1973 Mercedes-Benz 200-Series

280C Coupe

6 - Cyl.

Automatic

Clear

Gasoline

Goldie Locks! 1973 Mercedes Benz 280 Coupe W114 Chassis M110 Six Cylinder Double Overhead Cam Engine Charles Alden Black purchased this car in 1973 for his wife Shirley Temple Black before she was nominated by Gerald Ford to be Ambassador to Ghana. Shirley Temple is the brightest shining child star and an icon of Hollywood. Her second act as politician, stateswoman, and philanthropist is also a shining example of her being a great American. Shirley Temple Black donated this 1973 Mercedes Benz 280 Coupe to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in Northern California to be sold at a Charity Auction. The second owner purchased the vehicle at the Charity Auction held at Stanford University when she was a student there. She drove the car back home to Austin, Texas and eventually sold the car to a third lady owner. At approximately 125,000 miles, the carburetor stopped working correctly and the car was parked in the garage. Someone attempted to fix the carburetor and gave up leaving the carburetor in a bucket in the front seat. I found the car listed on eBay with a one line description and a few photographs. The location of the vehicle was two miles from my job. The auction ended without meeting the reserve price so I bought it on the spot after inspecting the vehicle. The body was in amazing condition. The tires were dry rotted from age. I was taking a risk buying a non-running car, but the Mercedes straight six cylinder M110 engine is famous for longevity and reliability. The odometer indicated 25,714 so I read that to be 125,714 based on how clean the car is overall. The odometer typically fails on many of these vintage Mercedes, this odometer with trip meter works perfectly. The current mileage is 126,452. Twenty five years ago I purchased my first Mercedes Benz Classic. Since then I have been purchasing and maintaining, preserving and restoring as a hobbyist. You can find me on several Mercedes Benz and Porsche forums giving and receiving wisdom with regard to the hobby and enjoyment of Classic German engineered cars. My friend Don is a factory trained technician with 30 years professional experience. He took on the task of rebuilding the Solex 4A1 carburetor. The benefit of participating on the website Forum is wisdom and provision. The Solex 4A1 carburetor is known to warp which causes it to have air leaks that prevent it from operating. Don is a genius! He observed the warped condition and created a process whereby heating and cooling cycles and torque adjustment were used to reshape the carburetor back straight and flush. The carburetor was then meticulously cleaned and fitted with all new jets and gaskets. The fuel tank was drained and cleaned, the metal fuel lines were flushed clear and the rubber lines replaced. The original Mercedes locking gas cap was fitted with a new gasket. With fresh fuel and the carburetor like new, the engine started right up! We gleefully drove the car around the neighborhood and noted that the transmission shifted smoothly and the engine pulled with full power. Don Adjusting Carburetor Next, we drained the radiator and brought it to my local expert for cleaning and reconditioning. The hoses were inspected and found to be in excellent condition. The radiator was installed and filled with fresh coolant and water. The engine cooling system works perfectly. Goldie Locks has for four new tires and a Sears Die-Hard Battery with 3 years replacement warranty. We changed the oil and filter, transmission fluid and filter, and topped off the rear differential fluid which looked brand new and fresh. Nothing leaks. Everything on the car works including the odometer, clock, original radio, cigarette lighter, air conditioning, heating and the sun roof. The air conditioning was correctly converted to R134A using ester oil and the system is blowing ice cold air. We removed the door panels and serviced the window regulators which are an item that is known to fail without lubrication. Eventually without lubrication, the motors burn up or the regulator gets bent. All four windows are lubricated and working perfectly. The original leather seats were padded with foam and horse hair. The leather had dried and rips/tears were unavoidable from just touching the material. The horse hair was turning to dust. The front seats, headrests, arm rest, rear seats and rear armrest received new padding and professional installation of new covers. New seat skins were purchased that are color matched original, OEM design and look brand new because they are. The dashboard cracks are common on vintage Mercedes. This Coupe does not have cracks in the dash! I immediately applied cleaner and moisturizing conditioner to the dash. The speaker cover showed some contraction but no cracks or tears. The instrument panel and buttons are neatly preserved with the exception of the brake release button which can be replaced with a brand new one from the Mercedes Benz Classic Center. Original Becker Europe Radio works correctly. We affectionately named the car "Goldie Locks" in honor of the original owner and the color of the car which looks gold. Actually, the color is "Tunis Beige Poly" paint code 462H. There are blemishes on the body that would cost points on the Concours d’ Elegance, but Goldie Locks is certainly the best condition W114 Coupe you will ever see in my opinion. This picture shows a paint chip on the hood that was caused by the air cleaner nut not being screwed down completely; I touched it up but a blemish remains. According to Wikipedia, Mercedes Benz manufactured 1,852,008 Saloon W114 chassis cars from 1968 to 1976. Compared with 67,048 coupes, and only 24,679 of these were the top-of-the-line 280C/280CE. In 1973, just after production of this car, the W114 received a facelift which included larger bumpers that met new USA Federal crash guidelines and new larger rear view mirrors. Notice that Goldie Locks has the beautiful chrome bumpers of a Classic Car and lots of chrome trim accenting the body. Shirley Temple Black must have felt a need for additional safety precautions evidenced by an unusual modification. The rear quarters and the doors have armor plating with thick aluminum. When opening and closing the doors you will notice that they feel heavy. You expect a Mercedes Benz door to close solidly and fit perfectly, which this one does; but it has an additional solidness and weight that is noticeable to someone who has owned one of these W114 chassis cars. When Shirley Temple Black was using this car as her daily driver, the car had a UHF telephone installed but it has been removed. The antennae wire is still located in the trunk and the trunk lid still bears the UHF antennae holder. Here are some photographs of the body armor taken when we removed the seats. Armor Plated Door Thickness of Armor Plate Back Seat Armor Plate Rust is the enemy of Classic Mercedes and W114 cars are not immune. For this reason, these cars are disappearing making the remaining survivors like Goldie Locks much less common to see on the road. Goldie Locks had a few tiny rust spots that were documented, treated, cured, and painted. The car was lucky to be from California, and then Texas in the early 1990s and it appears was always garage kept. The photographs show the undercarriage with careful focus on the areas that are known trouble spots like the wheel wells. There were a few minor rust spots that were treated and touched up. After Rust Repair Here are some photographs of the underside of the car to demonstrate the well preserved condition. The Floor Pans are in perfect condition No Leaks New Rear Trailing Arms I hope that I have provided enough information for anyone to make an informed decision on bidding to win this exclusive car. This is not a project car. All of the mechanical and electrical items have been inspected; maintained according to proper Mercedes Benz techniques and specifications, preserved to retain the character and history of the vehicle, and restored to proper functioning so the car will last another 40 years. I would not hesitate to drive this car from coast-to-coast. Anyone can drive this home from Houston, Texas unless you live on another Continent like Europe. Going forward the car should be maintained with regular oil changes and driven often. Goldie Locks passed State of Texas Safety Inspection and will pass all 50 States Safety Inspections. In summary, this is a 1973 Classic Mercedes Benz 280C W114 Coupe that is in exceptional mechanical and cosmetic condition. All of the work that has been done comes with photographic documentation that will be included with the car. Does the original owner being a famous person make it more interesting? Yes. Does it make it more valuable? Your bids will determine the value! If you want the car, bid now and bid what you truly want to pay for it. If you are counting on posting your bid at the absolute last second you will be disappointed by losing out because someone is always faster. The only way you can be guaranteed to win is to be the highest bidder. Finally, what is this car worth? The original MSRP was $10,313.00. The car is rationally worth more today than $10,000.00 without the provenance of the original owner. Michael Jackson's costume from the "Thriller" video just sold for 1.8 Million Dollars. The best way to value this car is to sell it at auction and let car collectors decide what it is worth. I have posted three videos on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pVDHdnlWbY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNLOvQbrPdc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMmk-ft14FY Please bid to win with funds ready to transfer. A deposit of ten percent will be required within 72 hours of auction ending. If you do not have 10 positive transactions or any negative feedback please contact me before bidding. I reserve the right to cancel bids from anyone without a history of fair dealing on Ebay. I have been an Ebay member since 2000 in good standing. I have a PayPal account to accept your deposit. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about Goldie Locks. Good luck to all bidders!