Mercedes Benz 1000SEL AMG

Lummie · 08-18-2008, 03:34 AM

Hi i'm new to this forum and i'm thinking about asking my Father-in-law if i can restore his old Mercedes. I really don't know anything about this car at the moment but i've decided to post up some pictures of it for now. I'm not even sure if it is running. All i remember is seeing a similar car in a catalog back when i was in 7th grade (1987). If anyone has any more information about this car please let me know. Thanks

It says 1000SEL AMG on the back.

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BENZITCH · 08-18-2008, 11:45 AM

Any pictures of the motor and car?

I saw a SEC that had a 1000SEC badged on it in Elizabeth NJ Ferrari dealership years ago. I checked it out and it was the same as my 91 coupe motor.

I think the 1000 badges were not true MB badges or cars.

I could be wrong though so lets see what you are looking at.

Bruce

Untertürkheim · 08-18-2008, 06:15 PM

That appears to be a European model, probably a 500SEL since it is pre-86. Anyone here can run the vin to tell you what it was originally.

For some reason, I seem to remember that car...LA area?

Lummie · 08-18-2008, 06:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Untertürkheim

That appears to be a European model, probably a 500SEL since it is pre-86. Anyone here can run the vin to tell you what it was originally.

For some reason, I seem to remember that car...LA area?

Yeah it's in LA/ BH area. I'll try to get the VIN the next time i see the car.

Untertürkheim · 08-18-2008, 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lummie

Yeah it's in LA/ BH area. I'll try to get the VIN the next time i see the car.

LOL, it must be the same one. Besides the vin, you will need to find any paperwork explaining the modification, since that is not factory work and the vin will only tell you how it left the production line.

Lummie · 08-18-2008, 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Untertürkheim

LOL, it must be the same one. Besides the vin, you will need to find any paperwork explaining the modification, since that is not factory work and the vin will only tell you how it left the production line.

Thanks for the info!

I'll dig thru the glove compartment for documents.

D93 · 08-18-2008, 08:50 PM

seems like you found your way on here already..

1st time i've heard of a 1000sel myself but i hope someone on here would shed some light to the answers you seek.. gl from your CB7t bro..

C43AMG · 08-19-2008, 09:23 AM

Here is what I found after a Google search :

You can do the math

Surfing the web looking for "1000SEL" I find the weirdest things and wildest stories. According to some the 1000SEL was fitted with 10 Litre engine. Some say it was an lengthened S-class stretched a 1000mm. Could it be a limousine that would be made on special order by Mercedes themselves? I'm sorry, some came close, but here's the truth.

The 1000SEL wasn't a Mercedes you could order at your regular Mercedes dealership. The 1000SEL weren't even made by the Mercedes-Benz company; the cars were aftermarket conversions made by coachbuilding and tuning companies like Kugok, Styling Garage and Trasco. Variations on the 1000SEL were even given names like 1001SEL (Gemballa), 5000GFG (GFG) and 5000SEL (Gemballa). Modified Mercedes SEC coupes were also given similar names but in stead of 1000SEL it was a 1000SEC.

So what exactly is a 1000SEL? Well, a 1000SEL-badged Mercedes could be anything. 1000SEL was just a badge on the trunk of a Mercedes and the contents were defined by the wishes of the customer. Some companies sold the 1000SEL separately so you could just order badge and slap it to the back of your 380SE Mercedes to make it look "the business". A real 1000SEL however was offered as a complete car with many high end modifications which will be mentioned in this article.

So where does the name 1000SEL come from? Well, somewhere in the early 1980s a Middle-East customer from Styling Garage ordered himself a heavily modified Mercedes 500SEL. When he received the keys he told the owner of the company, Chris Hahn, that his car was twice as good as a regular 500SEL and he'd like to have a different badge on the car. Well there you have it: 500SEL x 2 = 1000SEL. It should be mentioned that most of the 1000SEL conversions were sold to customers in the Middle-East.

A 1000SEC by the British company Vantagefield. The car was fitted with a luxurious interior including a TV and a VCR.

Exterior
The exterior of the 1000SEL could include many extras and options. More chrome, gold instead of chrome, paint instead of gold, new rims, bumpers, spoilers, skirts and a boomerang- antenna on the bootlid for the TV. All were options. In fact the badge "1000SEL" meant that anything was possible as long as you paid the bill.
One of the options offered by companies like ITS, Kugok and SGS was the so-called 600-nose. This new bonnet incorporated the style of the 600 Mercedes (W100) of the 1960's. Another option were to have the chrome parts sprayed in the car's colour or could be gold-plated (e.i. Kugok, SGS) or sprayed in a completely different colour (SGS).

Interior
A real 1000SEL Mercedes has a new interior. This interior should at least have a new upholstery, most likely in leather and preferably in white, creme or red. A centre console that runs through the whole car is also very important. This console was in most cases finished in the finest wood veneers and fitted with all kinds of compartments to store your personal belongings. A champagne cooler and a TV for the passengers must be included. High-end over-the-top HiFi-Stereo by Clarion or Pioneer were no exception.

