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MB-Tex seat issues

Started by raueda1, 12 June 2021, 11:43 AM

raueda1

For some reason my 6.9 has MB-Tex seats.  I can't find leather or velour on the build card so maybe they're original.  Or maybe not - ???  In any case, on both front seats the foam padding on 1 of the ribs is too short so the channel is collapsed towards the rear (see pic). 

Does anybody know if this can be corrected without removing the whole seat and taking it apart?  I did that once to clean and lube the tracks and don't want to do it again.  Incidentally, at the time there weren't any broken springs.

That said, it might be worth it if the seat could be stiffened up on the sides.  They're fine in a straight line, very comfortable.   But during hard cornering the limit is falling off the side of the seat and hanging onto the steering wheel.  Maybe that's just how they are but stiffer side bolsters would make a huge improvement. Any suggestions or comments welcome.  Thanks and cheers,
-Dave
Now:  1976 6.9 Euro, 2015 GL550
Before that:  1966 230S, 1964 220SE coupe, 1977 Carrera 3.0

UTn_boy

What is the interior trim code on the data card? 
1966 250se coupe`,black/dark green leather
1970 600 midnight blue/parchment leather
1971 300sel 6.3,papyrus white/dark red leather
1975 450se, pine green metallic/green leather
1973 300sel 4.5,silver blue metallic/blue leather
1979 450sel 516 red/bamboo

raueda1

Quote from: UTn_boy on 14 June 2021, 04:39 AM
What is the interior trim code on the data card?
I wish I knew.  There must be something wrong with me, cause I've I've never really been able to fully decipher this stuff despite numerous searches. From what I understand:

Options plate:
931H = magnetite blue --> correct
532 = auto antenna w/o radio --> correct
592 = heated rear window --> correct
638 = elimination of warning triangle --> I have one but I might have installed it, can't recall
812 = rear speakers --> correct

Data card:
Ausstatung:  905 = ???  This is interior, right?  But can't find 905 anyplace
406 = SINGLE SEAT WITH ORTHOPAEDIC FRONT SEAT BACKREST, LEFT AND RIGHT  aka lumbar support?
532 = auto antenna w/o radio --> correct
592 = heated rear window --> correct
638 = no warning triangle
640 = aluminum disk wheels (Bundts?)  --> correct
665 = ???

Wenig gewuenscht (on data card)
206 = ???
233 = FOGLAMP WIRING FOR FRANCE, SWITZERLAND, AUSTRALIA, SWEDEN, NORWAY --> no idea about this
309 = LEFT TAIL LAMP WITHOUT REAR FOG LAMP --> no idea what this means
812 = rear speakers

Nowhere do I see a recognizable upholstery code.  The interior is palomino or light beige or whatever they call it.  What am I missing here?   :o
-Dave
Now:  1976 6.9 Euro, 2015 GL550
Before that:  1966 230S, 1964 220SE coupe, 1977 Carrera 3.0

Max-NL

905 is off-white velours.

1971 R107 350 SL
1972 W108 280 SEL 3.5
1975 W116 280 S
1975 W116 450 SEL 6.9 #140
1977 W123 230
1992 W124 230 CE
2001 Ducati Monster S4

raueda1

Quote from: Max-NL on 14 June 2021, 12:32 PM
905 is off-white velours.


Thanks much for solving that mystery.  Oh, what I'd give to have that velour again!  But now I got MB-tex, so I guess I've got a super-taxi, which isn't bad. 

Still, any thoughts on whether the foam can be inserted without taking the seat completely apart?
-Dave
Now:  1976 6.9 Euro, 2015 GL550
Before that:  1966 230S, 1964 220SE coupe, 1977 Carrera 3.0

UTn_boy

Quote from: raueda1 on 14 June 2021, 12:03 PM
Quote from: UTn_boy on 14 June 2021, 04:39 AM
What is the interior trim code on the data card?
I wish I knew.  There must be something wrong with me, cause I've I've never really been able to fully decipher this stuff despite numerous searches. From what I understand:

Options plate:
931H = magnetite blue --> correct
532 = auto antenna w/o radio --> correct
592 = heated rear window --> correct
638 = elimination of warning triangle --> I have one but I might have installed it, can't recall
812 = rear speakers --> correct

Data card:
Ausstatung:  905 = ???  This is interior, right?  But can't find 905 anyplace
406 = SINGLE SEAT WITH ORTHOPAEDIC FRONT SEAT BACKREST, LEFT AND RIGHT  aka lumbar support?
532 = auto antenna w/o radio --> correct
592 = heated rear window --> correct
638 = no warning triangle
640 = aluminum disk wheels (Bundts?)  --> correct
665 = ???

