At $5,000, Does This 1996 Mercedes SL 500 Carry A Super Light Price Tag?

The seller of today’s Nice Price of No Dice SL 500 claims its Smoke Silver paint and Platinum Rose trim is a rare color combo. Let’s see if the price tag makes that a winning combination.

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It seems like a lot of people these days are eager to rock down to electric avenue, especially when a brand new Tesla is involved. That, however, has created an uncertain market for used models like the 2018 Tesla Model 3 Performance we considered yesterday. At $32,900, that performance electric was priced a good twenty grand less than a new model and offered a cool, no longer available silver paint scheme. The downsides of it being an early adopter model and having more than 52K on the clock stymied the seller’s efforts, however. An 86 percent No Dice loss in our voting sealed that fate.

If you are a firm believer in fate— or its kissing cousin pre-destiny — then there’s not much that can be done to forestall the inevitable. That being said, the most logical thing to do is just have the best time possible and make good decisions while doing so.

When it comes to solid classic cars, an older Mercedes-Benz can make for a very good decision. The pre-2000 cars are ( with certain exceptions) generally reliable, and are solidly built with decent parts availability for when things do wear out or just plain break.

This 1996 Mercedes-Benz SL500 not only offers what the seller touts as a solid ownership experience, but its bodylines — penned under the guidance of then Mercedes Design Chief Bruno Sacco— remain one of the high points of Mercedes and, more specifically, the two-seater S-Class line.

This one, which sports a clean title and just shy of 160,000 miles on the clock, does show its age in some areas. The bodywork and paint do look to be in very nice shape, and the seller claims the Smoke Silver paint to be a rare pairing with the Platinum Rose trim. At issue, though, is the finish on the bumper caps, front and rear. Like a leathery beach bum, both show the effects of too much time in the sun. That’s either something that could be overlooked or repaired at a new owner’s leisure, whichever the bent.

Another issue is the cabin upholstery. There are no rips or tears in the leather or plastics, but there are obvious signs of use in the crazing on the seat surfaces and the wear on the tactile surfaces. Aside from that far-from-new appearance, it all looks complete and perfectly serviceable. According to the seller, everything works as it should, including the factory six-disc CD changer in the boot.

Other things to consider with an R129 include whether both tops are functional and if the wind block is still resident in the boot. We don’t see this car with anything but the hard top in place, so we can’t vouch for the former. The wind block case is shown in the boot so that box, at least, can be checked off.

Mechanically, the seller claims the car to be without issue. This being a ’96 means it’s too late in the line for the infamous biodegradable wiring harness issue, so that’s another feather in its cap. The five-liter M119 V8 is an engine with a good reputation and, in the SL offers 322 horsepower and 347 lb-ft of torque. Mated to a five-speed automatic, that makes the car a comfortable cruiser.

A new owner could be cruising in this SL 500 once the simple matter of its $5,000 asking price has been addressed. We now need to weigh in on that potential transaction and decide whether it’s even worth the effort.