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Woops I did it again!

Started by alabbasi, 02 January 2006, 01:15 AM

alabbasi

Just purchased another 6.9 from an M-100 buddy. It appears to be a 78 Euro spec car with US bumpers. It looks like I have another project.

http://www.w108.org/gallery/view_album.php?page=1&set_albumName=Alabbasis-new-78-6-9

With best regards

Al
Dallas, TX USA.

Mforcer

You have my admiration! Without a doubt this will be another job worth watching. Do you have any inclination to do more of the work that you have previously outsourced?
Michael
1977 450SE [Brilliant Red]
2006 B200

alabbasi

I think this car's body is more sound then the other one. There appears to be very little rust in the floor pan. with Just the wheel arches in a sorry state. The previous owner tells me that the car was a diplomatic vehicle at one time. It was then sold to one of the staff who took it to Indiana but could not afford to keep it maintained. As a result it sat behind a furniture store for 15 years until he found it.

When he got the car, it would start on the button but sprung a gas leak immediately where someone had replaced the fuel line with the  non fuel line pipe. He tells me that the car has been neglected for a very long time. I am going to see if I can do some of the mechanical work myself such as replacing the hoses and the gaskets and changing the fluid, brakes etc. I may try my hand at prepping the bodywork but really do not want to try to weld panels. I have seen some serious warping take place when people who do not know what they are doing try that. Especially on black cars.

First and most importantly, I need to make sure that the car is worth saving. As many M-100 owners would tell you, garages kill , and this thing has been sitting for years.



With best regards

Al
Dallas, TX USA.

alabbasi

Like you this one was an impulse buy and I really should have turned it down. However, it  is a beautiful colour combination and a Euro spec car. I have always been told that they drive better then the US spec cars.

Space is going to be tight and its going to look like my daily 1997 E420 will be living outside. I am considering building a car port outside to protect the car from the sun.

My first 6.9 restoration has been spending a lot of time at the garage recently. Most of the time is being spent sitting there because the mechanic seems to like to put my car on the back burner (I guess its because he hates Mercedes and knows that I have two other cars). The most recent outlay was a rebuilt steering box and now I am having a strange knocking noise from the back that could either be the diff, axle or bearings. He is looking into it. I think it has all the potential of being a daily driver and I have driven it on a few occasions back and forth from work. Apart from the knocking sound, the car performs flawlessly in the winter. In the summer it gets mighty hot in there so I will be needing to recore the radiator soon. All in all, I am pleased and it has not cost me much money over the restoration cost. I am sure this car is going to be light work on the body but a pain in the back mechanically. For anyone of us who thinks they can make money on restoring an M-100, I say don't hold your breath, just restore it , drive it and enjoy it. Half the fun is the fact that other drivers think that your driving a 30 year old diesel.

Is your GF's car a Rover P6? This is another one of my favorite cars... Maybe I will get lucky and own one. They are pretty rare here in the US.
With best regards

Al
Dallas, TX USA.

OzBenzHead

Quote from: alabbasi on 03 January 2006, 04:09 PM... the mechanic seems to like to put my car on the back burner (I guess its because he hates Mercedes ...

You mean you let someone who hates Mercedes work on - or even touch! - your Benz?   :o

My mechanic - who is a generalist and not exclusively a Benz specialist - just loves working on Benzes - especially the older, pre-electronics models; he finds them so "simple".  He's very good, too, and not expensive.

I initially went to him, about three years ago, on the recommendation of an acquaintance who had his Benzes serviced there. At that time he was servicing about 50 of them (in a town where there are barely 100 Benzes). Since I've been patronising his business, his Benz list has grown to over 70 (including my four) - most of that increase owing to my referrals and recommendations. He now uses my parts suppliers, too, to get a better deal than he was previously getting from other suppliers, and has, because of necessity, managed to get a near-impossible direct-supply arrangement with Bosch.  I recently sent him a keen and hardworking youngster of my acquaintance for an apprenticeship - so that by the time The Man retires there might be someone capable - and with the right attitude - to fill his shoes.
[img width=340 height=138][url="http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a215/OzBenzHead/10%20M-B%20Miscellany/OBH_LOGO-2a-1.png"]http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a215/OzBenzHead/10%20M-B%20Miscellany/OBH_LOGO-2a-1.png[/url][/img]

GSK11740

I certainly can't fault you for an "impulse buy". Everything I own was an impulse buy and other than one which, oddly enough, is my daily driver (not the Mercedes), I don't regret any of them. Actually, I'm convinced I do better when I act on impulse rather than think about it first!