Wenig gewuenscht (on data card)
206 = ???
233 = FOGLAMP WIRING FOR FRANCE, SWITZERLAND, AUSTRALIA, SWEDEN, NORWAY --> no idea about this
309 = LEFT TAIL LAMP WITHOUT REAR FOG LAMP --> no idea what this means
812 = rear speakers

Nowhere do I see a recognizable upholstery code.  The interior is palomino or light beige or whatever they call it.  What am I missing here?   :o

Yes, 406 is lumbar support. 

Yes, 640 is Bundt wheels

Option code 665 is "Mode of packing VE I", which means it was shipped with 10 liters of fuel and and styropor coverings on the bumpers for protection during shipping.

Option code 206 is "Instruction manual and maintenance manual in Italian"

233 simply means that the front fog lamps were wired in such a way that they would only operate under conditions a particular country had set forth.  For example, only when the headlights are on or maybe they could be operated by themselves. 

309 Simply means that some countries did not allow rear fog lamps in the rear tail lights. Rear fog lamps were to be a separate fixture mounted away from the rear tail lamps.  Having a fog lamp integrated in to the tail lamp was viewed as unsafe by most of the world.  People would often think that someone was applying their brakes, but had one brake light burned out (since the right side tail lamp never had a fog lamp). 

Regarding your pleating issue.....the seat needs to be removed, taken apart, and the covering removed.  Afterward, grab a hold of the felt/wool pleat pad and pull is back in it's place.

Parchment velour is still available for W116 cars.  Please consider putting it back right one day.  The inside of a 6.9 is no place for MB-Tex or cheap vat dyed leather. 
1966 250se coupe`,black/dark green leather
1970 600 midnight blue/parchment leather
1971 300sel 6.3,papyrus white/dark red leather
1975 450se, pine green metallic/green leather
1973 300sel 4.5,silver blue metallic/blue leather
1979 450sel 516 red/bamboo

raueda1

Quote from: UTn_boy on 15 June 2021, 02:52 PM

Yes, 406 is lumbar support. 

Yes, 640 is Bundt wheels

Option code 665 is "Mode of packing VE I", which means it was shipped with 10 liters of fuel and and styropor coverings on the bumpers for protection during shipping.

Option code 206 is "Instruction manual and maintenance manual in Italian"

233 simply means that the front fog lamps were wired in such a way that they would only operate under conditions a particular country had set forth.  For example, only when the headlights are on or maybe they could be operated by themselves. 

309 Simply means that some countries did not allow rear fog lamps in the rear tail lights. Rear fog lamps were to be a separate fixture mounted away from the rear tail lamps.  Having a fog lamp integrated in to the tail lamp was viewed as unsafe by most of the world.  People would often think that someone was applying their brakes, but had one brake light burned out (since the right side tail lamp never had a fog lamp). 

1.  Regarding your pleating issue.....the seat needs to be removed, taken apart, and the covering removed.  Afterward, grab a hold of the felt/wool pleat pad and pull is back in it's place.

2.  Parchment velour is still available for W116 cars.  Please consider putting it back right one day.  The inside of a 6.9 is no place for MB-Tex or cheap vat dyed leather.
Thanks very for the clarification/confirmation.  It's very, very helpful.  As for Item 1, that's what I figured.  I was searching for a shortcut, as always.  And as for Item 2, that's great news.   It never occurred to me so I never looked.  When you say "still available" does that mean from MB?  Or some other source?  I agree with your comment on the MB-tex and returning it to original would be great! 

A final question.  The car has the remnants of the strap-operated lumbar support.  This seems to be a rather rare option and for the life of me I can't find any info or pix of what it had inside the seat.  As it is, the straps just connect to an odd sheet of fiberboard that flaps around in there.  No cushion or pad on it.   I'd assume that whatever was there was discarded when they installed the MB-tex.  Does anybody know what was originally in there?  This is starting to look like a great project when winter arrives and the car is in storage. 

