by Michael GolubiewskiProduction Editor
A bright Leicht
A few months ago, Lawrence Brunner shared his 1948 Jeepster with Weekender readers and mentioned he was also restoring a Mercedes. This week, Brunner is proud to show off his fully restored 1976 Mercedes 450 SL convertible. The SL class is a roadster that’s been manufactured by Mercedes Benz since 1954. The SL comes from the German words Sport Leicht, or Sport Light, and has been around for five generations.
Brunner’s SL is powered by the 4.5-liter (4250cc), 8-cylinder engine. The OHC engine makes the SL capable of a speed of more than 120 miles per hour and can go from 0-to-60 in about 10 seconds. The car has about 180 horsepower, as well as 220 ft/lbs of torque and a compression ratio of 8.0 to 1. The SL features Bosch electronic port fuel injection, a cast-iron block, an aluminum head gasket and 4-speed manual transmission. The Mercedes SL is a rear-wheel-drive vehicle and features a blue soft-top convertible (the car was also available as a hard top).
There were just more than 66,000 SL coupes produced in 1976. Brunner says the restoration was completed in four basic stages: He did the leather seats first, then the rugs in the back, front and trunk, then the top and the dashboard, with all parts coming from Germany from Daimler AG, the company that produces the Mercedes. Finally, Brunner installed new gaskets, doors and the trunk and the windshield.
The paint on the exterior is the Mercedes’ original color, as is the trim. Brunner says he got some help on the interior restoration work from William Sutton of Luzerne, plus Tom Radcliff and John at Tom’s Autobody helped with some of the exterior work while the original German parts were purchased from Bud’s Mercedes in Douglass, Ga., and Motor World Mercedes in Wilkes-Barre.
Though the restoration is finished, Brunner’s Mercedes is being kept under cover for the remainder of the winter. He plans to take it out to area car shows this spring and summer with his Jeepster.
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