Looks like a nice project car. I'm looking forward to following it's progress.

alabbasi

I gave this car the once over the other day. With the exception of one Wheel Arch that is more filler then steel the shell is in pretty good shape. The panel work however is in awful shape. I am going to do a budget restoration on this car because money on cars is just getting harder to justify as this is going to be the third restoration in one year (i started the original 6.9 in April 2005).
So here is what I am about to do. First thing is to do is get doors , a trunk lid and a hood for the car. These can be found at my local bone yard (or a coupe). There is also a 300SD at a local bone yard. I am going to see if I can pull the hood and trunk lid from it as they are aluminum.

I bought a service kit for the car (oil, air, fuel and tranny filter) and have hired a Mechanic to help me put them in as a side job. He works out a lot cheaper then taking a car to the shop. A little risky but I have little money in the car so I am taking a gamble. I need to then get a power steering pump as the power steering does not work and an exhaust system which is missing.

It should be an interesting little project.

With best regards

Al
Dallas, TX USA.

Mforcer

How about adding some vents to the bonnet/hood? Time to have some creative fun with one of these cars  ;D Perhaps I have been watching too much Pimp My Ride ;D
Michael
1977 450SE [Brilliant Red]
2006 B200

GSK11740

QuoteThere is also a 300SD at a local bone yard. I am going to see if I can pull the hood and trunk lid from it as they are aluminum.

You might want to bring a magnet with you for that 300SD. I checked mine and while the hood was aluminum, the trunklid turned out to be steel. I can't find any sign that it has ever been replaced either.

You guys are lucky. I can't find any W116's in any of the local junkyards around me. Guess I got the last one? :D

AMG69

what was Benz's reason for fitting the diesels with an aluminium hood instead of steel?
sigh....sitting back contemplating the next purchase..!

GSK11740

Quote from: Chris M on 19 January 2006, 09:48 PM
what was Benz's reason for fitting the diesels with an aluminium hood instead of steel?

Better weight distribution is the only thing I can think of. That diesel is a pretty heavy chunk of iron. That doesn't explain the aluminum trunklid though (that mine doesn't have anyway).

alabbasi

I think i am going to take that condition statement back, the car has plenty of rust on the drivers side floor and the passenger rocker panel appears to have been rusty and then bodged repaired. I am going to see if I can get it running properly to determine how good the engine is, once I know then I can start scratching beneath the surfice to determine if the car is worth saving.
With best regards

Al
Dallas, TX USA.

GSK11740

Quote from: alabbasi on 21 January 2006, 07:46 PM
I think i am going to take that condition statement back, the car has plenty of rust on the drivers side floor and the passenger rocker panel appears to have been rusty and then bodged repaired. I am going to see if I can get it running properly to determine how good the engine is, once I know then I can start scratching beneath the surfice to determine if the car is worth saving.


It can't be worse than your other one, is it? Your first 6.9 was pretty rough from the pictures I saw. The finished car looked great. I wouldn't give up on this one either. Just take your time. ;D

alabbasi

I think you and I think alike, my motivator for doing this one is the fact that I thought it did not need as much as the other car. Right now, it appears that this car was as rusty as the fist one but someone has already gone through it with Bondo. It is however a eurospec car which is pretty nice. This car is not as mechanically sound as my first one which was in fantastic shape mechanically. I don't restore any of my cars for a profit, there is no money in restoring an M-100 car at the moment, all the parts cost serious money and although the car is fast... it's now as fast as most mid range 6 cyl cars that are coming out of the US and Japan. That said, like most of the people on this list, I love driving these cars. My 6.9 gets plenty of street action and I hope this one will some day if it does turn out to be Mechanically sound. It starts on the button but the tail pipe is off the car so I can't really tell if there are any noises that I should be concerned about. At this point my goal is to change all the fluids and put a tail pipe on the car and see how it runs. I have already purchased doors for it from a junk yard and an aluminum hood and trunk lid from a 300SD.

I am actually trying to do this car on a serious budget and learn as I fix it. I will keep the group up to date with the progress.

With best regards

Al
Dallas, TX USA.