§ V.01What a 1972–1989 Mercedes-Benz SL (R107) is worth
A 1972–1989 Mercedes-Benz SL (R107) sold for a median of $22,750 across 2,063 completed auctions from January 2016 to October 2026 (BidBetter, as of 3 November 2026).
The middle half of those 2,063 sales fell between $15,500 and $33,500 (the typical range), and the full range after cleaning was $2,750 to $201,000.
Data as of 3 November 2026 · 2,063 sales · January 2016 to 31 October 2026 · auction results only
§ V.02What moves a car within the band
Within that band, convertible cars are the most frequently traded body style in this set (1,838 of 2,063 sales), and manual cars account for 1,416 of them. Condition, originality and documented history move a car further than any single specification, which is why the middle half of the range is wide.
The spread by variant, printed in full above, is usually wider than the spread by year: a convertible at $22,750 and a roadster at $22,000 are not the same market, and a single median that mixes them describes neither.
§ V.03Recent sales
| Car | Sold for | Date | Mileage | Sold by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 Mercedes-Benz 560SL | $15,750 | 31 October 2026 | 86,000 km | Bring a Trailer |
| 1975 Mercedes-Benz 450SL | $13,500 | 31 October 2026 | 102,000 mi | Bring a Trailer |
| Euro 1985 Mercedes-Benz 500SL | $20,000 | 30 October 2026 | 61,000 mi | Bring a Trailer |
| 16k-Mile 1980 Mercedes-Benz 450SL | $29,750 | 30 October 2026 | 16,000 mi | Bring a Trailer |
| 1989 Mercedes-Benz 560SL | $11,500 | 26 October 2026 | 192,400 mi | Hagerty |
| 1976 Mercedes-Benz 450SL | $5,100 | 26 October 2026 | 148,000 mi | Bring a Trailer |
| Euro 1985 Mercedes-Benz 280SL 5-Speed | $25,500 | 25 October 2026 | 34,000 mi | Bring a Trailer |
| 1976 Mercedes-Benz 450SL | $7,000 | 22 October 2026 | 124,025 mi | Mbmarket |
| 1988 Mercedes-Benz 560SL | $29,500 | 21 October 2026 | 94,000 mi | Bring a Trailer |
| One-Family-Owned 1973 Mercedes-Benz 450SL | $6,750 | 21 October 2026 | 115,300 mi | Hagerty |
| 1980 Mercedes-Benz 450SL | $6,600 | 21 October 2026 | 180,000 mi | Bring a Trailer |
| 1987 Mercedes-Benz 560SL | $37,000 | 20 October 2026 | 52,000 mi | Bring a Trailer |
| 1984 Mercedes-Benz 380SL | $9,000 | 20 October 2026 | 127,000 mi | Bring a Trailer |
| 1984 Mercedes-Benz 380SL Zender | $12,500 | 20 October 2026 | 141,500 mi | Hagerty |
| 1978 Mercedes-Benz 450SL | $4,000 | 20 October 2026 | 122,000 mi | Bring a Trailer |
§ V.04Price by model year
| Model year | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | $16,380 | 60 |
| 1973 | $16,500 | 51 |
| 1974 | $16,750 | 21 |
| 1975 | $10,288 | 22 |
| 1976 | $10,000 | 33 |
| 1977 | $16,250 | 49 |
| 1978 | $18,000 | 51 |
| 1979 | $15,750 | 69 |
| 1980 | $23,550 | 55 |
| 1981 | $12,500 | 39 |
| 1982 | $15,500 | 57 |
| 1983 | $16,500 | 86 |
| 1984 | $17,000 | 115 |
| 1985 | $18,700 | 143 |
| 1986 | $25,000 | 218 |
| 1987 | $26,500 | 310 |
| 1988 | $28,500 | 330 |
| 1989 | $30,750 | 354 |
§ V.05Price by body style and transmission
| Variant | Type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Convertible | Body style | $22,750 | 1,838 |
| Roadster | Body style | $22,000 | 78 |
| Manual | Transmission | $25,000 | 1,416 |
| Automatic | Transmission | $17,500 | 496 |
§ V.06Questions
What is a 1972–1989 Mercedes-Benz SL (R107) worth?
A 1972–1989 Mercedes-Benz SL (R107) sold for a median of $22,750 across 2,063 completed auctions from January 2016 to October 2026 (BidBetter, as of 3 November 2026).
