Here in the Bottom Feeder section we showcase a potentially cool old vehicle found on Craigslist that someone should fix up or restore with an ideal parts donor vehicle for the build and a few suggestions on what work or mods would really make the difference. If you see something you like, you better act fast. Craigslist cars come and go in a moments notice!
This month’s Bottom Feeder has dug up these two vehicles that we think need each other:
I normally stay away from imports, especially German ones, for the Bottom-Feeder segment because of more expensive and harder to find parts, but the Mercedes-Benz SEC is my favorite Benz body style of all time and you don’t usually find them this cheap unless they are smashed, like this months parts donor.
Restoration vehicle: 1982 Mercedes Benz SEC with motor problems for $600 with a clean title: https://tampa.craigslist.org/hdo/cto/5994867258.html
And this parts car: 1988 Mercedes Benz 560 SEL, wrecked with good drivetrain for $500: https://miami.craigslist.org/pbc/cto/5994076585.html
The SEC was the coupe version of the W126 sedan built from 1979 to 1992 and was known as the C126. SEC stands for S-Klasse-Einspritzmotor-Coupé in German, or S-class, fuel injected engine, coupe, in English. The S-class has always been Mercedes’ flagship prestige luxury sedan and no sacrifices were made when creating this gorgeous 2 door coupe from the sedan platform. This car has classic hardtop coupe lines with a long hood, shorter trunk, and pillar-less windows. It’s a very sophisticated Stuttgart muscle car!
This specimen needs some doctoring in the motor department and this fuel-injected 5.6L V8 from the wrecked 1988 SL is just the right prescription for it’s sickness:
The motor swap should have a minimal amount of complications since the 5.6L was an option on the SEC. The 2 cars are only 6 years apart and there were no revolutionary changes in the years in-between.
For this build, to go along with the big motor upgrade, I would get a set of black 5 spoke 18″ rims with brushed aluminum lip, put a 1000 watt stereo in it, tint the windows very dark, and shoot for an AMG look. I love big touring cars and this is one of the finest ever!
Keep building!
See you on the road!
Dave
pictures from original craigslist post.
Rides-and-drives 
Actually i would repair the 560SL and use the coupe mechanical parts because 560 Sl’s are fetching insane prices right now and all body panels are available and not too expensive. In my country those 560’s were $260,000 new on the road.
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