1969 Mercedes-Benz 230

We're honored to have just received this beautiful 1969 Mercedes-Benz 230 on consignment. The seller has owned this car for 27 years and is heartbroken to part ways with it, but he is getting up in age and no longer drives it.

Fortunately he has a vast knowledge of the cars history and its partly why he acquired it to begin with.

This car was special ordered back in 1968. It was delivered to Hartmann Giovanni-Remo Mercedes-Benz in Fresno, California.

The purchaser was a proper British man, and local professor of microbiology. Since childhood, he had always wanted a car that resembled the Royal Familys cars. Therefore, he ordered his new Mercedes 230 in the Mercedes factory color Dunkelrot (maroon).

Since 1901, the Royal Family has had a large collection of dark red (maroon) vehicles ~ color name Claret. Even in the recent passing of Queen Elizabeth II, she had a Claret colored Jaguar XJ hearse.

With the professors dream come true, he made it his duty to preserve this car. He drove it only on the weekends and special occasions.

The professor owned it for 22 years, and was 93 years old before auctioning it at a charity event in California. The winning bidder had to have this car and realized he got caught up in the auction hype and paid way too much.

The winner, who we will call the second owner from now on, was an affluent collector from Nevada.

Car shows and date nights with the wife were the only times this car was taken out after that. Otherwise, the second owner stored this car in his climate controlled facility amongst his collection.

In 1998, the second owners brother-in-law was visiting for the holidays and saw the car. He had always been a Mercedes-Benz enthusiast and his family had two W114s when he was growing up.

The brother-in-law asked what the story was with the car and where it came from. After the second owner explained everything from the Royal Family to the charity auction, the brother-in-law was awe-struck.

He had just gotten married to his British wife, hes been a longtime Mercedes enthusiast, and grew up around W114s.

The brother-in-law begged the second owner to sell him the car. Not long and a deal was made. He is now our current seller and third-owner.

In the last 27 years, he has put 42,653 miles on it from driving it on the weekends and to show off at Cars and Coffee events.

Other than that, the car was always covered in his garage.

The dark red paint is fantastic (Dunkelrot color code 542). We are told this is 100% factory original paint. There is no peeling or sun damage like many 230s of this age.
The chrome trim is in great condition too. There is no surface rust or missing pieces. There are no missing emblems either.

All 4 factory original wheels do not have curb-rash or damage. The tires are not cracked and dry-rotted. The factory original paint-matched center caps are in superb condition.

In the trunk the spare looks unused. The carpet is clean and stain-free. The tire iron is intact and stored near the spare.

The brown interior is in beautiful condition (color code MB 464). The front and rear seats do not have any cracks or rips. There are no funky odors or stains.

A Becker Europa radio was installed as a dealership option back in 1969. It still looks amazing and works great. Fun fact, this radio resells for a good chunk of change on eBay.

The factory original Hirschmann telescoping radio antenna has an optional locking mechanism. The keys for this are still attached to the original instruction manual.

We have the original Mercedes-Benz 230 owners manual and service booklet. The earliest service record is from 8/18/1969 when the car had only 764 miles.

Overview of my opinions:

starts right up ~ no need to press the gas or play any games
smooth acceleration ~ no misfiring or loss of power
the steering is great ~ nice and tight like a well maintained example should be, and absolutely no slop or play
superb suspension ~ goes over railroad crossing with no weird noises or clunks
the brakes are fantastic ~ they stop quickly like they should, and there is no shaking or nonsense
the interior is great ~ there are no stains, rips, or broken bits
zero funky odors ~ no old European car smells at all
all four doors close without slamming ~ no sagging doors like many cars this age
non-smoker car