R107 380 SL 1980- common faults please!

[frankthetank2]

Just going to view an SL tomorrow with a mate who is keen on buying. Other than rust in the obvious places is there any mechanical gremlins that are well known on these models? Cheers, Frank.

[E31Shrew]

O had one for 18 months a couple of years ago. Only issue I had was with the central locking vacumn system

[Big_Dog]

I had this conversation with a Mercedes mechanic about a month ago. He said just the vacuum pump for the central locking and its easy, you just change the pump.
They are a lovely car.

[E31Shrew]

We did that but eventually found a small leak

[varsas]

Don't you need to worry about the roof? Always scared me on those!

[Old Merc]

Old Mercs are bullet proof.I`m sure a 1980 R107 has a manual soft top (with a detachable hard top) so its just the condition of the fabric to worry about.I`ve never had one that old but had a 1990 260E for ten years and my present Merc` is a 97 360SL both of which never go wrong.As with all old Mercs its how they have been maintained and serviced,the older they are the more important this is.I would say they do not suffer from any "common faults" just look for obvious age & mileage issues.If that car has a genuine Mercedes service history with all Merc parts etc you will have a Real Classic that will last for ever.