At $7,500, Would You Go Low and Slow In This ’73 Mercedes 220D?

Because climate change is apparently melting icecaps at an ever more prodigious rate, even glacial ablation is now probably faster than today’s Nice Price or No Dice Mercedes 220D will ever be. Let’s see if its price will still make fast work of a sale.

Well, it had to be over sooner or later, and with yesterday’s $11,995 1990 VW Vanagon GL, our short run of Nice Price wins is, for the moment, at an end. Even though Type 2 prices have been nuts the past decade or so, few of you were down with that kind of crazy talk. That resulted in the Vanagon’s denouement manifested in the form of a 65 percent No Dice loss.

Mayhaps today we’ll be back on the upswing.

To find out if that’s the case, let’s have a gander at this clean-title 1973 Mercedes-Benz 220D. It’s so cute that I just can’t help but smile at it.

Mercedes internally coded this body style the W115, introducing it in 1968 to replace the “Fintail” W110. Unlike its predecessor’s somewhat flamboyant styling, these featured stately and simple lines overseen by legendary Mercedes designer Paul Bracq.

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For a sense of where this model fits in Mercedes’ lineup, consider it to be the E-Class before we all started calling the mid-sized models the E-Class. This one features the Euro-market headlamps, which do look a lot better than the U.S.-demanded sealed beams and move the turn indicators from the bottom to the top of the housing.

Underneath the Bracq bodywork lies a revamped suspension that traded the prior swing axle rear for a fully independent setup, semi-trailing arms, and a fixed pumpkin. Mercedes chose to fit the line with a number of four and six-cylinder gas engines, as well as four and five-cylinder diesels.

This one has the 2.2 liter OM615 diesel four, which in this model makes—now, don’t you laugh—60 horsepower and 93 lb-ft of torque, both net numbers. Even backed up by Mercedes’ four-speed manual as is equipped here, that makes for some leisurely motoring. That means should you choose to use the car for bank robberies or other nefarious activities it will only be able to manage Al Cowlings/OJ style of chases, not Bonnie and Clyde.

Perhaps to make up for that performance hit, someone has decided to give this 220D a bit of styling excitement by way of dropping it on its suspension. With the dullness of the Harvest Beige paint, a few strategically placed dings, and some rust creeping up on one of the wheel arches, it also has a bit of rat-roddiness added to its bad-boy look. It may not impress the valets at the country club, but then it wouldn’t look out of place lazing into Cars & Coffee or just out cruising to pick up some street tacos.

The cabin looks to be an enjoyable place to do either. The ruddy red upholstery looks to be MBTex and seems to be in surprisingly nice shape. So too do the molded dash cap and the door cards. This is not a high-end model so there’s nary a splinter of wood to be found, but there are vent wings in the front doors and those wonderful oversized grab handles over each door that makes up for that.

The brief description in the ad notes that the car “starts easy” and wears brand new tires and replaced axles although the seller spells the latter like they’ve been out cloning Guns and Roses singers. The mileage is shown as 75,798, however, the car has a five-barrel odometer so perhaps that’s gone ‘round the horn at least once.

If the mileage reads true, there should be plenty of poop left in this old ride. Mercedes’ diesel engines are well known for their longevity and fuss-free operation just as long as filters are changed and valve clearances are regularly set. So too is the company’s MBTex upholstery, which is preferable in most instances to leather.

This is a fun throwback that should catch a few eyes driving around and not be too dear to keep and maintain. What might that reasonably be worth?

The seller seems to think it’s worth $7,500. Do you agree? Or, does that price mean this slow Benz is not going to sell very fast?

You decide!

San Diego, California, Craiglist, or go here if the ad disappears.

H/T to Don R. for the hookup!

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