CJP28's 1979 Mercedes-Benz 300SD

[CJP28]

Hey what's up everyone!? I'm Carlos, I'm 17 years old, I'm from Houston, Texas, I'm currently attending High School, I'm a senior, graduating class of 2012!, and this is my ride. :]

I have a 1979 Mercedes-Benz 300SD. This is my first and current car. I received it from my grandfather on March 13th, 2010, and well let's say it was in not soo good condition but it was all original, no maintenance had been done and rarely did anything work lmfao. It had been sitting in a shop for a little over 2 years, and I'm surprised that thing turned on I was shocked! Lmao After that special moment of seeing her come to life I feel in love. Well I was 14 at the moment and ever since I've been hooked on Diesel powered Mercedes-Benzes. And I became obsessed with the W116 Chassis! Since the day I got her, till now I've been working on her with my father, slowly repairing and personalizing it to my desired goals.

Details of my 300SD:
*Custom Matte Black Paint Job FRESHLY PAINTED ON FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2011.
*Engine: Turbocharged 3.0L Inline-5. A.K.A. OM617.950
*Current Mileage: 236,159 Miles
*Original 4-Speed Automatic Transmission
*Original Light-Alloy Disc Wheels With Spare
*Original Optional Brush Guard Front Bumper
*Sunroof
*First Aid Kit
*ALDA Tune
*Gabriel Ultra Shocks
*Bosch Premium Battery
*Custom Made Battery Mounting Kit
*Custom Auxilary Fan
*Custom Stant Radiator Cap
*Custom Oil Cap
*Custom Carbon Fiber Style Windshield Wipers
*New Gloss Blue Custom Painted Water Pump
*Custom Painted Fan in Industrial Style Yellow
*Custom Painted Logos in Gloss Black
*Custom Smoked Taillights
*Custom Matte Black Painted Exterior Door Handels
*Custom Matte Black Painted Headlight Surrounds
*Custom Matte Black Painted Window and Windshield Trim
*Custom Gloss Black Painted Grille
*Custom Fabricated Aluminum A/C Control Panel Delete
*Custom Smith & Wesson .44 Magnum Pistol Grip Style Shift Knob
*Pioneer DEH-1200MP CD/WMA/MP3 & Auxiliary Headunit
*Kicker KS400 Series Speakers
*Two 10-inch Rockford Fosgate Punch Z Series Subwoofers in Custom Stealth Box.
*Kenwood 500 Watt RMS 2-Channel Amplifier
*Monster Cable Monster Audio High Performance 4 Gauge Premium Amplifier Wiring Kit
*K40 Police Radar System
*Custom LED Glove Box and Overhead Lights
*Front, Side, and Rear Chrome Trim Delete

That's all I can think about haha, I've done all maintence regurlaly. Oil and filter changes.

PICTURES OF IT AS OF TODAY:


























































































BACK THEN, THE DAY I GOT IT 3/13/2010:

[Mforcer]

Congratulations! I am driving my grandfathers W116 too

Your car is looking fantastic!! Quite the transformation. I think the matte black finish looks great.

The only thing missing is the window tinting

[Casey]

That hose that goes between the top of the secondary fuel filter and the fuel intake is supposed to be swollen in the middle - "cigar"-shaped, it's an expanding hose for when there's high pressure or something.  Yours appears to just be straight.

You know they made a rear bumper to match that front one?

I agree with Mforcer - a car this dark needs window tinting.

[Squiggle Dog]

That's a great first car! I've got a 300SD as well (2011 is the year of the 300SD on this forum).

I am SO envious that you have the badge bar on the front bumper! I have been wanting the front and rear set for a long time. There was a 450SEL for sale locally that had them, but they wanted way too much for the car for the condition it was in (and I only wanted the bumpers).

Below are pictures of the local 450SEL that had the badge bar kit for the bumpers:



Does your grandfather know if the car came from the factory with those bumper parts, or if they were ordered aftermarket, perhaps through J.C. Whitney?

[CJP28]

Congratulations! I am driving my grandfathers W116 too

Your car is looking fantastic!! Quite the transformation. I think the matte black finish looks great.

The only thing missing is the window tinting

Thanks! :] Wow that's awesome! & thanks for the compliments Yes Limo tint is the next thing that will be installed.

[CJP28]

That hose that goes between the top of the secondary fuel filter and the fuel intake is supposed to be swollen in the middle - "cigar"-shaped, it's an expanding hose for when there's high pressure or something.  Yours appears to just be straight.

You know they made a rear bumper to match that front one?

I agree with Mforcer - a car this dark needs window tinting.

Hmm that's akward, could it be for the reason that mine is a 79? Because I know that the 300SD from 1980 has some slight differences in the engine such as egr and slight higher power aswell as a different speedometer.

And really? I never knew that man, I wonder why mine doesn't have it.

And Limo tint, here we come!

[CJP28]

That's a great first car! I've got a 300SD as well (2011 is the year of the 300SD on this forum).

