Bid for your chance to own this 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500 only on The MB Market! This example shows a low 32k miles and is finished in Imperial Red over Beige Leather. It's powered by a 5.0L M119 V8 paired to a 5-speed automatic. It features heated seats, xenon headlamps, and a clean CA title.
patrickdotryan bid $1,850
patrickdotryan bid $1,300
patrickdotryan bid $2,200
patrickdotryan bid $1,450
patrickdotryan said:
@MIMAVA congratulations on a great car at an incredibly low price. My loss is your gain and I know you will love this car for many years to come, as I have.
Hi everyone. I was able to get online on my flight. The car has now reached the reserve, so it WILL SELL TODAY! It is still at a bargain basement price for this beautiful car and whoever snags it will be very happy. Thanks for all the great comments and questions. Happy bidding and good luck!
@Jj123vwI can happily assist with getting it picked up and loaded onto a transporter of your choosing, but you would need to responsible for the transport and logistics, customs etc. but there are many companies that do this all day.
@MIMAVAHi, yes. One of the last photos shows a log of all the services that the previous owner or I did, or had done. There are not that many factory services because of the very low mileage.
Good morning everyone. Only 5hrs left in this auction. This is truly a beautiful, untouched SL500 with low miles and soft, supple leather seats. There are not many left in this condition. Bids close around 4:20PM ET / 1:20PM PT. I will be on a plane at that time so if you have any last questions to make you comfortable with how truly nice this car is, please ask them now and I will answer as quickly and as well as I can. Hopefully one of you gets to enjoy this Benz as much as I have. Happy bidding! Patrick
@jrviktora1985 I apologize that I don't seem to have posted the window sticker. The timing of the auction unfortunately happened while I am traveling this week so I can’t get access to it to post. But it does show the initial price as $109,000 if I recall correctly! These cars really are still incredible value for money given their luxury and features, but well cared for ones are on the rise.
@jrviktora1985 photo 40 shows the roll bar up. The video shows the roll bar being manually raised and lowered. Since the automatic deployment only triggers when the car rolls over, I decided not to video that! There are no check engine lights. You can see all dash lights in the photos and on the comments below I posted a YouTube link to a cold start video where you will see the dashboard lights after starting.
@MIMAVASorry. Missed the question. The date code of that spare tire is the same as the car. 1997!
@MIMAVAHi. The 4x original factory rims that you see in the photos do not have tires. The spare wheel in the trunk (that you also see in the photos) has the factory original tire, still with the factory wax and chalk tread markings on it. This is because I value highly factory-original cars. I’d suggest adding a basic cheap / used tire to one of the empty rims and using that day-to-day as the spare if you wanted to retain the original spare tire, say for concours events.
@MIMAVAyes, the original wind deflector is still in the trunk. There is a photo of it in the included photo set. When I bought the car I fitted it to test that it worked, but I have never used it and to me it looks like the previous owner never used it either. It is like new.
@MIMAVAI’d say 100% left. They’ve done only a handful of miles since new.
@MIMAVAYes. The factory wheels are included, as is the German-made Motorform lift setup. I have a motorized winch on my garage ceiling and that is not included. But you can get a simple hand pulley to do the same thing. Makes removing and installing the hard top a quick one person task.
@CabbageSmackeryes, that is the some chip in the photo that I’m taking about.
@CabbageSmackerplease see the comment below about the mirror and the exceptional original paint quality. Yes the photos were taken to try and show every small detail, including that the hardtop has a scratch on top and a few on the black chrome. This is fairly common with Mercedes hard tops, as they are more often stored in garages while the cars enjoy open top motoring!
@MIMAVAthe paint is as perfect and original as any R129 I’ve ever seen. It is incredibly deep and lustrous. There have been no accidents or repairs. In the photos I do specifically point out a.) a small scuff on the front drivers side bumper that I made when I first owned the car. It is barely noticeable and I am a stickler for factory paint and b.) a stone chip on the drivers side mirror from the previous owner that he got on a desert highway trip. He used touch up paint but since it’s a small part, it would be easy to remove and repaint if it really bugs you.
@MIMAVAyes A/C works well and is cold and quiet. Soft top also, you can see the video posted here and note the Top Hydraulics replacement cylinders. I’ll be happy to assist with loading on the shipper of your choice. You can get quotes from UShip and others, they might be in the $1,000-$1,500 range from my zip in 92037. Ultimately I would take a vehicle any day that had spent most of it’s life garaged and driven in warm, dry San Diego!
@1987GBody Here is a cold start video I just took: https://youtu.be/ywKAvqtnkYo
@subside that is correct. The front ones functioned perfectly but had a small amount of seepage when inspected, so I replaced them. The others look as dry as when I bought it. During the PPI at that time the Mercedes independent I use checked them as well as the pump / reservoir (he owns an R129 himself) and the fluid level hasn’t changed in my whole ownership. The only time I added a small amount of Febi ZH-M was when I replaced the front cylinders.
@1987GBodyI could post a cold start so you can tell that it starts nicely from cold if that would help.
@grigor85these are genuine AMG wheels (and new Continental tires), but they were not part of the original spec. The PO also added the factory style halogen light upgrade and Akebono brakes to reduce dust. Other than that it is as it left the factory.
