>The W111 was Mercedes-Benz's upper range car series from 1959 to '71. The exclusive ultra-luxury 300 series had established the German automaker's postwar image, but volume production came from the unibody Pontons. Work on replacing them started in 1956 by making a new bodyshell that had improved visibility, crumple zones, and seatbelts.>Mercedes unveiled the W111 at the Frankfurt Auto Show in October 1959. Initial models consisted of 220 b, 220 Sb, and 220 SEb. The 220 b was the entry level model with sparse interior trim. All W111s were at first powered by Mercedes's M127 134 cid I6 with 95 hp and a top speed of 99 mph. The 220 Sb had twin carbs, 110 hp, and a top speed of 103 mph. The 220 SEb had fuel injection, 120 hp, and a top speed of 107 mph. In 1965, the 220 Sb and 220 SEb were replaced with the 230 S, which had no styling changes but sported a new 140 cid twin carb I6 with 120 hp and a top speed of 109 mph. Two door models were debuted in late 1960, both labeled 220 SE and both with the same 2.2L engine.
>In 1965, Mercedes gave the sedan models an updated look based on the W111 coupe that ditched the long-outdated tail fins. This helped avoid the expense of redoing the coupe models, which continued mostly untouched. The 220 SE was succeeded by the 250 SE which used the new fuel injected 152 cid M129 that featured 150 hp and a top speed of 120 mph. It gained larger 14" wheels. In 1967 it gave way to the 280 SE which had a new fuel injected 170 cid engine with 160 hp and improved 0-60 in 10.5 second acceleration. There were minor cosmetic changes inside and out.>In 1969, Mercedes introduced the 280 SE, the company's first postwar two-door car with an engine larger than 3 liters. It had the new 213 cid M116 V8 with 200 hp and a top speed of 130 mph. A new grille widely nicknamed the "flachkuler" was introduced to refresh the nearly ten year old design.>Production of W111s ended in 1971 as the W116 and C107 ranges would replace them.
>>29149421>>29149418'Hol up there, OP. You saying that the largest engine in these krautboxes was 3.2L and it was the top option only the five richest kings of Europe could own while an average American teenager working at Burger King in 1966 could afford a car with 2-3x larger engines?
>>29149436yes. we were poor. what about it?
>>29149436What happened?
>>29149418Mercedes US sales began in the early 50s when importer Max Hoffman introduced them to the US but formal sales started a few years later when Studebaker entered in an agreement to sell the cars at their dealerships. Following Studebaker's demise in the 60s, M-B USA took over and launched their own dealer network. They were still very much a niche item during this era and only gained widespread acceptance in the 70s.
>>29149447Mercedes ended up absorbing the snob old money crowd that had once driven Packards.
>>29149436it kind of floors you to read about European cars of this era when you hear of stuff like power steering and 3 liter engines being luxury options (you could get power steering on a Chevy since the early 50s?)
>>29149418>>29149447also a lot of people had a beef with Germany for one reason or another back then and disliked the idea of a German car
>inb4 schizo complaining about manure trucks and basketball americans
>>29149418i always hated European cars for using alphanumeric model names. tf am i supposed to memorize all this shit?
>>29149462That's a different guy, he only posts about American malaise shitboxes.
>>29149464i'm talking about the schizo who complains about the guy who posts about american malaise shitboxes
>>29149456nah that's only Nurburgs aka the scariest M-B ever made. you can't take these to a classic car show. and not because of anything to do with the car itself but its association with contemporaneous German politics.
>>29149471would be comparable to driving a hearse wagon or a Pinto with a "Keep off my tail - I'm explosive" bumper sticker
>>29149471These were not actually sold in the US, as anon said M-B did not begin US sales until the 50s.
>>29149488>These were not actually sold in the US, as anon said M-B did not begin US sales until the 50sto be fair the Nurburg functionally offered nothing we didn't already get from Cadillac/Lincoln/Packard. it was joked as being the best Packard imitation ever built.
>>29149436also the W111 never had an automatic transmission. only the flagship 300 series got that.
>>29149436What do Burger King workers drive today?
>>29149493Europeans aren't too fat and lazy to shift is why.
