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Back in a W116 again...'78 450SEL arrived!

Started by Zaxxon, 12 March 2016, 09:54 PM

Jed

Hmm. Its leather.

I guess I am not looking for just an OK result so I better do it right.  I will call GAHH tomorrow and see what they can offer.

I was thinking that all the pressure from the new pad will hold the felt strips in place, but I can definitely see how the pleats will flatten out...

I wonder how well a new replacement leather would look/match the existing leather (dark blue with 50k miles) if I were to just replace it?

thanks!
1979 Mercedes 6.9 #5206 - restored
1979 Mercedes 6.9 #6424 - ongoing restoration
1976 Mercedes 6.9 #484 - restoration?

floyd111

These days there are excellent vinyl sprays available. You could decide to give the old leather 2 coats, and the new leather 1 coat.

rumb

thanks for the info, that explains why the old rear seats always look flat. I didn't realize there was a felt strip that provided the cushioning for each ridge.
'68 250S
'77 6.9 Euro
'91 300SE,
'98 SL500
'14 CLS550,
'16 AMG GTS
'21 E450 Cabrio

Jed

Well I called GAHH this morning. There technical support guy was very familiar with the problem of the disintegrated moslin backing on the seats however they do not offer any services to repair my back seat cover.  He suggested that an experienced auto upholstery shop should be able to do it. So I went to 4 trim shops in town  (detroit) today.  The first three had no experience or desire to touch it.  The fourth said it could be done but did not want to because they could not resew in the same leather holes and rightfully thought it would not look good to lay down a second stitch in each pleat.  If they were to do it they estimated a cost of $600!

GAHH will sell a new rear seat lower cover for around $750.  (of course then there is the color/pattern mismatch)

I think I will try some other shops out west Ive heard of. Veterans Trim?
I would be thankful for any recommendations or experiences others may have had...
thanks!
1979 Mercedes 6.9 #5206 - restored
1979 Mercedes 6.9 #6424 - ongoing restoration
1976 Mercedes 6.9 #484 - restoration?

Zaxxon

And the saga continues...just got off the phone with the classic center, and a new windshield seal is on the way. $112.20 is a great price. Also, in case anyone was wondering, a new windshield is $425 from the classic center, I will however be using my existing one, since it's pretty good, but I got the quote anyways since there was a misunderstanding at first that I would need the windshield and not the seal ;-)

So, anybody have any words of wisdom on removal and replacement? My current seal is basically stone dry and cracked apart into one inch segments or so...
---
Mercedes: '99 CL500, '86 500SEC, '96 SL500, '06 R500, '02 ML320, '78 450SEL
Porsche: '80 928S 5-Speed, '86.5 928S RogerBox '86.5 928S 5-Speed, '83 944
Others: '84 Callaway Alfa Romeo GTV6, '83 Tiara, '87 FZ

rumb

Quote from: Zaxxon

So, anybody have any words of wisdom on removal and replacement? My current seal is basically stone dry and cracked apart into one inch segments or so...
/quote]

That would be this link from just a few months ago:
forum.w116.org/interiors-and-exteriors/removal-and-replacement-of-the-windshield-116-280se/msg124666/#msg124666

Search button is your friend!
'68 250S
'77 6.9 Euro
'91 300SE,
'98 SL500
'14 CLS550,
'16 AMG GTS
'21 E450 Cabrio

revilla

Below, great video/tutorial done by one of our org members.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4hAT0aSIyM

Regards

Robert

Peter

Lots of great tips here, very interesting video.

Harv

1980 300SD
1983 240D
2000 E55 AMG
2002 G500

karmann_20v

Quote from: revilla on 04 April 2016, 03:39 PM
Below, great video/tutorial done by one of our org members.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4hAT0aSIyM

Regards

Robert
Useful? It's an understatement. But damn, now I understand why so many so called "professionals" botch the W116 windshield install. I am so not looking forward to doing that, but I need to  :o

Harv

Don't end up like this schmuck. (aka me)

1980 300SD
1983 240D
2000 E55 AMG
2002 G500

karmann_20v

I thought it was you but wasn't sure, Harv! That is the reason I want to try it myself before the "pros" destroy a new OEM seal, windshield, or even worse: the trim... I need to remove the sunroof assembly for servicing anyway (and the roof liner and other interior trim pieces), so I think I'll do everything in one shot. Pray for me!

Zaxxon

That video is SO helpful. I have done the procedure on a C123 once before, and it seems very similar. The advantage was that back then I was still home in Germany and a good friend and great mechanic who owned a shop over there helped me with it. This will be my first solo-adventure in it. Well, I will have a helper, but solo as in the one having to figure out how to do it right :P

Thanks for all the input so far! Thing is, I have over the last few weeks read literally every (so I thought) post that had anything to do with the items I am doing to the car in the mechanics section, but definitely missed the one with the video. That was a good amount of work to make, but certainly came out awesome!

--Zax
---
Mercedes: '99 CL500, '86 500SEC, '96 SL500, '06 R500, '02 ML320, '78 450SEL
Porsche: '80 928S 5-Speed, '86.5 928S RogerBox '86.5 928S 5-Speed, '83 944
Others: '84 Callaway Alfa Romeo GTV6, '83 Tiara, '87 FZ

ptashek

Quote from: karmann_20v on 04 April 2016, 07:33 PM
Useful? It's an understatement. But damn, now I understand why so many so called "professionals" botch the W116 windshield install.

I can attest to that :)
My restorer followed this video to the tee, and there was no drama involved.
They also mentioned that the new seal is an absolute bitch to get in. Nothing like anything they've seen before.
1993 "Pearl Blue" W124 280TE
1988 "Arctic White" W124 200T
1979 "Icon Gold" W116 450SE

floyd111

Without passing judgement on the windshield seal pricing at any location, but, did it arrive in an MB-Box?