How good a Mercedes C123 can look after 45 years of light duty in Switzerland, on sale now

Most of us would be tempted to call this model the W123, after the much more familiar body code of the sedan. But here we are dealing with the Coupe version, which had the index of C123 and which was produced in much smaller numbers. In fact, if almost 2.4 million sedans were produced, then 99,884 coupes were produced, so just under 100 thousand.

The coupe was launched in 1977 at the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland, and was meant to continue the brand's tradition of graceful coupes. Even if the front part looked identical to the sedan, the coupe was actually shorter, even the wheelbase being 8.5 cm smaller.

The car we are talking about today was among the first products, even in 1977, its first year of production, and was bought in Switzerland. It's a 280 CE, which means that under the hood was the M110 in-line 6-cylinder, 2.8-liter engine, which developed 177 HP and 234 Nm.

The car was as dynamic as possible for 1977, being able to reach 200 km/h, but the acceleration was more leisurely, in Mercedes style, with 9.9 seconds to the first hundred of km/h. The engine was one with Bosch K-Jetronic injection, by the way, not with a carburetor.

Well, the car we're talking about today was exploited from 1977 until recently in Switzerland, in the hands of two owners, who drove it extraordinarily little. They must have had other cars in their collection, because otherwise it would be a shame not to drive a good car more on the wonderful routes with great views in Switzerland. But this Mercedes has only 103 thousand km accumulated on the odometer (so less than 65,000 miles) and on the file of invoices from the technical services performed for 45 years.

And that means that, at 103 thousand km, this Mercedes model designed to last millions of kilometers, has barely done its break-in. And her appearance, which denotes her recent visit to a detailing workshop, gives us the impression that she has either traveled back in time, to the present day, or we have all teleported back to 1977.

The aesthetic aspect of the car is simply flawless, in the smallest detail, from the condition of the chrome or the exhaust pipe, to the clarity of the headlight glass.

And if we open the door and take a look inside, we will almost believe that the pictures were taken in 1977, when the car was new. Only then there were no digital cameras that could reproduce the image so faithfully.

It's surprising how good everything looks, from the leather to the wood inserts. Probably whoever will be lucky enough to buy this Mercedes will feel like they are driving a brand new car.

And the technical condition promises to be just as good. So good, in fact, that the Belgian company assigned to sell this Mercedes also offers a full 1-year warranty, just like a new car.

How much is this Mercedes-Benz, both classic and new? They are asking 27,500 euros, a more than decent price given its transparent history and condition. Will it be the conditions under which the cars are operated in Switzerland that are responsible for this state or the two Swiss owners, who have been nurturing it? It is certain that this car could give sparks of passion to many lovers of classic Mercedes!