The Mercedes-Benz 230 SL “Pagoda” Debuted 60 Years Ago

The Mercedes-Benz 230 SL (W 113) “Pagoda” sports car premiered 60 years ago in March 1963 at the Geneva Motor show.

230 SL (W 113) replaces both equally impressive 300 SL Roadster (W 198) and the 190 SL (W 121) at the same time.

Two-seater was available in three models, including the 250 SL and the most successful version, the 280 SL.

Comes in three versions : open-top car with a folding soft top, open-top version with hardtop, and finally as hardtop coupé.

Mercedes-Benz ended the production of the W 113 in March 1971 after a total of 48,912 vehicles had been built.

230 SL model produced for four years accounted for 19,831 units, the 250 SL for 5,196 and the 280 SL for 23,885.

It’s 60 years this month since Mercedes-Benz presented the 230 SL (W 113) at the 1963 Geneva Motor Show, replacing both equally impressive 300 SL Roadster (W 198) and the 190 SL (W 121) at the same time.

Produced from 1963 through 1971, the Mercedes-Benz W 113 “Pagoda” sports car was known for its many first, including the first Mercedes-Benz car with radial tyres and well as the first sports car with a “safety body,”

The 230 SL two-seat roadster/coupé was available in three models as well as three versions : an open-top car with a folding soft top, an open-top version with hardtop, and finally as hardtop coupé.

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At the Geneva Motor Show in March 1963, Mercedes-Benz Technical Director Fritz Nallinger, introduced 230 SL as follows :

“It was our aim to create a very safe and fast sports car with high performance, which despite its sports characteristics, provides a very high degree of traveling comfort”.

The 250 SL replaced the 230 SL at the end of 1966, while the third and most successful version of the W 113 series, the 280 SL, with a 0-60 mph in nine seconds and top speed of 200 km/h (124 mph), appeared in 1968.

Today, the 230 SL, 250 SL and 280 SL “Pagoda” models are coveted Mercedes-Benz classics, with prices for well-preserved examples of the W 113 series selling for over €120,000.

Mercedes-Benz ended the production of the W 113 in March 1971 after a total of 48,912 vehicles had been built with 230 SL accounting for 19,831 units, the 250 SL for 5,196 and the 280 SL for 23,885.

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