What is the greatest Mercedes ever produced ?

Okay, lets roll with this and write whatever pops out of my head. 500E, Pagoda, 300SL Gullwing, W123, S-class, G-wagon, SL, can't think of any others straight off. I can imagine that some of you guys are steaming. What you mean you left out....
So lets look at the list. The 500E is one of the ultimate Q cars, this car is something for the person who wants to go unnoticed. But with the knowledge that should you wish to breath on the throttle you will just explode down the road. Such a low key car, yet such a capable car. The flared arches are the only indicator that this is no normal mercedes. I remember reading an article about the 500e in Road and Track I think years ago, this was an american model, in california I believe, the journalist spoke about its effortless cruising ability. I remember thinking that it was a cool car and that in UK we werent so hot on emissions so it should go even quicker. Today you can find a decent one for about £12,000 or so. Probably worth a trip to Germany for a good example.
The Pagoda, its not a car that I know a huge amount about. But I do know that its a car which has come into a renewed vogue over the past few years. Quite a few have been bought by celebrities, Chris Evans had one, Kate Moss and a few others. There is a specialist who has made a tidy amount restoring these cars and pumping up their values. I appreciate the clean lines of these cars and they are a car which looks at home doing the Kings Road run. It is a cool car and one for cruising about in. From low £20s up to even £40,000.
The 300 SL Gullwing Mercedes this car is known as the Gullwing because of the way in which the doors open upwards, the doors were necessary because the intricate chassis which meant that meant conventional doors would not have allowed access. As a result the doors give the Mercedes an impressive presence whent he doors are open. This would have added to its appeal when new and also differentiated it. Today these cars are £200,000 plus and rising. Does anyone remember the Mercedes with the big V8 stuffed in the Cannonball Run that was pretty cool, wasn't running a Mercedes engine though.
The W123 and still going, this car really cemented Mercedes reputation for producing robust cars that just run and run. The w123 can still be found giving service. I like the shape of these cars. Its a well proportioned design. BMW has given us a modern version of the Mini. Dodge is bringing us the Charger and Challenger, Chevrolet is giving us back the Camaro. How about a modern W123. We know Mercedes quality has taken a bit of a battering in recent years. Couldn't a modern take on the W123 be whats needed ? I love these cars. Surely from a marketing point of view, a new W123 would be square in the grey market age group, just like the Camaro etc. Just a thought.
The S-Class the favoured transport for the great, good and naughty. If it was good enough for Saddam... But on a more serious note, as the adverts used to say "welcome to S-Class, how are you travelling" this car has always been ahead of the game. When it was first introduced, it had many features that just werent standard on many cars and which were not to become standard until many years later.
G-Wagon, Jamiraqua, put one in his pond, how he managed it I am not sure. Not really a big hit here. But they do have a sort of cult image for being a bit different. G500 is the one to have. One of the big pulls of these cars, is that they are still a rare sight on UK roads. I havent seen one for at least 5 months.
The SL, I know i touched on the Pagoda. I want to write about the 72-88 third generation one. This car has class, full stop. A car which you could take anywhere. The build quality, the refined styling. I think they are fab.
So what is the greatest Mercedes Benz ever ? For me at least its the W123 model. I like its looks, I like the fact that I could drive it around London in comfort, that its strong enough to take a ding or two and just keep going. Its tough. Its a cars car. It hasnt been designed by a group of accountants.