The Mercedes Benz Entries
Mercedes Benz, who had been out of competitive motor sport for several years, did not enter a works team. But they did prepare three private entries. This was done by former Grand Prix driver Karl Kling who headed a nucleus of competitions department at the Mercedes factory in Stuttgart, Germany. Kling and his men bandaged the competing cars' fuel lines, duplicated electrical circuits, fitted long-range fuel tanks and extra lights, larger wheels and sump guards. One seat was replaced with a box for spare parts with foam rubber on top to make it a passable bed..

Two of the privately entered Mercedes went for the normal high compression Mercedes engine, gambling on having high octane fuels. Ex-racing driver, Innes Ireland went for a lower compression order, keeping in mind that the fuel along the route might not always be suitable for the Mercedes. The crews of these cars were trained to adjust the ignition and drive with a light throttle to prevent pinging when they were forced to use poorer fuel.
Alan Sawyer
The privately entered Mercedes 280 of Capt. Fred Barker was the second 'roo casualty. "My co-driver, 'Nipper' Dollar was driving at the time," Barker said. "The bloody thing ran in front of us, then leapt right in our path. There was nothing we could do. Nipper didn't even have time to go for the brakes. We were doing 90 mph at the time and the Roo just slid underneath. It was a big bastard. It would have broken our windscreen for sure if it had been thrown upwards."

The Mercedes raced into Southern Cross (WA), where Baron Hushke von Hanstein, Porsche's competition manager set his men to work to pull the roo bar back into shape and ease the radiator into place. Barker lost 20 points into Marvel Loch and another at Lake King.

Before dawn, Lake King, a tiny settlement on the western edge of the Nullarbor Plain, was ringed with campfires as more than 3,000 people waited to cheer the Marathon cars. The spectators, who had driven from as far as Perth, had turned Lake King into a tent town for the occasion, but they also blocked the back route into control and cost several drivers precious minutes while they searched for a way back onto the main track.

Incredibly 19 cars were late across the Nullarbor as the pounding of the Western Australian special sections caught up with them. Innes Ireland, Mike Taylor and Andrew Hedges in the works Mercedes succumbed to the radiator problems which had claimed all but one Merc in the Marathon. Faulty mountings, unknown to the drivers before the start, moved the radiator straight back onto the fan under heavy vibration.

Ireland radioed to a Mercedes support plane which dropped a replacement to him. Journalist Max Stahl, sidelined by the same problem in the Buchanan-Michaelson Mercedes, stopped to help - but Ireland lost the statutory 1440 points for arriving at Ceduna after the control had closed. He was not heard of again until Sydney.

Stahl and his co-drivers bought a stock Ford Falcon in Perth and criss-crossed the Marathon to Sydney with the Marathon number 35 1/2 on their door. "We were determined to see it through even if our car didn't," Stahl said.

At Port Augusta the retirements of Innes Ireland and the Jackson - Chambers Lotus left 67 cars in the Marathon.

Another Mercedes retired, car 28, near Brachina. The Mercedes 280 SL of Dr. Alex Gorshenin hit a rock, badly damaging the gearbox and sidelining the gallant two-seater. Gorshenin and his co-driver Ian Bryson, a Vietnam tank driver, had fought valiantly in their near standard car to get that far with a loss of only 191 points - not bad for two amateurs who only wanted to get home.
John Smailes.
There were four privately entered Mercedes Benz in the Marathon.
Two were from Australia and two from the UK.

Car 26 M.J.C. Taylor Gt. Britain Mercedes 280SE M.J.C. Taylor
Car 28 A. Gorshenin Australia Mercedes 280SL A. Gorshenin
Car 32 Capt. F. Barker Gt. Britain Mercedes 280S Capt. F. Barker
Car 35 R.A. Buchanan-Michaelson Gt. Britain Mercedes 280SE R.A. Buchanan-Michaelson
Car 62 D. Praznovszky Australia Mercedes 200D  D. Praznovszky
Information below kindly provided by Andre Ritzinger

MERCEDES-BENZ 280 SL - 1968

This SL series was introduced in 1963 at the Geneva auto show as the 230 SL, based on the 220 SE sedan. At the end of 1966 a bigger engine was fitted, making it the 250 SL, which was the more modern unit from the 250 S sedan. For model year 1968 the engine was once again enlarged, thus creating the 280 SL model. The 280 SL was built till 1971, when it was replaced by the new 350 SL model. Since then the SL-series transformed from sporty and elegant to big and luxurious and lost most of its youthful appeal.

