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My first W116 here at last

Started by gavin116, 10 April 2011, 01:54 PM

thysonsacclaim

Gavin!

I must say, I had not looked at the thread for a while, but I remember reading it last year. What progress! Looking great!  8)

gavin116

#136
Last of the summer wine

Hi again

I managed to get a few more things done yesterday, little bits that I've been wanting to do for ages.  I fetched the car on Tuesday evening, and she was running very well as expected, save the high idle.  (I am debating opening my AAV or perhaps buying a new one - ouch! :-[)

Wednesday morning it was, and I was up early.  Pulled my LHS door mirror, and got playing with my W123 electric mirror.  I soon realised that I would have to irreversibly destroy my own mirror to install the electric device.  I decided against this, and will get a second hand LHS (right hand drive) mirror, and do the thing on that.  I am yet to source the wiring harness and switch, but now that I know it's workable...

Next was to remove the aluminium door trim on the left rear door, and re-install.  The bit above the quarter light kept popping off still from my replacement of the window-wipes way back when.  Got that nicely sorted.

I had also acquired a NOS cruise control amp, and I proceeded to replace it.  I had consulted with Joe on this, as the old one was part number 001 545 20 32, and the new one 001 545 21 32.  Joe confirmed that he used this part in his 450 without issue.  I was not relishing this job, but having done it once before, it was earier than expected and went like clockwork.  Within an hour, I had the new unit in, including pulling the instrument cluster to check the position of the transducer.  I thought perhaps when I last worked on the rev-counter that I may have place this upside-down, but I found it was in the right orientation.  The clip doesn't have a fool-proof pin, and can go on two ways, the important thing is the green wire must be to the top (necesitates carefully opening the clip).  I soon had the battery re-connected, and job done!

New cruise amp (black face) side by side with old (white face)

The cruise control hooked up

Next, and it was on to the left rear over-rider.  What a joy to unwrap the new part.  It was so shiny, and the inside was so beautifully finished too!  I had already bought a new rubber for the over-rider, and when I was buying the part, the parts-man suggested that I buy the rear bumper affixing kit too.  I was glad that I done this, and now with the new part installed, it looks good once again.  I will use the rest of the bolts at a later stage when I refurbish the rest of the rear bumper (surface rust remove and re-chroming... a pipe dream...).  All this also led me to discover yet more rust, this time from an old repair, I suspect when the car was recommissioned.  There was also some nasty spraying on both rear fenders, but I am not too worried about that, as the plan will be to have a thorough going over and a new paint-job sometime in the future.  However, I will have the rust attended to this spring when she goes in for fluid changes and a service.  I was surprised that the rust wasn't picked up on when the aerial was relocated recently.

The new over-rider

And finally, installing the rubbing strip (bend it back on itself to apply)

Job done, pleasing to the eye
(Edit:  Sorry placed the wrong photo here before.)

Yet more rust
orange arrows show old repair, green arrows show tin-worm, in places it is completely eaten through  :'(

From way back when I last cleaned the engine bay, which I need to do again, I noticed that the gasket on the air cleaner was slightly deformed.  Having seen this, I ordered a new one, which has been sitting around for quite some time now.  So, finally got down to changing that too.

Old deformed gasket

New gasket

I also bough a another tool kit on eBay, and have amalgamated them.  I would be interested to know which parts are actually included in an original W116 tool wrap as I would prefer it to be as original as possible.

Tool kit

I took the car back at lunch time, and on the way tried the cruise.  It keeps the speed well, and the resume disengage functions work well.  Only problems are with the initial store, I have to store the speed 4 miles over, as it drops slightly.  I have some rubber bits to replace on the cruise control actuator's vacuum line.  Perhaps that will help?

I may yet see if the storage guy's are amenable to me coming in and removing my door panels.  I can then take them home and replace the wadding behind the upholstery, ready for the spring.