>>29149497Whatever they want. Around here they earn $27/hour.
>>29149436In 66? Nah back then the only V8 Mercedes was the flagship 600. The 3.2L V8 wasn't out until 69 and prior to that their biggest engine in mainstream models was the 3.0L M189 inline six.
>While most US model M-B during this era came in taxi yellow, European models could be had in an array of colors--as the counterculture had come to Germany during the late '60s, Mercedes adapted to the times by marketing themselves as the "friendly" car that reflected the new "smiles and sunshine" Germany and a move away from fascist aesthetics.[8]
>>29149418the idea of a 2.2L six seems very funny if you think about it
>>29149530Is that an AIslop image?
>>29149530the US models were turds
>>29149470>>29149464well poisoning retards
>>29142499the US is a big place
>>29149542this is an AIslop thread
>>29149436Rent free
>>29149568it's not AIslop, it's clearly taken from some website/magazine article but i can't figure out from where exactly
>>29149574because it's put through a slop summarizer to avoid being able to just google the original
>>29149572>missed the Simpsons reference in there
>>29149578what is the original from though?
>>29149587I said I don't know.
>>29149548USDM M-B 1973-83 are pants.
>>29149574OP is from >https://thembmarket.com/1966-mercedes-benz-250se-coupe-4-speed-1and >>29149530 is from >https://www.tradeclassics.com/auctions/mercedes/1975-mercedes-350-sl/
>>29149418the downfall of M-B started in the 90s when they began marketing cars to browns and Slavs with nonexistent taste
>>29149600we're looking for the text, not images
>>29149450American interior of the period look much more gaudy like the inside of a casino.
>>29149625yes as we established. Cadillac was always a little bit tasteless so eventually Mercedes drew in the mannered old money and upper middle class professionals.
>>29149625this was the last generation of Cadillacs that were still legitimate luxury instead of ghettoblasters and grannyboxes
>>29149664They used to say Buick was for people who could afford a Cadillac but thought Cadillac was too tasteless whereas Oldsmobile was for people who wanted but couldn't afford a Cadillac.
>>29149462>>29149470that guy is a retarded spic.
>>29149673>They used to say GM was for GM but for people who couldn't afford GM
>>29149704GM is good
>>29149548I actually still like how this looks. The original is superior in every way, don't get me wrong, but there's just something about the oversized mustache look that I like.
>>29149493>W111 never had an automatic transmissionwuti have an auto w111 sedanit's comfy
>>29149884
>>29149888wikipedia could never be wrongyou can goto google images,peachparts forums, ebay/etc and find plenty of column shifted w111s and the rarer floor mounted auto shifter as used later in the w108s & pagodas.i've had both a manual 220d (diesel) an auto 220sb (gas)heres a whole w111 drivetrain for sale w/ the auto box in the uk: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/176969526221
>>29149888afaik Mercedes introduced their first automatic transmission in 1963, at the same time they launched their first V8. the earlier W111s would have been manual only.
>>29149436I mean by 1967 you could get a 6.3L V8 in the 300SEL 6.3 making 250HP but yeah you did still have to be a sultan to own one. The Smaller displacement 4.5L and 3.5L V8s went ok. I get it though, when you close the door or whatever, it makes sense. the cost no object approach they had was neat.
>>29149958the SEL cost $8,970 (about $86,000 in today's money) but in the same year you could get a Buick Riviera with a 430 V8 making 360 hp for $4,469 ($43,000 in today's money)
>>29150216yet still GM did make concessions to cost and volume production, so materials and assembly quality could be a bit dodgier. the Riviera was more likely to have squeaks and rattles or misaligned body panels.
>>29150216>real luxury car is close to 100k>GM badge engineered luxury is half the priceso just like the 2000s then
>>29150237wait didn't M-B peddle taxi cabs with leather seats and wood and charge a king's ransom for them?
>>29150227>>29150237If you simply charge more for something, human psychology will perceive it as being more premium.
>>29150445>>29149791Ferrari charges six digit figures for their cars simply because they can and not because anything in there actually costs that much to manufacture.
>>29149958as anon said, they replaced Packard for the snob old money crowd who liked an understated premium car with precision engineering and assembly quality
