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Flat door panels vs thick moulded panels

Started by gregdeklerk, 30 March 2007, 12:55 AM

gregdeklerk

Quote from: oscar on 01 April 2007, 05:23 AM
The only thing I don't like about the thick moulds is that there's a tendency to lean one arm on them which wears them down.  My driver's side is shiny with the fake leather grain almost nonexistent.

Is that why every Aussie I meet has a tanned right arm and a pale left!!

BAR

The 'flat' door trim was unique to SA built cars.  All models.

Maybe they just didnt have the tehnology at that time in the country to make the curved units?

gregdeklerk

No, my door panels are white not chocolate!! Rob, looks like my dumb ass jokes are just as bad!! ;D

Bandolero

 "The 'flat' door trim was unique to SA built cars.  All models.
Maybe they just didnt have the tehnology at that time in the country to make the curved units?
"

I wonder if the attitude of MB was the same as Australian makers in the 60's.

That is; "The buyer doesn't know about, (or need,) the flasher models as they won't know any better."

The attitude of the Australian makers to the Australian market in the 60's was; "It's only Australia, so they won't need the latest technology."

At least that is what it seems to me. Otherwise, why did we get very basic cars back then???

Hell, we thought a car with power-steering was luxury!! Let alone aircon.

We were in the dark about overseas cars, disc brakes were only on imported, expensive cars till the late 60's and even then most buyers didn't option for them on our local cars. (They were only optional back then.)

Russell Bond - (Adelaide, South Australia)
1978 450SEL 6.9 .... #5166 .... 12/78 (Sold.) [url="//www.ezycoat.com.au"]www.ezycoat.com.au[/url]

gregdeklerk

Bandolero, I think that is exactly it! MBSA never sold the SEL's, the 450's or the 6.9's here. The top of the range was a 350SE!!

Bandolero

#20
Yeah, that's the trouble about not living in Europe or the USA. The car makers don't care. Any old stuff will do for us. Cars with lower specs etc.

Although, after saying that, at least our 280 & 450 SELs had the rear headrests and the rear interior reading lights.
Russell Bond - (Adelaide, South Australia)
1978 450SEL 6.9 .... #5166 .... 12/78 (Sold.) [url="//www.ezycoat.com.au"]www.ezycoat.com.au[/url]

s class

BAR has stated that the thin door skins indicate a South African buitl car.  I'm prepared to accept that may be true, but there do seem to be a number of thin door skin 280S around elswhere in the world that we know of, such as Oscars and our brazilian contingent.  I can see that Brazil may have had their cars built in South Africa, but for Australia it seems less likely given their emissions requirement. 

Oscar, does your car have any indicatios where it may have been built?  If if came from our East London plant it would have had an aluminuim plate saying CDA with a build number rivetted on the cross member above the radiator.

Ryan


[color=blue]'76 6.9 Euro[/color], [color=red]'78 6.9 AMG[/color], '80 280SE, [color=brown]'74 350SE[/color], [color=black]'82 500SEL euro full hydro, '83 500SEL euro full hydro [/color], '81 500SL

Tomi

I have seen a European 280S here with the thin panels (the only 280S I've seen). All others have had the thick panels.

gregdeklerk

Quote from: s class on 04 April 2007, 01:53 AM
BAR has stated that the thin door skins indicate a South African buitl car.  I'm prepared to accept that may be true, but there do seem to be a number of thin door skin 280S around elswhere in the world that we know of, such as Oscars and our brazilian contingent.  I can see that Brazil may have had their cars built in South Africa, but for Australia it seems less likely given their emissions requirement. 

Oscar, does your car have any indicatios where it may have been built?  If if came from our East London plant it would have had an aluminuim plate saying CDA with a build number rivetted on the cross member above the radiator.

Ryan

Ryan, I thought of that, but if you remember, Oscar's car has self leveling in the rear and since no South African built car has this, I left it at that!

oscar

Hi guys, Ryan I hope your not at work and you can see these photos, they're imageshack ones, but here's pics of my plates/tags etc.  the first three are of the 280S, the next lot from the 350se.

click below
http://forum.w116.org/mechanicals/date-of-manufacture-for-w116-450sel/msg12046/#msg12046


I'm sure they're both German made ie they both have "22" on the plates - right hand drive, made with precision in the fatherland.
1973 350SE, my first & fave

WGB

Hi Oscar,

I thought the "22" in the code was RHD, Automatic and had nothing to do with the Fatherland.

LHD Auto is 12 and LHD manual is 10, RHD manual is 20

Bill

oscar

I thought you had me there WGB and I had to look it up to check
If First digit = 1 or 2 it's LHD and RHD respectively and both made in Germany
If second digit = 2 it's auto and 0 is manual as you say

For made outside Germany the first digit is 5 or 6 where 5 = LHD and 6 = RHD

I had to look up MBSpares info page to confirm http://www.mbspares.com.au/default.asp?d=18014&p=18013
1973 350SE, my first & fave

WGB

Never new that Oscar.

Thanks for the education.

It seems my ML is WDC1641752A208381

I assume the 52 is RHD non-German Auto.

Must find out what the A is.

Bill

oscar

It'd be handy if the A just meant USA but I don't know.  The MbSpares page does make mention of anomalies and changes where the logical progression of coding chassis goes wayward at a few points and I haven't read anything on the net on newer models.  Maybe that ML site Brian mentioned a while back  might have something.  By the looks of the old thread you already know about ithttp://www.whnet.com/4x4/
1973 350SE, my first & fave

WGB

Thanks Oscar,

I'll have another look around Wolfgang's Page but it tends to be mainly earlier series and the last time I looked it over it did not really have much about my wife's 2002 update model so wouldn't hold my breath for the 164.

Bill