Nice 450sel for sale - question about engine bay

[3l33ter]

I found this on craigslist:
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/ctd/d/1977-mercedes-benz-450-sel/6628534023.html

I was looking at the engine bay shots, and was wondering about a few things. I've never owned a 450sel, and I've only ever seen 1 up close, so I'm unfamiliar with them.

It looks like it has a hydropneumatic tank. Was hydro suspension an option on the 450?
And what's the cylindrical thing right behind the hydro tank?
And then what's the black box behind the cylindrical thing?

[Squiggle Dog]

It looks like it has a hydropneumatic tank. Was hydro suspension an option on the 450?

I think it was an option on many European cars. I've even seen cars like W115 and W123 240Ds with hydropneumatic suspension in the wrecking yards.

And what's the cylindrical thing right behind the hydro tank?

Part of a Webasto heater which uses a timer and gasoline to warm up the engine so when you get in your car in the morning, your engine is already warmed up and you have instant heat coming out of the heater.

And then what's the black box behind the cylindrical thing?

The main part of the Webasto heater. It looks like the car also has heated seats, judging by the auxiliary fuse box behind the Webasto unit. What a highly-optioned car.

Oh, and the ÜRO label left on the radiator hose cracks me up. Maybe that's the only brand you can buy anymore, but I sure wouldn't want that on there! Though, there is a member on PeachParts who intentionally left his ÜRO labels on his hoses to spite the "Dang You ÜRO" thread original poster.

[Max-NL]

It looks like it has a hydropneumatic tank. Was hydro suspension an option on the 450?

It's not a hydro suspension just like on the 6.9. It has self leveling rear suspension, like the w123/w124 wagons. Our 280S has it.

[Squiggle Dog]

My roommate's 1991 W126 350SDL has an SLS tank, too, and it runs off of a tandem power steering pump which circulates both power steering and hydraulic fluid in separate chambers. All it does, though, is run the anti-slip differential. Talk about over-engineering! Also, the power steering rebuild kits for the tandem pumps are no longer available, even aftermarket. I had to find a new old stock aftermarket kit to rebuild his.

[floyd111]

Quote:
Part of a Webasto heater which uses a timer and gasoline to warm up the engine so when you get in your car in the morning, your engine is already warmed up and you have instant heat coming out of the heater.

Is that a Webasto function, pre-heating the engine? First I heard of that, but I am no mechanic. Thought it was just a stand-alone cabin heater so you would not die in a snow storm while trapped in the car under 12 feet of snow.

[Squiggle Dog]

Is that a Webasto function, pre-heating the engine? First I heard of that, but I am no mechanic. Thought it was just a stand-alone cabin heater so you would not die in a snow storm while trapped in the car under 12 feet of snow.

I think so, just based on what I've read, You set a timer located on the center console, so at a set time each morning the gas heater comes on automatically and heats the coolant so that your car is warmed up without having to start the engine first.

[3l33ter]

Setting the timer on a black box that burns a combustible while you're nowhere near it... sounds like a bomb haha!

I guess that car is a true euro market car, and from a really cold country.

[Harv]

$17,000 is insane. Totally insane.