Very characteristic about the SL hardtop was its "hanging" style roof: the middle surface was lower than the edges over the doors. Because of the looks of the hardtop, especially from behind, this SL-series was called the "pagoda" model.

The car was designed by Paul Bracq with a lot of attention to detail. Only 23,885 cars were built with the 2.8 litre engine.

The 280 SL was more aimed at cruising along the autobahn or driving around the city than at being a sports car. The interior was finished with vinyl (standard) or leather (optional) upholstery and carpeting in a corresponding colour. Remarkable was the use of wood veneer on the console between the chairs and on top of the dashboard behind the windscreen. These remnants of the past looked a bit out of place in this otherwise clean-cut sports car.

Compared to the somewhat complicated dash of the 190 SL this one is a wonder of simplicity; logically and ergonomically placed controls replaced the vast array of switches and knobs.

There was also a 2+2 which had an additional small row of seats behind the front seats. Only small children could sit there because of the lack of leg room.
The front seats were ergonomically formed bucket seats. The frame of the front window was strengthened so it could do as an roll-over bar, but only in combination with a fitted hardtop. The Pagoda-style hardtop was a patented design by Béla Barényi (head of Mercedes-Benz development at the time) and could endure a 1,000 kg load without deforming.

In December 1967 a 2778 cc engine was fitted, producing 170 hp at 5750 rpm, this engine is shown above. These engine revisions were mainly for torque and were synchronous to the engine changes in the mid-range sedan line. Top speed remained about the same, ranging from 185 to 195 kph. All engines had a mechanical fuel injection system.

The first 230 SL weighed 1295 kg and the last 280 SL 1360 kg, so they were rather heavy for sportscars. Top speed and acceleration (0-100 kph in between 10,5 to 9,3 seconds) weren't spectacular, but the car could maintain a comfortable high cruising speed for a long time, making it an ideal Autobahn-express (with the hardtop mounted).

The measurements of the 280 SL. In short: length is 428,5 cm, width is 176 cm and height (with hardtop) is 132 cm. The boot volume of 0,34 m3, that's 340 litre, very small indeed.
Car 32 Gt. Britain entry a Mercedes 280S with Capts. F. Barker, D.G Dollar and J.H Lewis
Photo courtesy autopics.com
Car 28 the Australian entered Mercedes 280SL owned and driven by Alex Gorshenin
Arrival in Fremantle Port, Western Australia
Photo courtesy Brian Lemon
The Gorshenin / Bryson Mercedes in Australia
Photo courtesy John Smailes and David McKay
Car 62 driven by Desmo Praznovszky, Stanislav Zovko and Ian Inglis from Australia, in their Mercedes 200D
Photo courtesy John Smailes and David McKay
Mercedes 280 SL engine
Photo courtesy André Ritzinger
MJC Taylor
The first car to reach New Delhi and an enthusiastic reception, was car no. 26, the Mercedes 280 SE driven by Innes Ireland with Mike Taylor and Andrew Hedges.
Photo courtesy Alan Sawyer
Innes Ireland
Photo Daily Express Magazine
Alex Gorshenin in Teheran, looking wary as he is being led to the restart line by an armed soldier.
Photo courtesy John Smailes and David McKay
Melbourne businessman Desmo Praznovsky limped into Norseman after shattering the vulnerable radiator of his Mercedes 280 in a ditch.

"There was nothing we could do, we just went straight into it," the burly Praznovsky said. Praznovsky and his co-drivers Ian Inglis and Stan Zovko accepted a 131 point loss and stormed off across the Nullarbor.
John Smailes

Desmo Praznovsky's Mercedes was the only Mercedes to finish the Marathon, they lost a total of 455 points and finished in 26th place.
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Two great books written by Innes Ireland on his two Marathons from London to Sydney
Car 26, the Innes Ireland, Mike Taylor and Andrew Hedges works Mercedes. Pic taken at Norseman prior to crossing the Nullarbor Plain.
Photo courtesy Autocar and Jon Mauleon