Jump to content

Jaypee's 300td Merc - Unbearingable.. 23/07/21.


320touring

Recommended Posts

Was entertaining* trying to get any sort of weld on the metal* of the wing. But it is attached, and it is solid. Much better than what was almost there before.

My work was rough as arses, and no doubt @GingerNuttz is crying with laughter!

However, as @jaypee says, it's now solid and a lot less "pull me" than the silver gaff tape.

I do like this big old bus - so dont mind spending some time on it.

 

Will need to buy a grinder for the other side - should make the cutting and welding (plus tidying) much easier.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 320touring changed the title to Jaypee's 300td Merc - Winging it again.. 08/05/21.

So, the bold Merc has developed an incontinence issue.... 

Screenshot_20210511_220104.thumb.jpg.c481bde96dfe52e88f357cbb7bfd0c9d.jpg

After much head scratching, and a little culinary and nasal testing, it was deemed to be diesel..... Where from though??  Also, thank flip it wasn't suspension fluid 😂

I had been out assisting a mate with a Tigra that had a stuck on handbrake, large hammer to the rescue! 

Got home after dark, and decided to have a look under the bonnet to see if I could see what the issue was.. Started at the passenger side, working round the fuel filter, all dry... Then round to the driver side and the diesel smell grew stronger, nothing quite like diesel leaking onto a hot engine to clear the lungs.. 

The culprit:

 

A quick rummage around found some vac line in a similar dimension, so that was employed for a temp fix! 

https://youtube.com/shorts/spQAb9xWjx0?feature=share

Screenshot_20210511_220115.thumb.jpg.99af8e0b34f77951f93b1bedf2673e7c.jpg

Not the best pic, but you can see how wet it looks, also its a bit gubbed! 

Tune in soon for more exciting content! 

Also, pretty happy it was a simple issue! 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 minutes ago, Lacquer Peel said:

Always worth replacing the leak off pipes as a matter of course on old diesels.

Definitely.  Every XUD I've owned has had a meter of leak-off and a new stop-end thrown at it as soon as I've opened the bonnet.  They leak for a pastime and I'm sure that's a lot of the reason why people say old diesel engines always smell.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

26 minutes ago, Lacquer Peel said:

Always worth replacing the leak off pipes as a matter of course on old diesels. Glad it was an easy fix. Nice to see this back on the road. 

Cheers dude, I have a replacement leak off pipe kit en route, so it shall be done post haste! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 minutes ago, Talbot said:

Definitely.  Every XUD I've owned has had a meter of leak-off and a new stop-end thrown at it as soon as I've opened the bonnet.  They leak for a pastime and I'm sure that's a lot of the reason why people say old diesel engines always smell.

Indeed! This had been fine, but failed spectacularly, so hopefully the new hose will be here soon! 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So, last weekend we decided to attack the other front wing... It was, as predicted, decidedly worse than the passenger side... 

However, we did have a grinder this time, which certainly helped. 

First off... The tape! 

Screenshot_20210512_000100.thumb.jpg.0fbcc117a4d276707bd08e31e638827b.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000117.thumb.jpg.38b351f4d8215512ffb04d9ba5ee3087.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000143.thumb.jpg.ed846edb59ab65cede36e33095056fc4.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000948.thumb.jpg.7427d38187715b40fd6baf0d038fb9a4.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001003.thumb.jpg.634bcab4e8a0f3707926b373f0fd8cf8.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001019.thumb.jpg.cf3c1ebdd1752135f0950958a2efa8d0.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000130.thumb.jpg.cc24a7f20ba4499b5d8693c2eed2667a.jpg

Only a small* hole here..... 

Up next is to tidy up the abovementioned hole and the rest of the arch. 

Screenshot_20210512_000937.thumb.jpg.63bfea32315ecc1469d383f72411b7ad.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001032.thumb.jpg.2f12d08931f110ec867e9560e9107777.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001046.thumb.jpg.53427525eb79e654549c19afbbb9f8c5.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001113.thumb.jpg.12429e374b368c3098531034b0f4d988.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001140.thumb.jpg.0e8cbad157c3054e9599113f582ab09a.jpg

This left us here... 

Screenshot_20210512_000208.thumb.jpg.82354a13a7f16f86dc8853593e3fa44c.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000224.thumb.jpg.8b3cdd175d93b25a2710f4b2815f127b.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000253.thumb.jpg.c5a9ba7bc3a288a818282ff8c3ec30a1.jpg

Next up, time to make a little patch to sit behind the wing, weld it in (by me 🙄) , and allow us to fill it. 