Gemballa slapped this 5000SEL badge on a car that was made for Qusay Hussein, one of the sons of Saddam.

So there you have it, the 1000SEL was nothing more but sure nothing less than a superlative luxury vehicle, tailor made to the customers demands something the Mercedes-Benz factory wasn't able to make. It took another 20 years for them to invent the Maybach...

Copyright © 2005-2007 Bram Corts

markpgizmo · 08-20-2008, 01:32 PM

I seem to remember a white 1000SEL limo appearing in a Miami Vice episode as well

.

benzmodz · 08-20-2008, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by C43AMG

It took another 20 years for them to invent the Maybach...

Obviously that small detail was overlooked in favour of the article. I seem to recall that the Maybach was around quite a while before that.

printedflunky · 07-01-2009, 02:04 PM

The 1000SEL was made by a company in Slough called pullman coachbuilding company. i have the original set of sales brochures for the cars that they designed and 'upgraded'. the 1000 SEL had a stock 500 SEL engine with an extra 55hp tweeked out of it ( that was a big upgrade in 1983), as well as a supercharger option.

they also made a range of other cars in 1983 including a 6 wheel drive Range Rover with a 135 inch stretch, they also made a Mercedes Benz 500 SEL crystal which basically came with loads of cartier stuff in it and last on their sheets in 1983 was a merc 500 SEC typhoon which had a set of kevlar bumpers front and rear. I have googled the last car and have not seen any photos of it on line however it is the most over the top 1980's monstosity i think anyone could hope to see, the rear quarter panels are reminisent of the ferrari testarossa and there is air vents beside the front indicators.

If anyone is interested in some photos being posted up here please emai me and i'll put some on.

I hope that this sheds a little light on the situation. paul

harkgar · 07-01-2009, 10:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by printedflunky

The 1000SEL was made by a company in Slough called pullman coachbuilding company. i have the original set of sales brochures for the cars that they designed and 'upgraded'. the 1000 SEL had a stock 500 SEL engine with an extra 55hp tweeked out of it ( that was a big upgrade in 1983), as well as a supercharger option.

they also made a range of other cars in 1983 including a 6 wheel drive Range Rover with a 135 inch stretch, they also made a Mercedes Benz 500 SEL crystal which basically came with loads of cartier stuff in it and last on their sheets in 1983 was a merc 500 SEC typhoon which had a set of kevlar bumpers front and rear. I have googled the last car and have not seen any photos of it on line however it is the most over the top 1980's monstosity i think anyone could hope to see, the rear quarter panels are reminisent of the ferrari testarossa and there is air vents beside the front indicators.

If anyone is interested in some photos being posted up here please emai me and i'll put some on.

I hope that this sheds a little light on the situation. paul

Our friend should post a photo of the engine bay and let us scrutinize it. MB had not build a 10 liter engine in the last 30 years and if a modified V-8 engine in this car can easily be identified.

jmf003 · 07-01-2009, 11:09 PM

Most of the questions got sorted out in this thread: http://mbworld.org/forums/s-class-w1...9-1000sel.html

printedflunky · 07-02-2009, 06:38 AM

here are the first set of photos from the pullman brochure. they start with the 6 wheel drive range rover and go onto the 500 sec typhoon.

printedflunky · 07-02-2009, 06:40 AM

here are some more photos.

printedflunky · 07-02-2009, 06:43 AM

yet another set of photos.

printedflunky · 07-02-2009, 06:48 AM

this is the last set of photos, they are in a logical order but if anyone would like further clarification of the photos or write ups then i am more than happy to help.

