bit loose and I really babied it thinking it might break if I drove hard. Then I did hit the gas one and WOW that old thing tightened up and ran like the wind. Very impressive! What about the newer model?
It was nice Indian summer days of November that we started to take day time test drives in the R129. Top down was very nice. Hitting the gas seemed like punching the hyperspace button on a video game.
I eventually pressed on to buy the car for my wife’s birthday. It was a great gesture. Lots of brownie points. Then my wife’s buyer’s remorse set in. Months of why did you do that? That is a lot of money. We don’t really need 2 cars. We need to retire one day you know. Etc, etc. We came very close in the first 6 (winter) months selling the car.
Thankfully I was too stubborn to buckle under the pressure. Spring came. We took the panorama roof off (a scary experience the first few times). We started driving top down. Learned that to crank the stereo up gives the stereo a chance to perform better. We started having a blast doing all of our mundane errands on the weekend with new found enthusiasm.
At first it seemed foreign … like someone else’s car. Not just because it was bought as a previously owned car … but the whole idea of owning a Mercedes for the first time took a bit of getting used to. What would people think of us?
It took me a couple of years to feel comfortable about peoples’ perceptions about the car. People stopping to say what a beautiful car. What? It is 6 years old? My mother in law associating (they are Hungarian / German) the R129 (SL family picture) to the 300SL her boss’s daughter drove in the 1550’s was a turning point!
I caught my self once at a stop light with an unusual thought. I was in my Jeep admiring a brilliant silver car on a sunny day. A top down R129 going through the intersection in front of me. A very classy older blond lady driving. A picture of beauty, grace and elegance. Then I snapped into reality and thought HEY I have that same car at home! An indication that I had not yet really come to grips with owning such a beautiful car.
Then I got into exploring the driving capabilities of the car. 0 to 60 mph runs to see if I could get 6.1 seconds. 0 to 130 mph runs just to feel the endless torque. Highway passing, lane changes like a mad man. Regularly kicking down the transmission to “train” the transmission to be sharp. Cruising at high speeds when ever possible. Taking ramps too fast just to fell the ESP brake action. The whole learning / novelty bit lasted 2 or 3 years. I still resort to these things from time to time. I scared the crap out of my wife as passenger for all of that time. This is an awesome machine that really must be driven hard to be fully appreciated.
On a few long weekends on very windy foreign isolated roads we drove very slow top down. Hey this is as much fun or more fun that driving like a mad man! Slow cruising is great in this car.
We bought just when the R230 came out. It was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. The image of the R230 took away in my mind from the appearance of the new to me R129. Making the R129 look like an old car. I took me a while to learn to appreciate the beauty of the classic R129 features.
Then I entered the car detailing phase. Wash, remove the brake dust and quickie detail every weekend for a couple of years. Enjoying every second of washing. I never washed any of my other vehicles by hand ever.
This past year my wife has not been able to work. She has been the principal driver of the R129 (see we did need two cars). Her week day life has been made better by far by doing her traveling around in top down sunshine.
All in all owning the R129 has been one of the best things I have ever done. I wished I had done this much sooner in life.
I am now a tireless promoter of this car.
Truly one of the finest automobiles ever produced!
Thank you MB!
10-07-2006, 04:27 PM
#2
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2000 SL500
Thanks for sharing your joy.
Great story. Nice to hear how much fun you have had with your big boy and girl toy.
It was really hard for me to let loose of my 80K mile 1989 560SL silver blue/blue. I bought her in 1999 with 30K miles for $30K. At the time that I decided to sell her I had just had the sterring box tightened and put on a new set of Michelins. She drove wonderfully and still looked great (always lots of compliments from other Car Crazy guys and gals). The only thing wrong with the car was a slight rear main seal leak (occassional drips on a garage carpet). But that's an older German car for you.
In July of 2006 I decided it was time for a change. Boy what a change. This 2000 SL500 Sport black/black had 20K miles and I only paid $34K plus $1,250.00 for a new set of Michelin PS2's.
I love this car. There's nothing better than cruisin at 80, top down, windows/windstop up, listening to Elton John or the Beatles, in 70 degreeC weather .
Like you Chris I could go on about the enjoyment that these cars have brought into my life. Thanks for sharing your joy.
It was really hard for me to let loose of my 80K mile 1989 560SL silver blue/blue. I bought her in 1999 with 30K miles for $30K. At the time that I decided to sell her I had just had the sterring box tightened and put on a new set of Michelins. She drove wonderfully and still looked great (always lots of compliments from other Car Crazy guys and gals). The only thing wrong with the car was a slight rear main seal leak (occassional drips on a garage carpet). But that's an older German car for you.
In July of 2006 I decided it was time for a change. Boy what a change. This 2000 SL500 Sport black/black had 20K miles and I only paid $34K plus $1,250.00 for a new set of Michelin PS2's.
I love this car. There's nothing better than cruisin at 80, top down, windows/windstop up, listening to Elton John or the Beatles, in 70 degreeC weather .
Like you Chris I could go on about the enjoyment that these cars have brought into my life. Thanks for sharing your joy.