Hi everyone. Up for auction is my beautiful all-original SL500. I searched for 2 years to find this car and it's by far the nicest I've ever seen. Just a total time capsule with original paint and incredibly clean interior. It's been extremely well maintained over it's life, including the last 6 years under my stewardship. I look forward to answering your questions. Happy bidding.
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32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@MIMAVA congratulations on a great car at an incredibly low price. My loss is your gain and I know you will love this car for many years to come, as I have.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
Hi everyone. I was able to get online on my flight. The car has now reached the reserve, so it WILL SELL TODAY! It is still at a bargain basement price for this beautiful car and whoever snags it will be very happy. Thanks for all the great comments and questions. Happy bidding and good luck!32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@Jj123vwI can happily assist with getting it picked up and loaded onto a transporter of your choosing, but you would need to responsible for the transport and logistics, customs etc. but there are many companies that do this all day.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@MIMAVAHi, yes. One of the last photos shows a log of all the services that the previous owner or I did, or had done. There are not that many factory services because of the very low mileage.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
Good morning everyone. Only 5hrs left in this auction. This is truly a beautiful, untouched SL500 with low miles and soft, supple leather seats. There are not many left in this condition. Bids close around 4:20PM ET / 1:20PM PT. I will be on a plane at that time so if you have any last questions to make you comfortable with how truly nice this car is, please ask them now and I will answer as quickly and as well as I can. Hopefully one of you gets to enjoy this Benz as much as I have. Happy bidding! Patrick32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@jrviktora1985 I apologize that I don't seem to have posted the window sticker. The timing of the auction unfortunately happened while I am traveling this week so I can’t get access to it to post. But it does show the initial price as $109,000 if I recall correctly! These cars really are still incredible value for money given their luxury and features, but well cared for ones are on the rise.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@jrviktora1985 photo 40 shows the roll bar up. The video shows the roll bar being manually raised and lowered. Since the automatic deployment only triggers when the car rolls over, I decided not to video that! There are no check engine lights. You can see all dash lights in the photos and on the comments below I posted a YouTube link to a cold start video where you will see the dashboard lights after starting.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@MIMAVASorry. Missed the question. The date code of that spare tire is the same as the car. 1997!32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@MIMAVAHi. The 4x original factory rims that you see in the photos do not have tires. The spare wheel in the trunk (that you also see in the photos) has the factory original tire, still with the factory wax and chalk tread markings on it. This is because I value highly factory-original cars. I’d suggest adding a basic cheap / used tire to one of the empty rims and using that day-to-day as the spare if you wanted to retain the original spare tire, say for concours events.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@MIMAVAyes, the original wind deflector is still in the trunk. There is a photo of it in the included photo set. When I bought the car I fitted it to test that it worked, but I have never used it and to me it looks like the previous owner never used it either. It is like new.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@MIMAVAI’d say 100% left. They’ve done only a handful of miles since new.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@MIMAVAYes. The factory wheels are included, as is the German-made Motorform lift setup. I have a motorized winch on my garage ceiling and that is not included. But you can get a simple hand pulley to do the same thing. Makes removing and installing the hard top a quick one person task.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@CabbageSmackeryes, that is the some chip in the photo that I’m taking about.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@CabbageSmackerplease see the comment below about the mirror and the exceptional original paint quality. Yes the photos were taken to try and show every small detail, including that the hardtop has a scratch on top and a few on the black chrome. This is fairly common with Mercedes hard tops, as they are more often stored in garages while the cars enjoy open top motoring!32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@MIMAVAthe paint is as perfect and original as any R129 I’ve ever seen. It is incredibly deep and lustrous. There have been no accidents or repairs. In the photos I do specifically point out a.) a small scuff on the front drivers side bumper that I made when I first owned the car. It is barely noticeable and I am a stickler for factory paint and b.) a stone chip on the drivers side mirror from the previous owner that he got on a desert highway trip. He used touch up paint but since it’s a small part, it would be easy to remove and repaint if it really bugs you.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@MIMAVAyes A/C works well and is cold and quiet. Soft top also, you can see the video posted here and note the Top Hydraulics replacement cylinders. I’ll be happy to assist with loading on the shipper of your choice. You can get quotes from UShip and others, they might be in the $1,000-$1,500 range from my zip in 92037. Ultimately I would take a vehicle any day that had spent most of it’s life garaged and driven in warm, dry San Diego!32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@1987GBody Here is a cold start video I just took: https://youtu.be/ywKAvqtnkYo32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@subside that is correct. The front ones functioned perfectly but had a small amount of seepage when inspected, so I replaced them. The others look as dry as when I bought it. During the PPI at that time the Mercedes independent I use checked them as well as the pump / reservoir (he owns an R129 himself) and the fluid level hasn’t changed in my whole ownership. The only time I added a small amount of Febi ZH-M was when I replaced the front cylinders.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@1987GBodyI could post a cold start so you can tell that it starts nicely from cold if that would help.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
@grigor85these are genuine AMG wheels (and new Continental tires), but they were not part of the original spec. The PO also added the factory style halogen light upgrade and Akebono brakes to reduce dust. Other than that it is as it left the factory.32k-Mile 1997 Mercedes-Benz SL500
patrickdotryan said:
Hi everyone. Up for auction is my beautiful all-original SL500. I searched for 2 years to find this car and it's by far the nicest I've ever seen. Just a total time capsule with original paint and incredibly clean interior. It's been extremely well maintained over it's life, including the last 6 years under my stewardship. I look forward to answering your questions. Happy bidding.