Till then, keep 116ing

Gavin
1979 450SE "Mrs White"
2022 Touareg-R 3.0TSi Hybrid
[url="http://forum.w116.org/test-drive/my-first-w116-here-at-last/"]http://forum.w116.org/test-drive/my-first-w116-here-at-last/[/url]
[url="http://forum.w116.org/the-org/british-near-london-meet/msg97613/#msg97613"]http://forum.w116.org/the-org/british-near-london-meet/msg97613/#msg97613[/url]

oversize

Your car looks great Gavin!  Isn't it nice being able to STILL BUY NEW MB PARTS FOR A 32+ YO CAR!!!!  Doesn't the rust just suck!!  But you'll get there eventually; it's just a matter of not giving up...
1979 6.9 #5541 (Red Bull)
1978 6.9 #4248 (Skye)
1979 6.9 #3686 (Moby Dick)
1978 6.9 #1776 (Dora)
1977 450SEL #7010 white -P
1975 450SEL #8414 gold -P

oversize

I just realized that the raised area inside the aircleaner assembly (over the fuel divider) must restrict airflow considerably....
1979 6.9 #5541 (Red Bull)
1978 6.9 #4248 (Skye)
1979 6.9 #3686 (Moby Dick)
1978 6.9 #1776 (Dora)
1977 450SEL #7010 white -P
1975 450SEL #8414 gold -P

Tony66_au

Wow those new rubbers look great, it will probably be the last thing I do to mine but it HAS to be done to complete the finish.

the old girl is looking fabulous Gavin, Thanks for the update mate.

Squiggle Dog

Mrs. White is looking great!
Stop paying for animal cruelty and slaughter. Go vegan! [url="https://challenge22.com/"]https://challenge22.com/[/url]

1967 W110 Universal Wagon, Euro, Turbo Diesel, Tail Fins, 4 Speed Manual Column Shift, A/C
1980 W116 300SD Turbo Diesel, DB479 Walnut Brown, Sunroof, Heated Seats, 350,000+

jbrasile

Hi Gavin,

Nice work!

Your drop in speed could be due to a cable out of adjustment or a vacuum leak, check if the cable sits against the throttle lever without pulling but with no slack.

Tks,

Joe

gavin116

#142
A busy day

Well, its been an absolute age since I've seen Mrs. W or driven her.  The appointment book at work was looking a little patchy on Thursday, and the 5-day weather forecast didn't seem too bleak, so I organized to fetch Mrs. White yesterday afternoon.  It really lifted my day seeing her there, ready to go.  Unfortunately the storage facility told me that the exhaust had 'blown'.  Indeed it has, and I though my ears would begin bleeding by the time I got home.  The middle box has a rather large hole in it.

So, I began this morning off to Kwikfit, they couldn't help me for a reasonable price, so I headed to MB in Brentford.  I ordered and paid for the middle section, some £100 cheaper than the local exhaust shop.  I stopped in at B&Q and bought a bottle of methylated  spirits and a rather large water-pump pliers.  I bought some Gum-Gum putty and tape from Halfods to effect a temporary repair to the middle box of the exhaust, and then it was off to home to get started.

Out the sprint blocks, I opened the first aid box compartment (I have this option, despite it not being on my data card), removed the four screws, and prized the liner out.  I was really happy, as the thought of removing the rear seats, the speakers and the rear parcel shelf were daunting indeed. 

The first aid kit hatch

I pulled my plug from the fuel sender unit, bridged the "W" and "T" terminals, and lo-and-behold, with my ignition in the II position, a bright red triangle appeared on the fuel gauge.  I then knew that I had to clean the sender unit.  So I tried with the water-pump pliers, but the unit would not budge.  I then sprayed around the unit with WD40, and let it soak in a little.

I thought I'd go on to do the next of many jobs, so I pulled the LHS door card.  Once off, I cut a new sheet of plastic to replace the missing one.  Then I carefully removed the clips on the rear, and done away with the rather sticky and foul padding.  I replaced that with some batting material, and was reasonably pleased with the results.

Material for door card refurbishment: plastic sheet and batting

During the refurbishment

A while back, I had toyed with the idea of an electric passenger side mirror.  So, about six months ago, I acquired a W123 LHS electric door mirror, and started the process to transform my manual mirror.  It became obvious, that the mirror was not going to fit, and would need to be canabalised, the original mirror too would have to be altered in such a way that it may not have been possible to return it to it's original state.

