Citizen Khan's Merc - now with nude content!

[Peter C]

I lost sleep last night worrying how things will turn out today but it turns out there was no need.

 

Mid afternoon the Boxster flew through an MoT, now with 13 months ticket.

 

 

Met with the old Merc owner at 4:30pm, the car was looking quite splendid in the afternoon sunshine.

 

 

Deal done, £200 handed over and in return I got the motor and a very old logbook. The seller is only the second owner, he's had the car since October 1990.

 

 

Recovery man arrived and the car was loaded on without any fuss.

 

 

Mo (the recovery truck driver) seemed a decent guy but I guess it's in his nature to blow himself up in the name of ISIS. I stayed well clear of him.

 

 

15 minutes later the Merc was being unloaded outside my house. Sorry, no pez station photo on route.

 

 

New (third) proud owner.

 

 

My wife is not overwhelmed about the idea of having a rotten W123 parked on the lawn outside the house but I think it makes a lovely ornament.

 

 

First thing I removed was the Becker Europa radio cassette player, which will be finding its way into my 230E. Needs a good clean but it looks intact.

 

 

Tomorrow I will give it a spit and polish, the driver's door window needs putting back up, the Merc bonnet badge needs refitting and the interior needs a clean.

 

The car is properly rotten, there's no point in trying to fix it up. However, the bumpers, headlights, rear lamps and front indicators, grille, glass, chrome, badges, wheel trims, some panels, bits of the interior, ancillaries, engine, gearbox, diff, steering box (which has absolutely no play whatsoever), brake calipers (not seized!) and various other bits are worth ££££.

 

I'll update this post tomorrow with more detailed photos. The patina needs to be seen to be believed!

[hauserplenty]

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[richardmorris]

They call it mellow yellow!

[Jazoli]

Your BMW is a fine looking conveyance and I've been eyeing up Boxsters as they are getting affordable for a cheapskate like me, the Merc looks suitably grim and a complete contrast.

[Peter C]

The 4 series is my wife's car, it's ok but does nothing for me. She can't moan about my habit as her car has cost us more than double what my entire fleet is worth and everyday it's worth less, whilst my assets gain in value. I need to do a complete fleet pic. Maybe tomorrow.

[Captain Mainwaring]

It's a shame if it's properly borked as apart from those few patches of rust on the rear quarter that looks a straight enough old bus. 

I reckon if you parked it in a 'display' kind of way (ie, parked diagonally across the lawn, front wheels turned to the side slightly) then it would genuinely look like an ornament and you should keep it just where it is. Your wife will grow to love it and it will definately not* piss off your neighbours.

[Lord Sterling]

Hey this is great! Shame it's borked, I was gonna ask you to lend me this car to drive around Sparkhill one day.

[Peter C]

I will take pics tomorrow, but trust me, the rot is severe. The nearside rear quarter has parted from the structure due to terminal rot, sills are bad, floorpans will be fucked as the car has been parked up for years with the driver's window down... No chance of starting it, the fuel pump has seized.

[garbaldy]

if you leave it there it will definitely speed up the weekly grass cut.

[spartacus]

Worth it for the pictures and collection thread, a good read!

I'm with the majority, keep it as a lawn ornament, most of the parts you're taking off won't affect how it looks, you'll be the envy* of your street.

[Noel Tidybeard]

Hey this is great! Shame it's borked, I was gonna ask you to lend me this car to drive around Sparkhill one day.

 

hey thats racially stereotypical

[hauserplenty]

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[Peter C]

The aftermath. Enjoy these pics over your cornflakes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Peter C]

I am putting this forward as a prime contender for the 2016 worst condition car purchased by an AS member. First prize, to be awarded on New Years Eve, is a full professional restoration funded by you guys.

[Vince70]

Junkman found a nice merc in the eBay tat thread that would look equally at home in the garden which makes yours look rust free..

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1973-Mercedes-280-se-Auto-W116-Spares-Repair-or-Scrap-No-Reserve-190-DHT-/172128777306

The only bit on it that looks usable is the AA badge.

[Peter C]

Whoever buys that will beat me to first prize!

[garbaldy]

Oh don't worry about that yours will soon look like that too,

You could be onto a winner though do as little as possible to get it an Mot and sell it for thousands to people who like to sand of the paint.

[Liggle]

My dad would love this, he's fond of the 'garden car' method of car storing

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[billyboy406v6]

That's beautiful, shame its rotten, leave it in the garden as a symbol of your Autoshite credentials ?

[LC Torana]

Drat.

 

19 posts, and still no Isis.

 

False advertising, grumble mutter tsk

[eddyramrod]

I've seen 123s like this being used as daily drivers in Cyprus!

[hauserplenty]

The pic of the muffler tied to the bumper is one for the calendar, I believe. I will vote if I CBA. If not I just did.

How can parts off that car be worth anything??

Autoshite. Some folks buy lawn jockeys, others...

[Junkman]

Quality.

[Peter C]

Update. Having spent six hours tarting up the old girl it now looks like this:

 

The floorpans are 100% solid, which is quite amazing.

 

 

 

 

 

I've cleared out all the loose shit out of the interior and cleaned off the mould from the driver's seat. It's still damp, hence it looks shit but actually it came up ok.

 

 

 

 

The I gave the bodywork a spit and polish.

 

 

 

 

The fucker gleams again, for the first time in years!

 

 

T-Cutting and polishing this rusty rear quarter made me feel quite peculiar. I can't remember exactly but I must have been hallucinating at the time.

 

 

I'm in two minds about what to do with this car. I don't have the time to restore it, plus I already have a mint W123, but breaking it seems like an unfair ending to the life of this fine old automobile.

 

Rear quarter and rear end generally aside, the bodywork isn't bad for a W123, I guess the first owner was right about not ticking the sunroof box on the spec sheet. The interior has great patina and with a little (ok, alot) cleaning would last another 30 years. With 114k on the clock, the M102 engine is just about run in whilst the four speed manual transmission is bulletproof and will go on forever. Clutch and brake hydraulics seem to be working fine.

 

Hmmmm. Goes off to ponder.

[Peter C]

Drat.

 

19 posts, and still no Isis.

 

False advertising, grumble mutter tsk

Ehh?

 

See fourth from top Merc related photo for evidence of ISIS suicide bomber in action.

[Captain Mainwaring]

Fuck me! I don't know what I'm more amazed by, how rough it was or how it looks now after you've caressed it a bit. She scrubs up really well.

I say restore it! Looks like a hell of a lot of work but as you said, she deserves it after braving years of neglect and they're definitely thin on the ground these days. 

[brownnova]

That's too good to break surely!!

[spartacus]

Mammoth restoration thread in the making,

Amusing writing style... Check

Total wreck parked on lawn... Check

Light evenings on the way... Check

C'Mon, you know you want to.

[eddyramrod]

Roffle?  One of us (not me) might be prepared to take on a restoration if a: they can weld and b: they've only got the price of a ticket invested.

[Timewaster]

Why the hell would you polish a scrapper?

 

Does not compute.