I am SO envious that you have the badge bar on the front bumper! I have been wanting the front and rear set for a long time. There was a 450SEL for sale locally that had them, but they wanted way too much for the car for the condition it was in (and I only wanted the bumpers).

Below are pictures of the local 450SEL that had the badge bar kit for the bumpers:



Does your grandfather know if the car came from the factory with those bumper parts, or if they were ordered aftermarket, perhaps through J.C. Whitney?

Haha thanks! Nice, Diesels taking over!!

And wow really!? That's interesting lol wow I like the rear bumper! This must be the one Raptelan mentioned earlier.

Oh, well my grandfather isn't the original owner, he bought it from some guy in 2009. I believe I'm like the 4th owner lol. And by the looks of it the bumpers are original from 1979. No replacement. They look old, very old. Lmao

[wbrian63]

What happened to the climate control, and how do you drive a matte-black car in Houston (aka 6-miles south of hades) without some sort of climate control?

As clean as the exterior of the car is, what would really make the whole affair sing is a nicely detailed engine. MB diesels (like most mechanically injected diesels of that era) look really Really nice when shined up. I'm not suggesting painting everything to match your taste in water pumps and fan blades, but a good "going over" would really make the whole affair nice.

Well done to this point. I ain't crazy about the matte black - but it's your car and it's done well, so well done.

[Casey]

As clean as the exterior of the car is, what would really make the whole affair sing is a nicely detailed engine. MB diesels (like most mechanically injected diesels of that era) look really Really nice when shined up. I'm not suggesting painting everything to match your taste in water pumps and fan blades, but a good "going over" would really make the whole affair nice.

Got some pictures of a cleaned OM617?  Any suggestions for how to do the shining up?  Mine could definitely use some work in this department.

[1980sdga]

Tint and murder out the rims   

I don't have any experience with vinyl wrap but I'd consider wrapping the bumpers with matte black.

Some guys doing rims:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aV2H57bES4

Bumpers seem like they would be rather easy to wrap and you wouldn't have to worry about paint sticking to chrome.

What did you do with your AC controls?

Check this out Casey:



Pic by dudemanstan on PP...

[gavin116]

Hi CJP28

What a great first car!  I second some of the other readers' views, I think some carbon fibre look foil would be great on all the bright work, including your mirror housings. 

I just used a solvent free engine cleaner and a paintbrush to clean my engine bay, and it came up a treat.  More stubborn stains called for a gentle rub with a Brillo pad.  I used a 'gentle' formula as I was worried that a stronger cleaner might damage the older rubber parts on my engine.  Take care when cleaning any vacuum hoses, as they can be very brittle!

Hope these following pictures give you a little inspiration.

Regards

Gavin

Before

Durring

After

[CJP28]

What happened to the climate control, and how do you drive a matte-black car in Houston (aka 6-miles south of hades) without some sort of climate control?

As clean as the exterior of the car is, what would really make the whole affair sing is a nicely detailed engine. MB diesels (like most mechanically injected diesels of that era) look really Really nice when shined up. I'm not suggesting painting everything to match your taste in water pumps and fan blades, but a good "going over" would really make the whole affair nice.

Well done to this point. I ain't crazy about the matte black - but it's your car and it's done well, so well done.

Well when it was sitting in the shop for 2 years, the a/c compressor and hoses all got stolen  and the contorls on the dash were completely broken aswell as the wood surrounding the controls. So I had a custom aluminum plate designed to fix the emptyness of when I removed the controls. It feels like an oven, but I don't mind it's a first car you know, I gotta deal with it. Lol  & hmm I'd love to have the engine detailed all gloss black. That'll happen in a little while, probably. I like that idea. Thanks.

[CJP28]

Tint and murder out the rims   

I don't have any experience with vinyl wrap but I'd consider wrapping the bumpers with matte black.

Some guys doing rims:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aV2H57bES4

Bumpers seem like they would be rather easy to wrap and you wouldn't have to worry about paint sticking to chrome.

What did you do with your AC controls?

Check this out Casey:



Pic by dudemanstan on PP...

Wow that's a brilliant idea!!  I might do it, and since the A/C controls and surronding wood was completely ruined I had a custom fabricated aluminum plate installed. By the way that gloss blue looks badass!

[CJP28]

Hi CJP28

What a great first car!  I second some of the other readers' views, I think some carbon fibre look foil would be great on all the bright work, including your mirror housings. 

I just used a solvent free engine cleaner and a paintbrush to clean my engine bay, and it came up a treat.  More stubborn stains called for a gentle rub with a Brillo pad.  I used a 'gentle' formula as I was worried that a stronger cleaner might damage the older rubber parts on my engine.  Take care when cleaning any vacuum hoses, as they can be very brittle!

Hope these following pictures give you a little inspiration.

Regards

Gavin

Before

Durring

After

Aww thanks!  the mirror housings would look unique in carbon fiber style wrap, thanks forr your suggestion, I will try to get it. And wow your engine bay looks amazing!  You have certainly inspired me Galvin! Thanks for the advice!