w116 complete rebuild

[Yesmar]

          Hi I'm new here i just picked up my car last sunday!! it runs great. it is a 280s or se I'm not to sure it was made and bought in germany and shipped over here. all the paper work and manual and everything is in German and it only had one owner besides me.
            the reason i say I'm not sure if its an s or se is because all the paper work and everything say its a 79. well at the DMV they said it only came up as a 75. i dont know if they lady messed it up or it really is a 75, because after that she over rode it to be a 79.  any way to find out?  its silver , roll up windows, cloth interior. beautiful in and out. only 137,000 mile!! runs like a gem just have to let it warm up a good 6 min. anyway, i wqanted a v8 but could not walk away from the price.  now  i couldnt be happier.
     Q#1: how can i tell the year?
     Q#2: in the far future i would like to rebuild everything. would like to put a V8 in it. I'm just wondering if this will be possible i know i will have to replace everything but is there enough room in there ? or are they all the same size under the hood  gutted?

[13B]

Hi Yesmar,

To try to answer all your questions short but succinctly

If its got a carburetor its a 280S, if its got fuel injection its a 280SE

Let us know the VIN number and we can confirm whether its a 280S or SE, and approximately what year it was made.  The VIN number is on middle of the firewall and starts with 116

If your desire is for a V8, just buy a 450 SE or SEL and save yourself the headaches of engine conversion.  Since you already have a great car you can take your time to find the right V8 one local to you and within your price range.

I.

[Yesmar]

the vin is 11602012119276

yes that does sound like a plani do have some questions it is winter time in the US  now when i start my car cold. i need to keep my foot on the gas for a good 3 min. or the car will shut off. any ideas? after that it runs beautifully

[13B]

well good news, 116020 is a 280S so you have the carburettor engine, and the car number is 119276, out of 122848 280Ss they made, which would make it a 1979 build.

As for the cold start dramas, sounds like the automatic choke isn't working to the best of its ability, and you'll need to wait for someone like Oscar to chime in and explain how to fix it.  He has a weath of knowledge about the Solex 4A1 on those cars.

I.

[Yesmar]

Great thank you very much 13b!

[s class]

The reason DMV didin't know haow to classify the car is that the 280S was only sold in the US in '74 and '75.  It was sold in the european market right up to 1980. 

[Yesmar]

yeah that makes sense i figured it had something to do with that

[116.025]

Yesmar,

Welcome to the many adventures of owning a Euro 116 in the US.  Actually, it's not that bad, all 5 116s in the family have been Euro.  Heck, when I was little, people over here that didn't specialize in Mercedes looked at you weird when you told them you needed something for a 6.9.

And 13B is spot on, if you want a V8, it's MUCH easier to buy a 116 that came with one originally.  You could probably talk me out of my Euro 350SE (since I'd like to find on with a manual tranny) if you made a good enough offer

[oscar]

Hi Yesmar,

I did a quick google search to see what the weather was like in your neck of the woods and since your 280S is sitting around near freezing temps all day round it doesn't surprise me that it takes a while for you to be able to get the engine to warm up and perform.   However, we need to clarify some things first like you're startup procedure.   Compare what you do to what the manual says below.

A few basic points from the manual for a cold start.

- Depress accelerator once only (this closes the choke plate, ie activates the choke), then turn the key all the way to start.
- Don't use the starter for longer than 20seconds at a time.
- Only use the accelerator after ignition has taken place and use it slowly.

That's all fine for a cold start in a mild climate but in much cooler ambient temps the carby engines are harder to start as the atomized fuel will tend to condense on the walls of the very cold intake. Something that the FI engines don't have a problem with as the fuel is basically injected directly into the cylinder.  Anyway, the manual then gives a few tips for cold starting carby engines in the cooler extremes.  It's expected that immediate ignition is unlikely IMO.

- After an unsuccessful start, or, drop in revs after initial ignition, turn the key back to "0"
- Give the battery 30 seconds to a minute to recover then repeat startup procedure.
- If the engine becomes "flooded" due to too many repeated failed startup attempts it says to fully depress the accelerator whilst starting and only release the accelerator when the engine fires regularly.
  Just remember not to over work your starter motor.   Stick to that 20seconds at a time rule.
- It also says that if the car has been sitting around for a few days without use you should give the accelerator 2 or 3 pumps to richen the startup mix.

To my mind what you're experiencing might not be too bad and nothing may be wrong, especially as you've said the engine runs great when warm.  If you're pumping the gas pedal whilst trying to start the car, this might be making the mix too rich and why you have to hold the pedal down to get it to keep an idle.

There's a couple of variations on the solex and I'll have a look into any other probs that might cause hard starting but next time you do a cold start, try starting it by the book (if you're not already) and see if makes a difference.  Let us know how you go.

[Yesmar]

Thank you oscar just today i started my car again for the first time in 3 days. it took me 4 try's to get it to turn. thank you for the manual info. mine is all in german so no help there. im having to order one in english shortly.    yeah iv been looking up my start up problems too, i figure i will have a tune up done on the car soon and see how things go there after.

[Yesmar]

If your desire is for a V8, just buy a 450 SE or SEL and save yourself the headaches of engine conversion.  Since you already have a great car you can take your time to find the right V8 one local to you and within your price range.

I.
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        I take your advice i just puschased a 75 450SE it need alot of work, which is what i was looking for. i work part time at an auto shop "Anspach Auto Classic Porsche's and European Sports Cars" its only 10 to 20 hours a week its my hobby job. we strip, restor, sell, also sell and find parts.
        So iv been looking for a good messy restoration project to do for myself, instead of all these nice cars for other people.   I'm picking my car up this weekend, must be towed and parked in garage, said it will run with a fresh bat. and fuel, but i would like to restore the whole thing from the tires on up. i will get to it once i recover money wise   as for my 280s will be my everyday driver/ getting parts to and from my garage for my 450SE. it is great on gas and strong engine. !!!!

[13B]

You've joined the ranks of multiple-W116 owners.  Welcome.

[Yesmar]

Thank you, i will finally be figuring out the picture thing within the next week or so