MERCEDES-BENZ 280S/280SE

4-door 5-seater saloon.

First of famed seventies-style W116 S-Class cars, all on 113ins wheelbase, with rounded nose and tail, and suspension components already seen on 350/450SL sports cars. Semi trailing arm/coil spring rear suspension at last on S-Class car, giving impeccable roadholding. Manual or automatic to choice, power-assistance wherever ordered, and air-conditioning if you could afford it. Heavy at 3500lbs before adding extras, but 118/125mph flat out. Perhaps the safest, certainly one of the best-built, seventies motor cars.