So I acquired yet another W116 LHS mirror, and proceeded to do the modification.  I bought a W126 wiring harness and a w126 mirror switch for a fair few pounds.  These turned out to be a poor acquisition, and will not work with the early W123 mirrors (they have three leads, white, black and grey).  I eventually bought a new wiring harness from MB, specific for the early W123, and also the correct mirror adjuster switch.

New electric mirror wiring harness from an early W123

I removed the LHS knee roll and kick panels.  I ran the new lead in through the conduit that carries the vacuum lines for the central locking.  Whilst I was in there, I cleaned the aluminium rail and the gears on the electric motor, and then sprayed them with some lithium grease.  I swapped over the mirrors, keeping my original for safe keeping, sprayed the door with a little more contact adhesive spray, marrying up my new plastic liner and replaced the door card.  I am very pleased with the result.

Before hanging the door card, showing the mirror and new plastic lining

I tried the fuel sender again, but it didn't want to budge, so I applied more WD40, and let it penetrate.  That left me with the job I had been avoiding for a very long time – replacing the front seat-belts.  I thought I'd tackle the LHS as that belt wasn't working very well at all, and I also wanted to route my mirror wiring.

So, I loosened the two rear bolts, slid the chair back, un-did the front two bolts and the chair just sat there.  I then reassessed the situation, and found another bolt linking the rear mount point and chair to the 'up part' of the floor plan near the B-pillar.  And then there was also the 'rail' for the seat belt latch.

Once free, I was able to remove the seat from the car (very carefully) to replace the latching mechanism.  I pulled the B-pillar trim, and swapped out the inertia reel.  I tidied the wiring harness for the mirror, and left it to dangle next to the centre console.  I replaced the seat.  Now I only have the driver's to do, and all the belts will be original MB units... happy days.

One final crack, and the fuel sender loosened.  I let it drain a bit first before taking it out of the car.  I then spent a little time trying to remove the nut on the end, and finally realized that there was no other way but to roger a flat blade screwdriver.  After some time (hardened steel tip) I had a workable solution, and it was off with the nut.  I pulled the sender with it's thin wires, with no damage at all.

A peek inside the fuel tank, not too scabby

The fuel sender unit before cleaning

After a thorough clean with methyated spirits, especially the metal disc on the float that had an almost varnish like coating on it, I re-assembled everything, and was ready to replace it in the car.  I put the ignition in position II, dipped the sender in the tank, connected the plug, and hey presto, a red triangular light on the fuel gauge.  Once the fuel entered the unit, the light extinguished.

It was then time to pack up, and head off to the West End for dinner and a show.  Tomorrow I will sort the driver's side seat belt, put my new brake pedal rubber on, seal the exhaust, hook up the new electric mirror, put on my new LHS front indicator lens, and if I have the will and inclination, I may then instal my new WUR, and see if the car runs somewhat smoother.  I bought all new rubber tubing and clamps that connect to all it's orifices to ensure that there are absolutely no air leaks.  We shall see.

Till later,

Gavin
1979 450SE "Mrs White"
2022 Touareg-R 3.0TSi Hybrid
[url="http://forum.w116.org/test-drive/my-first-w116-here-at-last/"]http://forum.w116.org/test-drive/my-first-w116-here-at-last/[/url]
[url="http://forum.w116.org/the-org/british-near-london-meet/msg97613/#msg97613"]http://forum.w116.org/the-org/british-near-london-meet/msg97613/#msg97613[/url]

oversize

What a great thread!  Your parcel shelf carpet looks nice.  You've done a great job and I particularly like the mirror conversion; do you have any more pix of what you did to the W116 mirror?  BTW your last 2 pix aren't working....
1979 6.9 #5541 (Red Bull)
1978 6.9 #4248 (Skye)
1979 6.9 #3686 (Moby Dick)
1978 6.9 #1776 (Dora)
1977 450SEL #7010 white -P
1975 450SEL #8414 gold -P

Squiggle Dog

Wow, I didn't even notice the moisture barrier was in place because it is so clear... and why not be able to see what's behind it? It will be nice to see how your front door panels look when restuffed.
Stop paying for animal cruelty and slaughter. Go vegan! [url="https://challenge22.com/"]https://challenge22.com/[/url]

1967 W110 Universal Wagon, Euro, Turbo Diesel, Tail Fins, 4 Speed Manual Column Shift, A/C
1980 W116 300SD Turbo Diesel, DB479 Walnut Brown, Sunroof, Heated Seats, 350,000+

gavin116

#145
Two steps forward, one step backward...

