A Classic Mercedes With The Same V12 Heart As A Pagani Is Even Cooler Than It Sounds

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Although you may have always been aware that the V12 that powers the Pagani Zonda comes from Mercedes, we don’t often talk about the German cars that the engine powered. And that’s a shame, because the SL73 AMG is an extremely cool car, and you now have the opportunity to buy one.

This rare example was recently driven by Chris Harris in a new video for Collecting Cars. Previously owned by the royal family of Brunei, this special SL73 AMG shows just 3,027 km (1,880 miles) on the odometer, making it a very attractive auction lot.

The central appeal is surely the 7.3-liter naturally-aspirated V12 under its hood, churning out 518 hp (386 kW/525 PS) and 553 lb-ft (745 Nm) of torque, making it a true monster in its day, and it’s no slouch even by today’s standards.

Read: Will You Sell Your House For This Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series?

The same V12 was eventually, and famously, chosen to power the Pagani Zonda. However, initially, the supercar only received the 6.0-liter variant of the engine, and it wasn’t until 2002 (three years into its run) that the big 7.3-liter version you see above made it into the Zonda.

That makes it all the more impressive that the lunatics at AMG decided to put this giant V12 in the nose of a Mercedes SL. Unfortunately, because of Britain’s trademark weather, Harris doesn’t have much of an opportunity to drive the car, but says that the engine’s torque is what impresses him most, adding that turbocharged engines just don’t do it quite like big, naturally aspirated ones.

Despite the low miles and the royal connection, there are some things that buyers made want to be aware of. According to the sales page, when this SL73 AMG arrived in the U.K., the paint was pretty bad, so it was recently resprayed. As noted in the video, some of the wood trim inside is also cracking.

However, with Harris calling it one of the five coolest Mercedes of all time, that’s unlikely to hurt the value too badly. Unfortunately, Collecting Cars does not provide an estimate for this SL73 AMG, but you can bet that it won’t go cheap.