Thanks and Cheers,
-Dave
Now:  1976 6.9 Euro, 2015 GL550
Before that:  1966 230S, 1964 220SE coupe, 1977 Carrera 3.0

BCK1963

as far as velour is concerned: Even though officially velour was standard and leather came as option I have been told by a german Mercedes guru that e.g. cloth could be ordered as well, along with all kinds of individual linings e.g. for the door plates. So, anything else than velour or leather may as well have been factory ordered. But certainly that should be reflected by the data card or options plate.
Apart from originality concerns, IMO velour fits best to that car :-)

I remember to have seen a drawing of the interior of the lumbar support but I have not yet been able to track it.  It is a kind of a wedge that is lowered and lifted by the strap and by doing so varies the pressure on the back.
Bernd

1976 Merc 6.9   Magnetit blue

raueda1

Quote from: BCK1963 on 17 June 2021, 01:18 AM1.
as far as velour is concerned: Even though officially velour was standard and leather came as option I have been told by a german Mercedes guru that e.g. cloth could be ordered as well, along with all kinds of individual linings e.g. for the door plates. So, anything else than velour or leather may as well have been factory ordered. But certainly that should be reflected by the data card or options plate.
Apart from originality concerns, IMO velour fits best to that car :-)

2. I remember to have seen a drawing of the interior of the lumbar support but I have not yet been able to track it.  It is a kind of a wedge that is lowered and lifted by the strap and by doing so varies the pressure on the back.
1.  And so the search begins........   :P  Guess I'll start collecting pix of velour interiors.

2.  Exactly.  I'll never find original wedges, but I'm happy to fabricate something if I had a better idea of dimensions and material.  I'm assuming some kind of open cell foam, possibly molded.  The fiberboard piece is still in place in the seat back and attached to the straps.  I vaguely recall that whatever was there was glued onto the fiberboard from its appearance.  There seems to be next to no information on this option.  More homework to do......     Thanks and cheers,
-Dave
Now:  1976 6.9 Euro, 2015 GL550
Before that:  1966 230S, 1964 220SE coupe, 1977 Carrera 3.0

UTn_boy

Quote from: raueda1 on 16 June 2021, 12:31 PM
Quote from: UTn_boy on 15 June 2021, 02:52 PM

Yes, 406 is lumbar support. 

Yes, 640 is Bundt wheels

Option code 665 is "Mode of packing VE I", which means it was shipped with 10 liters of fuel and and styropor coverings on the bumpers for protection during shipping.

Option code 206 is "Instruction manual and maintenance manual in Italian"

233 simply means that the front fog lamps were wired in such a way that they would only operate under conditions a particular country had set forth.  For example, only when the headlights are on or maybe they could be operated by themselves. 

309 Simply means that some countries did not allow rear fog lamps in the rear tail lights. Rear fog lamps were to be a separate fixture mounted away from the rear tail lamps.  Having a fog lamp integrated in to the tail lamp was viewed as unsafe by most of the world.  People would often think that someone was applying their brakes, but had one brake light burned out (since the right side tail lamp never had a fog lamp). 

1.  Regarding your pleating issue.....the seat needs to be removed, taken apart, and the covering removed.  Afterward, grab a hold of the felt/wool pleat pad and pull is back in it's place.

2.  Parchment velour is still available for W116 cars.  Please consider putting it back right one day.  The inside of a 6.9 is no place for MB-Tex or cheap vat dyed leather.
Thanks very for the clarification/confirmation.  It's very, very helpful.  As for Item 1, that's what I figured.  I was searching for a shortcut, as always.  And as for Item 2, that's great news.   It never occurred to me so I never looked.  When you say "still available" does that mean from MB?  Or some other source?  I agree with your comment on the MB-tex and returning it to original would be great! 

A final question.  The car has the remnants of the strap-operated lumbar support.  This seems to be a rather rare option and for the life of me I can't find any info or pix of what it had inside the seat.  As it is, the straps just connect to an odd sheet of fiberboard that flaps around in there.  No cushion or pad on it.   I'd assume that whatever was there was discarded when they installed the MB-tex.  Does anybody know what was originally in there?  This is starting to look like a great project when winter arrives and the car is in storage. 

Thanks and Cheers,

No, not from Mercedes.  It's available from a few places in Europe, nut they only sell to upholstery shops or other retailers.  You'd have to figure out a way around that or buy it through an upholstery shop.  I can't remember the place(s) in Europe at the moment....I'm away from home.   So I'm afraid I haven't been of much use for this side of things. 

Regarding the lumbar support, it was merely a small excelsior pad that slid up and down a track with the straps.  It gave you extra support at the top, middle, or bottom of the seat backrest.  And anywhere in between, as well.  It's not supposed to flap around inside, so I have to assume the excelsior padding has since crumbled away.  In the picture below you can see how little there is to this system, as well as what the actual excelsior pad is supposed to look like. 
1966 250se coupe`,black/dark green leather
1970 600 midnight blue/parchment leather
1971 300sel 6.3,papyrus white/dark red leather
1975 450se, pine green metallic/green leather
1973 300sel 4.5,silver blue metallic/blue leather
1979 450sel 516 red/bamboo