08-19-2008, 09:23 AM	#8
C43AMG MBWorld Fanatic! Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: The Soprano State - NJ Posts: 5,088 Drives: 98 Black C43 , 00' C230K , 91 420SEL	Here is what I found after a Google search : You can do the math Surfing the web looking for "1000SEL" I find the weirdest things and wildest stories. According to some the 1000SEL was fitted with 10 Litre engine. Some say it was an lengthened S-class stretched a 1000mm. Could it be a limousine that would be made on special order by Mercedes themselves? I'm sorry, some came close, but here's the truth. The 1000SEL wasn't a Mercedes you could order at your regular Mercedes dealership. The 1000SEL weren't even made by the Mercedes-Benz company; the cars were aftermarket conversions made by coachbuilding and tuning companies like Kugok, Styling Garage and Trasco. Variations on the 1000SEL were even given names like 1001SEL (Gemballa), 5000GFG (GFG) and 5000SEL (Gemballa). Modified Mercedes SEC coupes were also given similar names but in stead of 1000SEL it was a 1000SEC. So what exactly is a 1000SEL? Well, a 1000SEL-badged Mercedes could be anything. 1000SEL was just a badge on the trunk of a Mercedes and the contents were defined by the wishes of the customer. Some companies sold the 1000SEL separately so you could just order badge and slap it to the back of your 380SE Mercedes to make it look "the business". A real 1000SEL however was offered as a complete car with many high end modifications which will be mentioned in this article. So where does the name 1000SEL come from? Well, somewhere in the early 1980s a Middle-East customer from Styling Garage ordered himself a heavily modified Mercedes 500SEL. When he received the keys he told the owner of the company, Chris Hahn, that his car was twice as good as a regular 500SEL and he'd like to have a different badge on the car. Well there you have it: 500SEL x 2 = 1000SEL. It should be mentioned that most of the 1000SEL conversions were sold to customers in the Middle-East. A 1000SEC by the British company Vantagefield. The car was fitted with a luxurious interior including a TV and a VCR. Exterior The exterior of the 1000SEL could include many extras and options. More chrome, gold instead of chrome, paint instead of gold, new rims, bumpers, spoilers, skirts and a boomerang- antenna on the bootlid for the TV. All were options. In fact the badge "1000SEL" meant that anything was possible as long as you paid the bill. One of the options offered by companies like ITS, Kugok and SGS was the so-called 600-nose. This new bonnet incorporated the style of the 600 Mercedes (W100) of the 1960's. Another option were to have the chrome parts sprayed in the car's colour or could be gold-plated (e.i. Kugok, SGS) or sprayed in a completely different colour (SGS). Interior A real 1000SEL Mercedes has a new interior. This interior should at least have a new upholstery, most likely in leather and preferably in white, creme or red. A centre console that runs through the whole car is also very important. This console was in most cases finished in the finest wood veneers and fitted with all kinds of compartments to store your personal belongings. A champagne cooler and a TV for the passengers must be included. High-end over-the-top HiFi-Stereo by Clarion or Pioneer were no exception. Gemballa slapped this 5000SEL badge on a car that was made for Qusay Hussein, one of the sons of Saddam. So there you have it, the 1000SEL was nothing more but sure nothing less than a superlative luxury vehicle, tailor made to the customers demands something the Mercedes-Benz factory wasn't able to make. It took another 20 years for them to invent the Maybach... Copyright © 2005-2007 Bram Corts __________________ No engine , no badge

08-20-2008, 01:32 PM	#9
markpgizmo Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Libertyville, IL Posts: 43 Drives: 08 ML350, 07 300c SRT8, 00 BMW 323i, AMG is next...	Miami Vice I seem to remember a white 1000SEL limo appearing in a Miami Vice episode as well .

07-01-2009, 02:04 PM	#11
printedflunky Newbie Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 5 Drives: volkswagen sharan vr6 R32	1000 sel amg The 1000SEL was made by a company in Slough called pullman coachbuilding company. i have the original set of sales brochures for the cars that they designed and 'upgraded'. the 1000 SEL had a stock 500 SEL engine with an extra 55hp tweeked out of it ( that was a big upgrade in 1983), as well as a supercharger option. they also made a range of other cars in 1983 including a 6 wheel drive Range Rover with a 135 inch stretch, they also made a Mercedes Benz 500 SEL crystal which basically came with loads of cartier stuff in it and last on their sheets in 1983 was a merc 500 SEC typhoon which had a set of kevlar bumpers front and rear. I have googled the last car and have not seen any photos of it on line however it is the most over the top 1980's monstosity i think anyone could hope to see, the rear quarter panels are reminisent of the ferrari testarossa and there is air vents beside the front indicators. If anyone is interested in some photos being posted up here please emai me and i'll put some on. I hope that this sheds a little light on the situation. paul

07-01-2009, 11:09 PM	#13
jmf003 MBWorld Fanatic! Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Ann Arbor Posts: 1,261 Drives: '03 SL55	Most of the questions got sorted out in this thread: http://mbworld.org/forums/s-class-w1...9-1000sel.html __________________ Lowest ET: 11.4 seconds Best Trap: 126 mph Mod list: VRP VR600 package (175mm crank pulley, 80mm TB, ECU tune, K&N filters, with Evosport shorty headers instead of VRP), PTE thermostat, Quaife LSD, SLR cams, VRP supplemental heat exchanger

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08-18-2008, 11:45 AM	#2
BENZITCH Super Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Mercerville New Jersey Posts: 724 Drives: 1991 560SEC Teal 1989 420SEL Ice Blue 1984 500SEC White	Any pictures of the motor and car? I saw a SEC that had a 1000SEC badged on it in Elizabeth NJ Ferrari dealership years ago. I checked it out and it was the same as my 91 coupe motor. I think the 1000 badges were not true MB badges or cars. I could be wrong though so lets see what you are looking at. Bruce

08-18-2008, 06:15 PM	#3
Untertürkheim MBWorld Fanatic! Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 2,408	That appears to be a European model, probably a 500SEL since it is pre-86. Anyone here can run the vin to tell you what it was originally. For some reason, I seem to remember that car...LA area?

08-18-2008, 08:50 PM	#7
D93 Newbie Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 1	seems like you found your way on here already.. 1st time i've heard of a 1000sel myself but i hope someone on here would shed some light to the answers you seek.. gl from your CB7t bro..

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