On early Sunday morning, practically 70 Mercedes-Benz SL convertibles lined the Alpine, New Jersey, boat basin against a picturesque Hudson River backdrop.
In colours ranging from traditional black to uncommon inexperienced, with gentle and exhausting tops, the R129s, a luxurious convertible produced from 1990 to 2002, drew proud homeowners who peered through home windows, in contrast value tags, and swapped tales.
Owners socialize and speak about their vehicles to others at the Alpine Boat Basin during Sunday’s classic Mercedes R129 roadster fanatic meet-up in Alpine, N.J. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
“I’m the black 600 over there,” one attendee announced, pointing to his refurbished, two-seater whip.
“Oh, no s**t,” another replied.
But this wasn’t just any automobile meetup.
Although admission was free, attendees had to apply in advance, submitting images of their prized rides to occasion host Andrew Glaser for a spot at the unique gathering devoted to the Mercedes-Benz R129 SL, adopted by a scenic group drive.
Mercedes R129 proprietor Sofia Kayumova, from Brooklyn, walks around trying at other homeowners’ vehicles. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
Many of the chosen lovers were in their 30s and 40s, half of a rising wave of collectors turning childhood automobile obsessions into grown-up indulgences — and fueling a modern-classic automobile increase in the course of
Auctions and on-line gross sales of collectible vehicles surged 10% to $4.8 billion in 2025, according to classic-car insurer Hagerty. A 2024 survey by the firm discovered that 60% of Gen Z respondents were in proudly owning a traditional automobile, practically twice the share of child boomers.
Andrew Glaser (L) and Nev Shulman (C) pay attention to Frank Tamayo (R) speak about his Mercedes R129 SL320 roadster. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
For Nev Schulman, a 42-year-old New Yorker at the moment three vehicles deep into his Mercedes fashionable traditional obsession, who co-hosted Sunday’s occasion alongside Glaser and Aum Bhatt who runs the deal with 129mocha, the enchantment is easy: it’s the grownup toy he can truly afford now.
The automobile fanatic stumbled across his blue hardtop Mercedes on Facebook Marketplace earlier this yr while purchasing for a good friend’s fortieth birthday current. But when his good friend’s spouse handed on the supply, he couldn’t resist fulfilling a childhood dream.
“I’ve always wanted this car,” Schulman instructed The Post. “These are the cars I grew up with, and they were so expensive, but now I can afford it,” he said, describing his newest acquisition for $6,000, with 72,000 miles on the odometer.
Nev Shulman (R), one of the two organizers of the occasion, seems to be at the 1997 Mercedes R129 SL500 owned by Tony Dinkins, of Stamford, Conn. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
Tony Dinkins wiped down the hood of his hunter-green R129 hardtop as attendees gathered to admire the uncommon colour of his 1997 mannequin.
The 38-year-old who drove from Stamford, CT, instructed The Post he purchased the whip two years in the past for $12,000 after a lifelong search for the automobile he’d coveted since childhood.
“I used to watch MTV; this car was in Tupac’s “Picture Me Rollin’” music video,” Dinkins gushed.
With 114,000 miles on it, Dinkins has painstakingly restored his only fashionable traditional himself after watching YouTube movies.
Vintage Mercedes R129 roadster lovers meet at the Alpine Boat Basin in Alpine, N.J., before driving up to Harriman State Park in New York. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
The automobile, which represented peak standing as a child, is only his summer time, warm-weather flex, with a Jaguar as his workhorse.
For Andrew Glaser, 40, who organized Sunday’s gathering, that nostalgia is driving huge enterprise.
The founder of Vantage Auto, a New Jersey dealership specializing in fashionable classics, and proprietor of Mercedes restore store Wolfgang’s in Tenafly, said demand for the R129 has surged as millennials and Gen Xers with disposable earnings search out the vehicles they grew up admiring.
Glaser posing in his automobile. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
“It’s relatable to people, and that’s why they’re going after them,” Glaser instructed The Post. “Their grandparents had one, and their parents had one, and they’re also incredibly built cars, superbly engineered, amazing cars.”
Standing in entrance of his black hardtop with a pink leather-based inside, Glaser defined the increase, estimating he’s offered dozens of these fashions not too long ago and noting that some fashions once scooped up for around $10,000 can now fetch $60,000 to $70,000 in glorious situation.
Owners {photograph} vehicles after arriving at Harriman State Park in New York. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
“Let me sell you nostalgia and really cool stuff,” Glaser said, summing up the enchantment of the burgeoning market.
And the obsession is no longer confined to the conventional boys’ membership of automobile accumulating.
The Wall Street Journal not too long ago chronicled the rise of the so-called “hot girl car,” with modern younger ladies embracing beat-up classic Broncos and other old-school SUVs as unlikely standing symbols.
Owner Jonathan Stiles (R) drives his Mercedes R129 with his good friend Tracen Gullette (L) at the Alpine Boat Basin. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
Glaser has observed the shift firsthand. At a latest automobile occasion in Newport, Rhode Island, he estimated that at least half the individuals approaching his enterprise were ladies.
The development mirrors a broader nostalgia craze, from the revival of early-2000s designer purses to Gen Z’s fascination with movie cameras, flip telephones and other analog relics.
Even New York City, hardly identified as a automobile lover’s paradise, is now ripe with modern-classic lovers.
“In New York, people are meeting at six, 7 a.m. downtown in Soho and parking their cars on the streets to meet up,” Glaser said. “It’s thriving.”
Toney Dinkins, of Stamford, Conn., drives his 1997 Mercedes R129 SL500 roadster away from the Alpine Boat Basin in Alpine, N.J. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
For many, the enchantment goes beyond aesthetics. As new vehicles become more and more dominated by touchscreens and computerized controls, older fashions supply a more analog driving expertise.
“Everything was about new, new, new, and now people [are] like, wait a second, hold on, maybe we want what used to be,” Glaser said.
Back at the boat basin, a fleet of R129S adopted one another in their prized rides, forming a practically 70-car procession that snaked alongside winding roads toward Harriman State Park.
“This is my last day to drive it with the top off,” one proprietor remarked.
But judging by the lengths these collectors go to rejoice their automobiles, a little chilly climate is unlikely to put the brakes on their obsession.
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