Mercedes-Benz 280 SE 3.5 Cabriolet

Mercedes-Benz Heckflosse

The "Fintail" (German: Heckflosse) was a series of luxury cars produced by Mercedes-Benz from the late 1950s to the mid-1960s. Though never officially designated as such, the cars gained the nickname because of the distinctive rear-end which incorporates small tail fins, thought to be an understated attempt to appeal to the United States market at the time (with their outrageously finned cars, such as the Cadillacs and Buicks of the times).

Models

The fintail models consisted of three basic platforms:

+ W111 - Standard 6-cylinder luxury cars, introduced in 1959
+ W112 - Ultra-luxurious variants with air suspension, introduced in 1961
+ W110 - Cheaper, 4-cylinder models with a shortened hood, introduced in 1962; "Kleinflosse" in German

As is standard practice for most automobile manufacturers, several different engine combinations and interiour trim options were applied to the basic platforms, to create many different models.

Second Series (1966-1968)

The second series was introduced into production in August of 1965. The large W112 models were no longer needed since the W100 limousines were well-established by then, though the coupe and convertible continued in production for a few more years. The 300SE sedan model was now to be found in the brand new S-klasse series, W108/W109.

All engines were refreshed at this time, with the W110 190 giving way to the 200, 200D and 230 and the W111 220b/Sb/SEb making way for the 230S sedan and 250SE/280SE coupe and convertible.

1965–1968 230S sedan - model W111
1965–1967 250SE coupe - model W111
1965–1967 250SE convertible - model W111
1968–1971 280SE coupe, convertible - model W111
1968–1971 280SE 3.5 coupe, convertible - model W111
1965–1967 300SE coupe, convertible - model W112 (luxurious version, with air suspension)
1965–1968 200 sedan - model W110 (cheaper, 4-cylinder variant)
1965–1968 230 sedan - model W110
1965–1968 200D sedan - model W110 (diesel version)

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia.