Sunroof Slide Lubricant in Australia

[WGB]

I am in the process of painting my 450SEL and have the sunroof apart and out of the car. I am quite happy to clean the cable and tube and will use a Molybdenum based grease.

There is however a recommended Lubricant called Sunroof Slide Paste Part No - 001 9789 14 51 and referred to in the Garagehandboek as Autocorit PRC ll which seems to be both available and enthusiastically used in the US.

When discussed with M-B Spares in Canberra or Diesel Motors in Perth I get blank looks and shrugged shoulders.

I would appreciate any comments on availability in Australia or what is a suitable equivalent.

Bill Babe

[michaeld]

WGB,
I'm afraid that I can't tell you any more about sunroof grease down under, but on the north side of the planet it is available in two ways:
1) purchase a can from Mercedes-Benz for something like $130 bucks (US);
2) purchase a camera-film-sized container for about $8.  I'm told this amount will do several treatments.  If you went to www.mercedesshop.com/shopforum (and then clicked on the classic section) and typed 'sunroof grease' in the search engine, you would come across a link to someone who is selling it by the film cannister.  I've got the link somewhere (that I found the same way), but by the time I found it for you you could have easily found it yourself.

Don't know what shipping to Australia would be.

I've considered buying a can and then offering it myself (to this site), but didn't want to buy a big can of the stuff (more than I could ever use) and then be stuck with it.  Besides, the fact that I'm in the US would make shipping more expensive to the majority of users (who AREN'T in the US).

With all that said, I haven't purchased the sunroof grease either.  My reading on the aforementioned mercedesshop.com indicates that a few people use other stuff, but the majority swear by the Mercedes grease.

[Des]

Mercedes sliding sunroofs for a long time, not sure about now a Webasto product, you may also want to speak to your local sunroof supplier and see what webasto recommends if the genuine mercedes product is available, although I enquired about it once from my MB dealer and they had it in stock.

[carl888]

I am in the process of painting my 450SEL and have the sunroof apart and out of the car. I am quite happy to clean the cable and tube and will use a Molybdenum based grease.

There is however a recommended Lubricant called Sunroof Slide Paste Part No - 001 9789 14 51 and referred to in the Garagehandboek as Autocorit PRC ll which seems to be both available and enthusiastically used in the US.

When discussed with M-B Spares in Canberra or Diesel Motors in Perth I get blank looks and shrugged shoulders.

I would appreciate any comments on availability in Australia or what is a suitable equivalent.

Bill Babe

Bill,

No offence, but you have the part number, just walk into a Mercedes dealer and buy some.  That's what I did.  If you did go into a dealer and got a blank look, then the staff member didn't put the number in the computer.  I suspect it may be an indent item, even so, you should have to wait more than 10 days for it.

Regards,

Carl.

[WGB]

I'll try at Diesel Motors again.

I'm still interested in any information about what sort of lubricant it is.

There must be some other simple equivalent or suitable replacement.
I know it can be sourced from the US but it isn't always easy to get it posted internationally when it's a lubricant.

Thanks for the comments so far.

Bill Babe

[carl888]

Hi Bill,

To me, it just looks like vaseline!  I really can't tell the difference.  I also use it on the door locks. 

Regards,

Carl.

[WGB]

Hi Carl,

Maybe it is vaseline - do you use it anywhere near the rubber diaphragms as these would perish with any sort of mineral based grease but would probably be safer with a vaseline type lubricant.

Bill

[WGB]

Found it.

Diesel Motors in Perth can order a tin for AUD$ 268.

I said I'd think about it.

Bill

[WGB]

I don't know what Inox is but I'll find some

Thanks

Bill

[BAR]

Inox is a similar product to WD40.

These are silicone base sprays - also called dewatering fluids or wet start fluids - once the mechanic in a can for mini minor owners who needed to drive in the rain.

Good for light lubrication (eliminates squeaking door hinges).

There is also another teflon based spray to assist for hinges and slides, goes on as a spray and then dries giving some longer lasting services: WD40 can rub off and / or wash off and will run causing nasty streaks on paintwork.

[AMG69]

Bill, maybe we should have a few of us in Perth share a tin of the stuff?

[WGB]

I'm quite happy to order a tin if anybody is interested in sharing.
I just thought $268 for one use seemed a bit excessive.

I might be going past Diesels this afternoon so I might go in and twist their arms as I know all the guys in the Parts Dept

Give me some numbers of interested Perth People and I'll arrange to order a tin and share it in some way.

Bill Babe

[WGB]

Diesels reduced the price by $58 so I ordered a tin.

I now have several lifetime supplies of the stuff coming.

It might have been a very expensive afternoon - my 211 E320 is coming to the end of it's 4 year lease and I think I might have started a relationship with a CLS 500 - wife showed instant disapproval - work in progress.

Bill Babe