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Weekly Motor Fix: 1970 Mercedes SL 280 Pagoda

24 May, 2016

This 1970 SL280 top-spec hardtop/soft-top (two-top) automatic (left-hand drive) convertible in the exceptionally rare and exquisitely beautiful Horizon Blue (with navy interior) is one of the finest examples you’ll find.

Most recently, this stunning work of road-going art has graced Canterbury’s roads, and wherever it goes its unmistakable shape and inherent elegance draws compliments like a magnet. The car’s owner, Tanya, has often been greeted with bunches of flowers left at the windscreen … one man even exclaiming, “A man would marry you for a car like that!” — and who can blame him? That man used to own one, and sold it — he knew all too well how special these treasures are.

‘Pagode’ (pagode is the correct German term for Pagoda), currently sports original Bundt alloys (available from 1969 as an option, and later these became very popular on many Mercedes-Benz models). Pagode also retains her original Horizon Blue–matching hubcaps, etc., and is complete with her original 1970 key, genuine Mercedes locking fuel cap, and vintage highly sought-after Becker Europa stereo. Pagode also has an immaculate navy soft-top, believed to have never been put up before last year, and the car has never been used on the road with the soft-top up.

This list simply goes on and on, all those little critical things that the in-the-know Pagoda collector looks for are here on this car in abundance. As only limited numbers were produced, and the SL280 twin-top is the acknowledged King of the Pagoda line-up, ‘Sweet Pagode’ — as she’s known locally — shines out as ‘the one’.

This car is currently for sale and expressions of interest, or for any further information, can be sent to [email protected].

Ford’s Mustang – the endlessly hip American dream machine

28 May, 2026

Fifty or so years ago, the only place in New Zealand to see a Ford Mustang was on the racetrack. In a local market severely constrained by a lack of new motor vehicles, the new North American Ford was a dreamy icon boosted by considerable motorsport success.
Import licences for cars were limited, and if Kiwis travelled abroad, the amount of currency they could take with them was restricted. What’s more, those funds could not be used to buy a car for importation back home. Yet it was OK to spend the money on heavy drinking at a London pub, Gucci shoes, sable fur coats, and excessive stays at the Hôtel Martinez at Cannes in France.
However, any rare Mustang that landed on our shores would not be destined to pose around Auckland’s then trendy Queen Street on a Friday night but would more likely be found in the care of well-known racing drivers on the starting grid at local motor racing tracks.

Chrysler’s classy cruiser

22 May, 2026

I first saw our feature car, a 1970 V8-powered Regal 770 hardtop, towing a trailer carrying the tidy Ford Anglia classic racing saloon in Broadspeed racing colours that has featured in these pages. The coupe is comparatively rare here, which means anyone contemplating purchasing one of these big two-doors is sure to see prices continue to climb. The latter Charger has claimed much of the Aussie Chrysler limelight, but the simpler and classier lines of this car, which appeared dated soon after its introduction, now have a more timeless appeal.
Former owner, Balclutha motor engineer, Mike Verdoner, remembers the car well. He believes it came from Dunedin originally.
“I’m not sure about the car’s history, but I bought it off its owner at Kaitangata. Unusually, it was advertised in the local newspaper, the Clutha Leader, which was a surprise as these usually go for a lot more money on the internet. I had it for quite a few years. It needed a little bit of work to tidy it up, so I had to decide whether to spend the money on it to do it up, which could have been twenty grand. Its value at the time was not like it is now, so I sold it to Ewan. It’s probably now worth three or four times what I sold it for.”