70 300SEL 6.3 Restoration

[jbrasile]

Hi guys,

Since the 108/109 Forum is not exactly "on fire" I thought I'd post this subject here for everyone to enjoy, comment, etc....

Back in 2009 we helped a client procure and import a 300SEL 6.3 into Brazil. After searching around and looking at several cars all across the US we settled for a 70 in DB462 Tunis Beige Metallic with a dark brown interior, a sunroof (rare) and burl walnut finish on the dash and doors.

While the car was in fair condition it did need quite a bit of attention but it is mechanically sound with a rebuilt engine, upgraded a/c compressor, practically zero rust etc... We bought the 6.3 from Star Motors in Endicott NY, perhaps one of the best known dealers/restorers for M-100 powered cars in the States.

The transmission is being rebuilt as of this writting and the front and rear suspensions are being completely overhauled with all new bushings, tie rods, etc... Luckily the car already has 4 new air bags installed as well as working suspension valves.

Here are some of the pictures of the project from the day we purchased  to today.

Hope you enjoy the post!

Tks,

Joe

Car still in NY state just coming out of storage.









Ready for the trip down to South America



Dissasembly begins, engine/trans out







Interior coming apart









Engine parts sand blasted, hardware zinc plated, nice...









Body work begins



















After all the body was restored using absolutely zero filler, priming began













Finally we have some color!!!











Car out of paint booth







Time to start detailing the front and rear suspensions, here is the rear









Assembly begins









Parts, parts and more parts....





Polished body shell

[hi ho]

My God you do some magnificent work Joe
Sandblasted and re-plated bits are so cool

Can I ask how much this is going to cost?

[jbrasile]

Well, it does get expensive, especially because labor rates and costs in general have skyrocketed in Brazil.

So far we are running probably around US$50k, body and paint alone are costing  25-30.

We still have to do all of the interior, wood restoration, etc.... Chroming and plating is simply outrageously expensive down here, almost US$3000.00 just for the bumpers!

All of the aluminum moldings, etc... is being polished and anodized, they are NLA from MB.

This car is getting a set of 5 15inch Bundt cakes with V rated Michelins, wheels already purchased from the Classic Center and currently stored in the LA warehouse only waiting for the right time to make the trip down, hehehe...

All in all it  has been a very satisfying project .

Tks,

Joe

[CraigS]

We are somewhat lucky "down under" as we got sunroof's and aircon as standard, so it was a case of deleting the option if you didn't want them, and that of course meant a long delay while the car was special ordered from Stuttgart.

The 6.3 restoration that was done by Sleeping Beauties in Brisbane (http://www.sleepingbeauties.com.au/mercedesbenz1971.html) I believe cost in the region of A$150,000. Unfortunately, soon after the restoration was completed, the owner died and, as far as I know, has been tied up in the estate for the past several years.

[1980sdga]

Wow, that is simply amazing! 

[s class]

You have a cool job, Joe.  Thanks fro sharing. 

[TJ 450]

Very nice to see... That's a top notch job indeed.

Tim

[Big_Richard]

I think you have the best job on earth Joe.

[nathan]

that is awesome, thanks for sharing as i know it takes ages to post such a number of pics.
dads 'goldie' silver 6.9 resto hit well into 40+ grand territory. money down the toilet really and the final result whilst very nice, is not as good as an original!
anyhow, we had good family fun on the adventure last several years.

[adamb]

I was curious about how much a restore like that cost in Brazil. I was a little surprised that it's so much because I would have expected labour costs to be significantly lower than here in the UK. Either way, the end result is magnificent.

[Big_Richard]

the brazil labor costs seem to be the same as those in Australia now. I wonder if it gets passed down to the employee though, or if the employers are simply charging a lot more than they used to.

Damn, no sending cars to south american classic centre for a restoration for me 

[1980sdga]

Fuel injected V8 with a straight rear axle!  I love the horn ring!

All those knobs across the dash...  What's the rectangle on the left side of the steering wheel beside the vent? Clock maybe?

I see it has a Becker but it doesn't appear to be period correct   

[jbrasile]

Yep, some costs here are par with Germany if not more, the price of plating/re-chroming for example is simply ridiculous....

Employees are making more than say 5 years ago, but I don't believe their salaries are in line with what shops are charging, and that's what really frustrates us, we know prices should be a lot cheaper based on what techs make but they are not.

Brazil is going through an economic boom right now and the cost of living in general is higher than the US and many countries in Europe so we just have to deal with this situation the best we can and use common sense in order not to loose control of the costs in projects like these

Tks for all your comments, I thought you guys would enjoy seeing this "saga".

Jon, the rectangle next to the lh vent is the clock since on 6.3's the tach is located between the main gauges where the clock usually goes.

The radio is obviously not period correct, just an  awful Grand Prix  from the 80's.... I am sourcing an Europa from e-bay or Becker USA, the car came with one from the factory.

Today I spent part of the afternoon in the shop organizing more parts to be zinc plated, anodized etc... there is also the issue of some firewall grommets that didn't come in yet, etc, etc.... it is almost never ending, hehehe....

I will post some more pictures later tonight, we have door handles installed as well as hood springs.

Tks,

Joe

[1980sdga]

The plating is really what makes the restoration.  The Germans seemed to love cadnium plating, I've noticed lots of what appears to be cad plated components all over my car. It actually reminds me of aerospace construction more than automotive! The cad plated bolts/hardware look so sweet against fresh aluminum!  (US cars of the same period had mostly black oxide bolts I believe. Plus a lot of stamped steel.) 

The pics of freshly plated parts are amazing!  Do you guys really have the hose clamps re-plated or are those new?

Anyway, super attention to detail Joe!  I like the sound of "Europa" 

[jbrasile]

I agree, the box of plated nuts and bolts looks "yummy" hehehe....

I had the clamps zinc plated they are not new.

Tomorrow I am going to pick up all of the aluminum + the bumpers which we had stripped first, then we will remove any dents and have them re-chromed.

Joe