In the latest issue of C&SC we get to the bottom of an age-old question: is the Mercedes-Benz W113 genuinely sporty? Mick Walsh takes the pick of the bunch – the 280SL – for a trip along the south coast of Spain from Malaga to Marbella to find out, and discovers it’s a much better driver’s car than many think.
Alastair Clements, on the other hand, is driving a car that’s visceral driving experience was never in doubt, but it wasn’t unquestionably loved like its stablemates. Ferrari’s 550 Maranello was said to look too much like a Toyota Supra, but with a quad-cam V12 and 479bhp it went like a Ferrari should. It's something of a bargain now, with prices starting below £35k. Meanwhile, it has the traditional manual gearbox and polished gate, but none of Ferrari’s latest electronic trickery save for three-stage traction control.
Something that has absolutely no electronic trickery is the Wolseley-Siddeley racer – it revs to only 1800rpm, but leaves moderns in its wake nonetheless. Our Deputy Editor James Page finds the vintage machine is more at home in the wet “because Edwardian racers were built to slide”, as he rides along with owner Ken Prichard Jones.