The middle half of those 2,063 sales fell between $15,500 and $33,500 (the typical range), and the full range after cleaning was $2,750 to $201,000.
What affects the price of a 1972–1989 Mercedes-Benz SL (R107)?
Model year: by year, medians run from $10,000 for 1976 (33 sales) to $30,750 for 1989 (354 sales).
Body style: a convertible holds a median of $22,750 on 1,838 sales, against $22,000 on 78 for a roadster.
Transmission: Manuals hold a median of $25,000 on 1,416 sales, against $17,500 on 496 for automatics.
Condition, originality and documented history move a car further than any single specification, which is why the middle half of sales spans $15,500 to $33,500.
Is the Mercedes-Benz SL (R107) 1972-1989 going up or down in value?
Up. The 423 sales in the 12 months to 3 November 2026 had a median of $19,500, against $19,000 on 321 sales in the 12 months before, a rise of 2.6%. That compares whichever cars came to auction in each year, not the same cars sold twice, so read it as the direction of the market rather than a rate of appreciation.
How many Mercedes-Benz SL (R107) sales is that based on?
2,063 completed auction sales, from January 2016 to 31 October 2026. The table above lists the 15 most recent, each linked to its auction record. The figures were last rebuilt on 3 November 2026.
What is the difference between the typical range and the full range?
The typical range is $15,500 to $33,500: half of all 2,063 sales fell inside it. The full range is $2,750 to $201,000, the cheapest and dearest sale that survived cleaning. The full range is set by outliers, so it is a boundary rather than a guide to what most cars bring.
Which body style holds its value best?
On this set, convertible is the most frequently sold at 1,838 sales with a median of $22,750. The highest median among body styles is convertible at $22,750, though it rests on fewer sales. Each variant's median and count are in the table above.
Do manual or automatic cars sell for more?
In this set, manual cars account for 1,416 of 2,063 sales. Manuals hold a median of $25,000 on 1,416 sales, against $17,500 on 496 for automatics.
Does mileage change the value?
Mileage is recorded for part of this set, not all of it, so it is not used to adjust the median. It is shown in the sales table wherever the auction record carries it, and you can see the effect directly by comparing rows.
How current is this figure?
Data as of . The figures are rebuilt from completed sales on a schedule, and the date above is the date of the last rebuild, not the date this page was loaded.
§ V.07Method and sources
What these figures are. Every number on this page is computed from completed auction sales of Mercedes-Benz SL (R107) cars built between 1972 and 1989. The median is the 50th percentile of the sale prices; the typical range is the 25th to 75th percentile; the full range is the lowest and highest sale that survived cleaning. Percentiles are linearly interpolated on the sorted prices.
What is excluded. Asking prices, reserve-not-met results, withdrawn lots and unsold cars are not prices and are not counted. Parts, memorabilia, literature, scale models and other non-vehicle lots are excluded. Sales not made in US dollars are excluded, so these figures describe the dollar market. Duplicate records are removed. Sales below a plausibility floor (5% of the median) and above a ceiling (10× the median) are set aside, because a $22 "911" is a data error rather than a cheap car.
What was set aside. The highest recorded sale in this set is $291,000 (1982 Mercedes-Benz 500 SL 5.0 AMG, 10 December 2022), and 2 sales above $228,880 are held out of the median and the ranges: at that price the lot is a different asset, and including it would pull the headline figure away from what a typical car brings.
What it is not. This is not an appraisal or an inspection, and it does not predict what any particular car will bring. Two cars built the same year can differ by more than the whole typical range on condition, originality, documentation and provenance.
The set. 2,063 sales from January 2016 to 31 October 2026, drawn from 16 auction sources, principally Bring a Trailer (1,659), Cars & Bids (89), Barrett-Jackson (71), RM Sotheby's (40), Hemmings (39), Hagerty (38), Bonhams (35), Mbmarket (32), PCARMARKET (20), Gooding (17), Broad Arrow (9), Sothebysmotorsport (4). Data as of .
See the disclaimer for the limits of a valuation of this kind.
§ V.08Compare with
- Mercedes-Benz SL (R230) 2003-2012 — $24,000 median · 2,171 sales · as of 3 November 2026
- Mercedes-Benz SL (R129) 1990-2002 — $20,750 median · 1,236 sales · as of 3 November 2026
- Mercedes-Benz G-Class 2001-2026 — $65,500 median · 870 sales · as of 3 November 2026
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