floyd111

That said, the excelsior pad indeed falls apart easily, but in 3 or so pieces: The actual horsehair is normally tucked in between 2 sheets with straps that are well fused to those round sheets. When those sheets seperate due to age, the horsehair piece itself will break out /gets squeezed out of that cover,  It's pretty tough material, and you should be able to squeeze it back in, after trimming it a minimum, after which one should be able to stitch the lot back together with f.e a shoe-sole stitching contraption. A regular shoe-shop can do it in minutes, if you prepare the job a little. It's worth it, for those pads do work, they are a lovely option, and I have never seen or heard of a NOS set. So, worth the easy fix. I gotta do them as well, that's how I know. I am gonna look at replacing the horsehair with a modern foam, 2-3 thin layers of medium PU and medium silicon-foam (memory foam. Or justtrim the horsehaior a little to allow for an extra sheet of modern foam on top.

If you're not a original fascinista, building those pads from scratch is a total breeze as well, compared to so many other upholstery jobs.

raueda1

Quote from: UTn_boy on 17 June 2021, 11:40 AM
Quote from: raueda1 on 16 June 2021, 12:31 PM
Quote from: UTn_boy on 15 June 2021, 02:52 PM

Yes, 406 is lumbar support. 

Yes, 640 is Bundt wheels

Option code 665 is "Mode of packing VE I", which means it was shipped with 10 liters of fuel and and styropor coverings on the bumpers for protection during shipping.

Option code 206 is "Instruction manual and maintenance manual in Italian"

233 simply means that the front fog lamps were wired in such a way that they would only operate under conditions a particular country had set forth.  For example, only when the headlights are on or maybe they could be operated by themselves. 

309 Simply means that some countries did not allow rear fog lamps in the rear tail lights. Rear fog lamps were to be a separate fixture mounted away from the rear tail lamps.  Having a fog lamp integrated in to the tail lamp was viewed as unsafe by most of the world.  People would often think that someone was applying their brakes, but had one brake light burned out (since the right side tail lamp never had a fog lamp). 

1.  Regarding your pleating issue.....the seat needs to be removed, taken apart, and the covering removed.  Afterward, grab a hold of the felt/wool pleat pad and pull is back in it's place.

2.  Parchment velour is still available for W116 cars.  Please consider putting it back right one day.  The inside of a 6.9 is no place for MB-Tex or cheap vat dyed leather.
Thanks very for the clarification/confirmation.  It's very, very helpful.  As for Item 1, that's what I figured.  I was searching for a shortcut, as always.  And as for Item 2, that's great news.   It never occurred to me so I never looked.  When you say "still available" does that mean from MB?  Or some other source?  I agree with your comment on the MB-tex and returning it to original would be great! 

A final question.  The car has the remnants of the strap-operated lumbar support.  This seems to be a rather rare option and for the life of me I can't find any info or pix of what it had inside the seat.  As it is, the straps just connect to an odd sheet of fiberboard that flaps around in there.  No cushion or pad on it.   I'd assume that whatever was there was discarded when they installed the MB-tex.  Does anybody know what was originally in there?  This is starting to look like a great project when winter arrives and the car is in storage. 

Thanks and Cheers,

1. 
No, not from Mercedes.  It's available from a few places in Europe, nut they only sell to upholstery shops or other retailers.  You'd have to figure out a way around that or buy it through an upholstery shop.  I can't remember the place(s) in Europe at the moment....I'm away from home.   So I'm afraid I haven't been of much use for this side of things. 

2.
Regarding the lumbar support, it was merely a small excelsior pad that slid up and down a track with the straps.  It gave you extra support at the top, middle, or bottom of the seat backrest.  And anywhere in between, as well.  It's not supposed to flap around inside, so I have to assume the excelsior padding has since crumbled away.  In the picture below you can see how little there is to this system, as well as what the actual excelsior pad is supposed to look like.
1.  I'm in no rush.  If you can find the info just post.  Others might also benefit.  I confess, this project isn't at the top of my list, especially after I had a sprinkler system pipe crack under my concrete driveway.  It now turns into a spring issuing from the crack between 2 slabs.  And that, I suspect, from having way, way too much water pressure after the pressure regulator died.   :-[
I will say this in the MB-tex's defense - from a few feet away it looks like a new leather interior.  Casual lookers always assume it's leather.

2. That's the picture I could never find!  I have opened the seats and the pad is gone, no trace.  I suspect that it was discarded when seats were reupholstered. Thanks much, as always, and cheers,
-Dave
Now:  1976 6.9 Euro, 2015 GL550
Before that:  1966 230S, 1964 220SE coupe, 1977 Carrera 3.0