Mercedes-Benz 500SL Roadster

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Come on, admit it. Who hasn’t secretly lusted after one of these fabulously decadent W129 Series Mercs ever since they were launched back in 1989?

Impressively expensive when new, they were always the preserve of the year-round-tan set and are most at home devouring huge mileages at great speed on the continental autoroutes. They also enjoy a build quality that puts modern Mercs to shame. Even the late, great Ayrton Senna had one so they must be pretty good and it seems unbelievable that they have now fallen to such a low level in value.

The flagship of the range, the 500SL marked the debut of Mercedes' four-valve-per-cylinder, dual-overhead V8 powerplants with variable valve timing. Its 4,973cc V8 was credited with 326bhp and 332lbft of torque. Capable of over 150mph and 0-60mph in 6.3 seconds, it was nevertheless a paragon of refinement and could average 24mpg.

This August 1990 example comes in classic Astral Silver with black leather and has covered around 114,000 miles from new (although it had a documented speedo change in 1997 at 74,440 miles). It comes with a fair amount of service history comprising 18 stamps to date, the last about 14,500 miles ago in April 2011. A bill in the history file shows that it also had new rear shock absorbers in February last year.

Supplied with all its original handbooks in the original leather wallet and riding on an expensive set of 18” AMG alloys, it looks remarkable value at the guide price suggested today. It also has a rather nice number plate that will appeal to anyone who likes a bet - or a Betty, perhaps?