SOLD: 1990 W124 300E - new owner's adventures

[chaseracer]

New fuse fitted. Front passenger window: sorted. Driver's window: still u/s.

 

Investigations continue...

[dollywobbler]

I know the rear switches tend to pack up if you ignore them for a fair while. Perhaps the driver's switch is a bit duff as well. If there's a short in the switch, could be why the fuse blew.

[chaseracer]

Aye, pretty certain it's the switch. ShedReg checked everything with the door card off & the motor seems OK. Wonder if I can bodge in a switch from the XM parts store...?

[chaseracer]

OK, switch removed; now to test. Might pop into the Merc dealer while in Stafford tomorrow, find out how much a new one is. Just for shits'n'giggles, like...

[chaseracer]

Thirty-four quid, apparently - brand new. And, for that price, flown* directly from Stuttgart on Dr. Dieter Zetsche's personal Learjet. Hmmm, we'll see.

 

In other news, 30 sheets invested in a full interior valet reveals that the upholstery is in fact BLUE!  Dolly may well have been transporting sheep (pun not intended*) or something, and a previous owner was clearly such a heavy smoker that I suspect he could have spontaneously combusted in the car...

 

[chaseracer]

BANG!!

 

Graunch...

 

FECK!!!

 

 

This was the sequence of sounds which could be heard this morning as the Merc's gearbox ate itself, fortunately not too far from home. Currently, it sits at the side of the road where it died, awaiting my return with the man from Britannia Rescue.

 

Ian, I think you dodged a bullet on this one, mate!

[Tetleysmooth]

 

BANG!!

 

Graunch...

 

FECK!!!

 

 

This was the sequence of sounds which could be heard this morning as the Merc's gearbox ate itself, fortunately not too far from home. Currently, it sits at the side of the road where it died, awaiting my return with the man from Britannia Rescue.

 

Ian, I think you dodged a bullet on this one, mate!

And me. Phew

[dollywobbler]

Good grief. Certainly had no clues that something like that was going to happen! This is the man who chucked £120 of welding work at it before flogging it for less than he paid for it. If it is bean tins, don't forget that the nearside rear caliper and rear discs are practically new.

[doug]

Might be worth checking the half shafts between the diff and rear hubs. I thought the gearbox on mine had died only to later find out one of the shafts had sheared in half. It looked ok from underneath but the only thing holding it together was the rubber boot.

[dollywobbler]

That has been discussed elsewhere. Autos don't generally tend to graunch I don't think (not that I'm an expert on auto transmissions!). 

[Tetleysmooth]

Apparently, these autoboxes are almost bombproof, unlike the later Mercs, in which the 'boxes seem to be made of cheese.

No electronic trickery in these old 'uns, so it could well be another part of the drivetrain gone tits up.

Hope so mate.

[Sigmund Fraud]

Good grief. Certainly had no clues that something like that was going to happen!

 

It would be quite rare for the gearbox to just die like that... They usually become increasingly clunky and remain like that for years before eventual failure to proceed.

 

So I agree that another part of the drivetrain is more likely to have given up the ghost : driveshafts ? diff ?

[chaseracer]

It's back on the drive. I'll have a grope underneath later.

 

And then I'll check the car!

 

<..badum-tish>

[chaseracer]

Well, the Mercedes is up on axle stands, ready for diagnosis by someone who understands these things. However, this operation has revealed that, under all that smart body cladding, the jacking points and sills appear to be made of something resembling cornflakes.

[Tetleysmooth]

 

Well, the Mercedes is up on axle stands, ready for diagnosis by someone who understands these things. However, this operation has revealed that, under all that smart body cladding, the jacking points and sills appear to be made of something resembling cornflakes.

 

 Bad news chap. Sorry to hear.

[dollywobbler]

Oh dear. It wasn't just the rear subframe mounts then? They're now solid at least!

[chaseracer]

Win some, lose some, friend.

 

It's an old car, innit?

[dollywobbler]

Very true. Me and Mr Smith have been trading 'fails' after our Golf/BX exchange. The joy of sub-grand motoring! Am surprised about the sills, mainly because I took it to an actually-pretty-good place for the MOT and he commented on how solid it was. Though I think that rubber underseal can hide nasties - as I discovered when I started peeling it off around the subframe mounts...

[chaseracer]

I'll get ShedReg to have a look when he gets back off his hols.  Initial tests show the box turning the propshaft the appropriate way in D and R, but neither drive wheel moving at all. The clattering when going into P is still there.

 

Diff...?

[dollywobbler]

Any odd noises when you turn the rear wheels by hand? It'll clatter when going into P if the propshaft was moving at the time.

[chaseracer]

Diagnosis: fractured offside halfshaft!  Shouldn't be too difficult...

[Faker]

Diagnosis: fractured offside halfshaft!  Shouldn't be too difficult...

That's a result! Not terminal then. Least you will have it back on the road for little dosh.

[Angrydicky]

My dad's W124 was also hiding fairly bad sill and jacking point rot behind the sill covers as well, took them off once and they went straight back on! Incredibly not only did it always pass the MOT's but three years later it's still on the road (M399MYN). Must be a weak point on them, and everyone raves about how great German cars are!

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Quite a troublesome motor this innit, doesnt seem to have ben very successful for any of its owners

[HMC]

Yeah those sill covers hide a multitude of sins. Even really clean examples usually have some corrosion there. Blame the 89 facelift. and from 93 ish the water based paints on all mercs.

[Junkman]

Will Mercedes ever build cars again that at least are on the quality level of Fiat?

[dollywobbler]

Indeed not Mr Bollox. Needless to say, I prefer not to look at the expenditure during my ownership vs sale price! It is still a bloody nice way to waft around though. Apparently, it shouldn't wear that cladding as it was only fitted to later ones. My guess is that it was upgraded more for its hiding skills than the aesthetics. I stood underneath this car during the MOT back in March (IIRC) and we both commented on how solid it was! 

[Tetleysmooth]

 

Diagnosis: fractured offside halfshaft!  Shouldn't be too difficult...

If you have any thoughts about moving this on, you know who's door to knock on first

[chaseracer]

Because I like a laugh as much as the next shiter, I popped into the Merc dealer in Stafford this morning just to see how much an OEM shaft would be. The term is apposite, and I'm glad I was sitting down at the time...

 

£817.20!!!

 

But... the very helpful old-school parts guy had spent 20 minutes on the phone to Germany, gave me a copy of the car's full original build spec sheet AND pointed me in the direction of a good driveshaft remanufacturer in Wolves.

[Sigmund Fraud]

Mercedes are legendary for being able to supply even the smallest, most obscure bits for their older models. When I had my 260E, I would turn up at the parts counter with a random number, and three days later an (expensive) OEM part would have arrived, straight from the Fatherland.

 

Last time I called the local Volvo dealership for a part, I was told it had been 'ages' since they sold 700/900 series parts and I should try 'a motor factors or a vehicle dismantler'. And this is for cars that were made until 1998 and are supposed to have a survival rate better than any competitor. Rubbish !