If this car could be obtained for the right price, it could be a good donor for the powertrain. It's a 1969 model, so unencumbered with emissions crap (my car was also a 1969 model). Starting in 1970 they started putting emissions crap on the cars, including the removal of the distributor vacuum advance mechanism. They also lowered the compression ratio, added emissions-control relays, and gasoline vapor-recovery in the trunk. I always loved the little rubber port set neatly into the rear fender, behind the bumper overrider, on my 1969 car that vented the fuel tank pressure directly to the atmosphere !!
1968 and 1969 cars are most preferable, at least to me. It's too bad to see this, as there are very few viable 6.3s out there these days, but as with our E500Es, every one that goes down, elevates the value of the survivors. Seeing as only 6,526 of the 109.018 model were even made, with perhaps a couple of thousand survivors if that, these cars are really starting to go up in value. I sold my car for $18,000 some 10 years ago, with absolutely no issue.
All this said, the E500E is a far better car than the 300SEL 6.3 in every conceivable way.