Screenshot_20210512_000306.thumb.jpg.3598c4d77dece76d3ae13d13d7f649d0.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000334.thumb.jpg.60afb87f3cebbfbd1fa4701f24634f9a.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000404.thumb.jpg.fbed0a6672e230afa3b573b29c1b97c8.jpg

#flashdance

Screenshot_20210512_001124.thumb.jpg.5cb9497e5f7e624161dd0165b05bda9e.jpg

Faither Touring was in attendance, and was warned not to poke things.... 

Screenshot_20210512_000349.thumb.jpg.064a195396bcae190f14e19f382a6d62.jpg

Too late.... 

Ah well, it's only another little panel.... 

More to come 😊

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some more cutting, shaping and the rest, got us to this point. 

Screenshot_20210512_000415.thumb.jpg.3c259157cbb59ac34d95cf93ed9e005a.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000436.thumb.jpg.c4339083d6bb232f78f1f09b7c11e3e8.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000504.thumb.jpg.bf08357c985237e42f25f3ec1fc32c9a.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000535.thumb.jpg.3e432addc4deca30ce5a9ab3de576b04.jpg

Which, is certainly a lot more solid than earlier! 

Remember kids, always check where you are welding... Woops

Screenshot_20210512_000449.thumb.jpg.f94a917d829334e05bc26e0b13787630.jpg

That left us with the quandary of how to make the front of the arch. There was much conversation between @320touring, Faither Touring and me, we settled on a flat, curved panel, with some slits and a few folds. Hopefully the pics are more descriptive!

Screenshot_20210512_001209.thumb.jpg.b0a2dcdc749c1f4f47b29f2c52fd195d.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000609.thumb.jpg.e3263be5102998d88f1c0413ce7b96df.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001223.thumb.jpg.f5fa51c728f77df7e863c8a0422ea752.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000621.thumb.jpg.86bd052aed1d4b4c8e6f97ffd1248442.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001240.thumb.jpg.58f59a9df2849a9032e7b38667290824.jpg

This actually worked pretty well.. 

Screenshot_20210512_000648.thumb.jpg.c20a564aa70b24d562242d3caa3adc28.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000700.thumb.jpg.c431ffc42d34c52790afe4da8b96e1fd.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001311.thumb.jpg.33b3e54df631fd1dfdfdcaa36a82cf79.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001258.thumb.jpg.fffaf9c533408fe4d2f5c154cdaac702.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001342.thumb.jpg.c87e3c90941524004d73b824d432d5e1.jpg

After a little bit of trimming, it looked not too horrific! 

Then it was time to dress it up a bit, this made me happy! 

Screenshot_20210512_001323.thumb.jpg.fb41c95a5525c22e4b3e6221bfc19725.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

All the welding was done, apart from the additional hole provided by Faither, this turned out to be a hooooooor to weld due to the metal surrounding it being honking, which explains the ease of it's initial egress. 

Screenshot_20210512_000632.thumb.jpg.5df63a627d6226cbd1b5f782eac9f63b.jpg

The following 6 pictures condense what felt like eons of vactan, fill, sand, fill, sand, fill, sand, prime and heat into a bite size piece. Thanks to @320touring for the help here, as I don't have any patience for this part! 

Screenshot_20210512_001357.thumb.jpg.18a42924687873112ee115f677046be0.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000713.thumb.jpg.40dde6a48872b6a67704c80a80470abc.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000753.thumb.jpg.e35305b2c7989f4594ea7d12860ed2ed.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_001420.thumb.jpg.4bca560e715d6d481b4f694cfcb03361.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000846.thumb.jpg.d41758561acc84a2464edf55169dd705.jpg

Screenshot_20210512_000858.thumb.jpg.6c3d8d48d32ccb214b08fde91e8e3e30.jpg

Far from concourse, but a fuck tonne better than previous, and much more solid. The profile isn't quite right and there are some low spots. However, those are tasks for another day. 

Here's a relieved, but tired me as we prepared to exit the unit and head for a Chinese carry out 😊. It does look a bit like the merc has had a little too much 'beak' though 😂

Screenshot_20210512_000917.thumb.jpg.ca85eaa9c844b3325a20f0a6bc4a822f.jpg

I have the correct paint mixed and ready to be applied, once the fit and finish is better, although I have a little bit of work to do on the rear arch too. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

33 minutes ago, Conrad D. Conelrad said:

To this day you can see the marks in Aldi's carpark where the diesel return line failed on mine. 

Excellent work, there are a couple of new 'spots' in the flat car park now.... 🤣

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Passed an important milestone in this beast today.... 

