10k: 1962 Mercedes-Benz 190 W110 Sand Beige FinTail

The W110 Heckflosse (Fintail) was built from 1961-1968 as the affordable 4-cylinder option from Mercedes-Benz and is instantly recognizable from its 50’s throwback tailfins.  The W110 is a wretchedly slow car in today’s traffic, but it exudes a charm, charisma and tank-like solidity that is unmatched by today’s cookie-cutter disposable automobiles.  This 1962 Mercedes-Benz 190 is offered for sale in Long Beach, CA for $8,995 or best offer on ebay.

This heckflosse is covered in what looks like Mercedes-Benz color code 412 Sand Beige  paint, which gives the sedan a decidedly military appearance.  It comes equipped with 1964 or 65 issue California black plates – but it doesn’t mean this car has been in Cali its entire life because of the California YOM plate program, a simple check on the registration will tell you if it has a yearly YOM fee of $20 or if they are original black plates.

The heckflosse is powered by a hellaslow 1.9 liter M121 inline4 making about 115 horsepower in 1962.  It seems that most buyers opted for automatic transmissions in their 60’s tanks, but lucky for us this one comes equipped with a column shifted manual transmission. 

The inside of this W110 can be best described as un-restored – which means that the bearskin dash cover is hiding any number of dashboard anomalies.  The seats look nice, but the door cards need a thorough cleaning or replacement.

Overall not a bad way to spend $9k on a classic car – and love the 50s styling cues matched with 60s reliability and driving dynamics.  This car offers a ton of cool for the dollar, but it won’t wow you with its driving experience.  But if you are in the market for a slow, ill-handling, cool-looking vintage sedan, you could do worse.

See another Sand Beige tank:  tips@dailyturismo.com