Mercedes-Benz W114 - History

History

The W114/W115 models were the first post-war Mercedes-Benz production car to use a newly engineered chassis, not derived from preceding models. The new chassis format of semi-trailing rear arms and ball-joint front end, first displayed in the W114/W115 chassis would be used in all new Mercedes passenger car models until the development of the multi-link rear suspensions of the 1980s. The W108/109 S-Class chassis of the 280S/8, 280SE/8 and 300SEL/8 (and W113 280SL Pagoda) would be the last of the low-pivot swing axle and king pin/double wishbone front ends. The next S-Class -the W116 chassis- having the same engineering of the W114/115.

The W114/W115 models replaced the W110 Fintail models stemming from 1961, and were themselves replaced by the W123 series after 1976.

The Mercedes-Benz W114/W115 was the mid-sized saloon model for Mercedes, positioned below the S-Class. Mercedes also launched its first 5-cylinder diesel engine OM617 in this chassis. It followed heavily in the direction set by the W108/109 S-class, which was launched in 1965 and heralded the new design idiom. The car was designed by French auto designer Paul Bracq who was chief designer at Mercedes-Benz for models from 1957 to 1967, a period that included models such as the Grosser Mercedes-Benz 600. Bracq was also responsible for BMW designs (1970–74) and Peugeot designs (1974–96).

The W114 received a facelift in 1973 - with a lower bonnet-line, lower and broader grill, a lower placement of the headlamps, A-pillar treatment for keeping the side windows clear, ribbed tail lights to minimize occlusion of the tail lights with road dirt, and larger side mirrors. The interior received inertia reel belts and a new padded steering wheel with a four-hole design.

Mercedes introduced a coupé variant in 1969 carrying the nameplate '250C/CE' or '280C/CE' and featuring a longer boot hood and a 2.8 litre six-cylinder engine. It is considered by enthusiasts to be one of the finest classics of the 1960s and 1970s, although this is not reflected in the prices of these cars which is generally less than its more popular contemporaries the Mercedes SL R107/C107 roadster and coupé (1971–1989) which featured the 3.5 or 4.5 litre V8 under the hood, and only a fraction of price commanded by the Pagoda models (1963–1971). While a 'hard-top' unlike the fully convertible SL, the pillarless design allowed all the windows could be lowered completely for open air motoring. Only 67,048 coupés were manufactured from 1969 to 1976 (vs. 1.852,008 saloons). Of these 24,669 were "280C" and "280CE" (top of the range), and 42,379 were the lesser "250C" and "250CE".