Screenshot_20210524_235605.thumb.jpg.ab872b20faea6ccc2f5f3609efa052fe.jpg

A terrible picture, but 324,000 rolled over, as you can see, the hazards were on.... Thankfully not for me, but my mate's, new to him '68 plate Leon was playing up. Not entirely sure what was wrong, but much head scratching, and looking confused, managed to get it to stop the horrific noise it was making... He's only had it a couple of weeks, so advised him to take it back for a check up! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The long overdue leak off pipe replacement was carried out today! Nice and simple, a little footery, but it's done. The little blanking plug on the car didn't seem to want to leave, so, I left it where it was. 

Replacement parts. 

Screenshot_20210525_182636.thumb.jpg.b11a690330de48bb127236c7ee726ea1.jpg

Then, bonnet to 'service' position, I also refitted the hub caps. 

Screenshot_20210525_182646.thumb.jpg.ed5aa7994a65bbf148863e6d22ceafa8.jpg

Measure once, hack with Stanley* knife... 

Screenshot_20210525_182721.thumb.jpg.6bb5f4171884511c8d7b513adfc90bb6.jpg

Job, jobbed. 

Screenshot_20210525_182746.thumb.jpg.d275c2619d22c3c3991dd762b2b600c8.jpg

A quick check revealed no new leaks! 

Also, a handy passing neighbour assisted me in dropping the bonnet back down. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Life has a way of treating* you when you are being helpful.... My neighbour had some items to go to the local dump, so I offered to assist by using the merc... Double mattress loaded, a few other things too, then off to the dump... Small bits and pieces out, then, open the boot to get the mattress out... Oh. Boot is stuck... Home, and hot it open, bungees used to keep it shut. Mattress extracted, then boot doesn't close.

After a number of attempts to get the boot open, much jiggery pokery ensued, catalogued below means the catch is off and the boot is tied shut... 

Screenshot_20210530_075423.thumb.jpg.a60233032d0e0cbbbfe948dadd1d23b4.jpg

Screenshot_20210530_075434.thumb.jpg.a81eac448af94e96517c5f503d4f82f8.jpg

Screenshot_20210530_075447.thumb.jpg.64c8f4b4c4e3b5486bef35c05c54e366.jpg

Screenshot_20210530_075505.thumb.jpg.c277f089033d7bdb875a966bee902871.jpg

Screenshot_20210530_075517.thumb.jpg.3337c754615bd168cf48f2a35ccf4320.jpg

Screenshot_20210530_075529.thumb.jpg.ad43df3b268cbe02987f07da2f8ce9e5.jpg

Any hints or tips on how to remedy/clean/service the lock would be appreciated. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I’ve had two S124s and both had issues with the rear SLS. The first suffered from rusty pipes and the other from an excessive ride height regardless whether it was carrying a load or not.

Whilst neither car had any issues with the tailgate soft close mechanism, its sheer existence was enough to scare me.

As great as 124 estates undeniably are, I’m sticking with the Ws.

Apologies for the irrelevant contribution, I hope you manage to fix your lock mechanism.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 minutes ago, Peter C said:

I’ve had two S124s and both had issues with the rear SLS. The first suffered from rusty pipes and the other from an excessive ride height regardless whether it was carrying a load or not.

Whilst neither car had any issues with the tailgate soft close mechanism, its sheer existence was enough to scare me.

As great as 124 estates undeniably are, I’m sticking with the Ws.

Apologies for the irrelevant contribution, I hope you manage to fix your lock mechanism.

 

No worries dude, I am going to have a look later, now that I have had a sleep 😊

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Quick update on this... 

Having spent a load of time fucking about with this. I bit the bullet and ordered a replacement part for £80 delivered. 

Spent a few moments on Monday replacing it. 

Side by side

Screenshot_20210608_234831.thumb.jpg.9d9f4ed8dc410c113b01699834d7d095.jpg

Compare the motor positions. 

New. 

Screenshot_20210608_234850.thumb.jpg.edd5105735e8248c8d1ba5c6a074d649.jpg

Old. 

Screenshot_20210608_234911.thumb.jpg.b51388c5322c007e0348f1cc9ada1578.jpg

EXCITING CONTENT. 

https://youtube.com/shorts/fMUwF_sSpB8?feature=share

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The soft-close on these isn't essential.  If you move the motor back to it's normal "rest" position, the tailgate just works like a normal one and doesn't soft-close, but otherwise works like any other two-click position boot lock.  The last S124 I worked on had it unplugged, and it still worked (without the soft-close) just fine.

Usually they're very reliable.  Mine has only just started not engaging the motor sometimes, but with a swift tap to the tailgate does then engage.  It'll be a sticky/gummed up microswitch somewhere.  Other than the switch, they're as reliable as windscreen wipers... as that's essentially what the motor is.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...