Mercedes-Benz R107
The Mercedes-Benz SL R107 is one of the most decadent luxury convertibles ever created. Its chiselled good looks and top-of-the-line build quality helped it become an icon for high-society living.
Its appeal crosses the gender divide too, with those elegant lines the perfect backdrop for scooting between high society functions or as the modern cad's weekend toy. It appeals across any class and cultural boundaries – wherever you're from, your life would seem just a wee bit more special behind the wheel of an SL.
It's sophisticated transport, too, with fantastic engines available in a multitude of six and eight cylinder flavours. They're strong and reliable too. But there's one part of the SL make-up that's not particularly glamorous, and that's when you have to put the hard-top on – alone.
With two suitably strong people to do the job it's fairly easy. For a time Mercedes stored your roof for you and re-attached it at the end of summer and took it off when the sun came out again. But what if you're caught short and have to do it alone?
It can be a painful and strenuous job with two of you – one can only imagine the scraped paintwork and broken glass SLs have endured due to hardtop installation howlers. Trying to do it on your lonesome is a feat to tax the mind as well your muscles.
Perhaps the answer can be found in 'doing the turtle'. We found this video that shows that you can put the roof on your SL solo. The only problem is you don't look quite as elegant as the car you're putting together. Kudos to him though, he's made it work.
However, this shouldn't put you off one of the finest convertibles you can buy. We've found this fantastic 500 SL that looks superb in scintillating light metallic blue. However, if you prefer your SL with six cylinders, this one looks tempting in deep red.
Either way you're in for one of classic motoring's greatest treats – driving an SL. Just remember to keep your neighbours happy in case you need to put the hardtop on in a hurry...