At $5,900, Is This Chevy-Powered 1959 Mercedes 219 A Ponton With Potential?
With its likely more modern drivetrain, alloy wheels, and roof rack, today’s Nice Price or No Dice Benz is a resto-mod of the classic Ponton style. Let’s decide if its price is a throwback as well.
The Chrysler Sebring Was Obtainable Luxury
In The Odyssey, Homer tells us of the Sirens, a group of Sea Nymphs who, with their clear-toned song, “beguile all men whosoever comes to them.” Those who have heard the expressive exhaust note from any of Audi’s RS offerings might find themselves cast under a similar spell.
Yesterday’s 2018 Audi RS7 Quattro Prestige added good looks and hatchback practicality to the acoustic acclaim, all at an asking price of $64,000, or about half of what the car commanded when new. That wasn’t a sufficient reduction for the majority of you, many of whom noted that buying an out-of-warranty Audi is just looking for trouble. In the end, you sent the RS7 packing with a 60 percent No Dice loss.
To say that the ad for today’s 1959 Mercedes-Benz 219 is brief would be accurate. One might also say that the car’s description in that ad raises more questions than it answers. Here is the gist, in its entirety:
1959 Mercedes Benz 219 Ponton with Chevy conversion. Body and inside in great condition. No rust. Bumpers need to be re-finished.
Ok, we get the basics there. And the pictures pretty much bear out the bit about the bumpers. But what about this whole Chevy conversion? Converted to what? A V8? V6? Vega 4? That remains a mystery since the seller couldn’t be bothered to give a more thorough description, nor take the minor effort to raise the hood for an engine bay photo.
Considering the lackadaisical ad copy and the car’s appearance with surfboards on the roof and clown’s nose paint job, I wouldn’t be surprised to find the seller showing up looking like Jeff Bridges’ Big Lebowski slacker icon, right down to the White Russian in hand.
Regardless of the seller’s embodiment of “Dudeness,” we’re going to have to work with what we’ve got and give this Benz a fair shake. This is a Ponton car, called so due to its pontoon-like combined fender and hood lines. Internally designated the W105, this model adapted the longer nose of the W128 model to the shorter-wheelbase shell of the W120. That allowed for a straight six to be fitted, making for what in modern parlance would be considered an E-Class car.
Per the ad’s description, the bodywork does indeed look straight. Its bright red paint, while seemingly not in line with Mercedes’ typically staid persona, also offers an element of cheekiness to the car. The more modern alloy wheels aren’t as attractive as would be the original full covers, but at least they are in the family.
The cabin is a bit more problematic. In there, we find velour upholstery, some ratty carpeting, and a big section of the floor next to the driver’s seat that the seller has mysteriously MS Paint-ed over. What’s that all about? An aftermarket hot rod shifter sprouts from the center tunnel, indicating that the “Chevy conversion” came with an automatic. The diminutive brake pedal supposes the car was originally a manual. An aftermarket sunroof has been popped through the roof above all that.
In the car’s favor, there is a clean title and an overall fun factor that might make this car an excellent weekend runabout with an added bit of panache. Could that be worth $5,900?
That’s the asking price and I now want all of you to don your thinking caps and give this car some consideration. Could you say this cheeky classic Benz is worth that $5,900 asking with the limited information the ad provides? Or, is that too much to step into the unknown, even if you potentially get to meet his Dudeness in real life?
You decide!
Los Angeles, California, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.
Help me out with NPOND. Hit me up at remslie@kinja.com and send me a fixed-price tip. Remember to include your Kinja handle