Well, its day two, and I feel that I have achieved a fair amount.  I began by jacking the car up by the left rear, placed a trestle for good measure, and proceeded to lather the hole in the muffler/silencer with Gum-Gum puty, and stick some Gum-Gum tape over it, to good effect.

Thereafter, it was on to removing the driver's side door card, to redo the padding.  Similar to the other side, there was no plastic lining, so I cut a piece for that door too.  Ham-fisty must have been there before me, as two of the four hangers were broken. (There's the kettle calling the pot black!)

This time you will see that I followed the outline of the old material more closely.  I think the finished result is good, and as such, I was happy to re-hang the door card.  Eagle eyed LHD owners will notice that we have slightly different door handles on the driver's side, it doesn't reach all the way up to the door opener.  I also greased the teeth on the regulator with the lithium grease.

I then replaced the driver's side safety-belts, it was so much quicker now that I had done the other side.  The removal of the driver's seat was textbook, and I only tumbled it forward to remove the safety-belt catch, I didn't actually remove it from the car.  I'm all there now with door cards and safety-belts!

Driver's door card before re-stuffing


Driver's door card after re-stuffing

So, it was time to look at the cruise control, and as Joe had suggested, the cable had stretched.  It protruded about 7mm , and although I adjusted the white plastic nut, this was not satisfactory.  So some lateral thinking, and I decided that a spacer would do the job.  Two cable ties, and some adjustment, and I think this will be workable.  Lets hope it doesn't jamb, although I do know I can always slip her into 'N' if that does happen when I engage the cruise control.

Slack in cruise control cable

Cruise control cable adjusted, uh hum, Heath Robinson style...

I washed the engine down a little with almost neat dish-wash, its quite surprising how oily she gets.  Its a little like painting the Forth-Road-Bridge, I suppose I shall always be at it.

Finally, I connected the electric mirror up, and voila, it works!  Sadly, the same cannot be said of the fuel gauge, which is now very bouncy.  (It ain't DIY if I don't go one step back >:( .) I suspect that there must be an earth problem, not sure what to do next... 

A fuel related question:  should I leave the car almost empty when storing her, or is it better to leave it full to the brim.  In the summer (if you can call it that in the UK) I tend to use the car on several occasions, but it is parked up for winter (which here lasts about several months, although it feels more like years).  And should I use standard octane, or the high octane when I fill her up?

Passenger door card, safety-belt and door mirror

What to do, I like the position of the switch as it is, I don't really want to hack away at my original interior.  Any suggestions?  And no comments about the 1970's Swedish pop group, they're iconic like the car ::)


I do hope all my pictures are working, if they aren't, please send me a pm, and I'll address the issues.  And Oversize, on a final note, you will see that you have to remove the manual mechanism from the mirror, and then you swap the motor from the lecky mirror.  The frame for the lecky one has some studs to 'engage' the lecky motor that are not present on the W116 frame.  I just positioned it roughly, and it seems to stay put, so all well there.  I was going to install a blanking plate where the old mirror handle was, but I have decide to pass the electrical harness through that area, as it would otherwise have been quite a tight fit to squeeze all that wiring under the blanking plate and route it to the inside of the door.

The W123 mirror

The W123 lecky mirror vs the W116 manual mirror


Hack, hack, hack, this is what is removed to make space for the lecky mirror

I have decided that I may well let John Haynes install the new AAV (auxiliary air valve) I think I said WUR (warm-up regulator) in my previous post, but it was merely a momentary lapse in concentration.  He can also do the exhaust, and several other bits that need doing.

So, till then, keep 116ing  ;D

Gavin

And finally Mrs White meets the new SL - Gladys.  Spot the difference?  Our rose has come out, it must be summer?!
1979 450SE "Mrs White"
2022 Touareg-R 3.0TSi Hybrid
[url="http://forum.w116.org/test-drive/my-first-w116-here-at-last/"]http://forum.w116.org/test-drive/my-first-w116-here-at-last/[/url]
[url="http://forum.w116.org/the-org/british-near-london-meet/msg97613/#msg97613"]http://forum.w116.org/the-org/british-near-london-meet/msg97613/#msg97613[/url]

Squiggle Dog

Mama mia, there you go again, my, my! :D Those door panels look mmm... soft. I need to restuff my fronts as well. That's really cool that you got the remote power mirror to work. I would say to mount the switch on a Vekerskurier piece in front of the console wood (you know, the Becker traffic radio knob), but those are super rare.


It would fit nicely right above the hazard light switch, though it would be a shame to cut a hole in such nice wood (I should talk... mine was new old stock without any holes cut in it, even for window switches, but I had holes for seat heater switches cut in mine.)

Yeah, and what is up with right-hand-drive cars having short armrests? Does the steering wheel have an angle to it to where the handle would get in the way? I have heard that the footrests are also wooden blocks, instead of plastic like ours. I have been thinking wood might be a better idea, because the plastic ones always break.
Stop paying for animal cruelty and slaughter. Go vegan! [url="https://challenge22.com/"]https://challenge22.com/[/url]

1967 W110 Universal Wagon, Euro, Turbo Diesel, Tail Fins, 4 Speed Manual Column Shift, A/C
1980 W116 300SD Turbo Diesel, DB479 Walnut Brown, Sunroof, Heated Seats, 350,000+

jbrasile

#147
Hi Gavin,

Great to hear from you and Mrs. White!

As usual your work is both flawless and inspiring. A couple of things:

1) Cruise Control Cable - I don't remember if you've replaced yours but I would do it for good measure. If your throttle jams DO NOT put the tranny into N as your engine will probably race past its red line and you risk major damage! Push hard on the brakes and the car will stop, the brake system has enough power reserve to do the job in such an emergency,   pull to the side of the road and turn  the engine off with the lever in D.

2) Power mirror switch - I would try to buy an extra console wood piece to cut the button hole, that way you have an original looking installation while preserving the factory part.

3) Fuel float - you may have a bad ground, however it is possible the float is just tired and needs to be replaced.

Tks

Joe


oversize

I actually thought the cruise cables were NLA???  One of my old friends jammed a throttle cable in a different car whilst overtaking and melted her plastic hubcaps trying to stop!  I'd suggest switching it off FIRST and then coasting to a halt.

If you don't use your cigarette lighter much, I'd remove it for safekeeping and build a new panel in there....

Those door panels now look brilliant!  Good idea with the clear plastic film so you can see the mechanisms without removing it first.

BTW the older I get the more I appreciate how ground breaking ABBA truly was at the time.
1979 6.9 #5541 (Red Bull)
1978 6.9 #4248 (Skye)
1979 6.9 #3686 (Moby Dick)
1978 6.9 #1776 (Dora)
1977 450SEL #7010 white -P
1975 450SEL #8414 gold -P

Squiggle Dog

Good ideas for the mirror switch. Like Joe suggested, you could use an aged center console wood piece, cut out a hole to fit the switch, and then have the wood refinished.

Or, like oversize suggested, you could actually replace the cigarette lighter inside the ash tray with the switch, keeping your ash tray, and also being able to hide the switch out of view unless you need to adjust the mirror; then it's just a matter of flipping open the ash tray, pressing on the switch, and closing the tray.
Stop paying for animal cruelty and slaughter. Go vegan! [url="https://challenge22.com/"]https://challenge22.com/[/url]

1967 W110 Universal Wagon, Euro, Turbo Diesel, Tail Fins, 4 Speed Manual Column Shift, A/C
1980 W116 300SD Turbo Diesel, DB479 Walnut Brown, Sunroof, Heated Seats, 350,000+