My new hobby: 1979 300SD

[jollybits]

My wife and I were looking for a car on the cheap. My parents both started driving older Mercedes (a 300D and a 300CD) and they introduced me to a mechanic friend of theirs who rebuilds them for fun.

Through him I was able to find this beauty. The owner wasn't a fan of the hands-on care that it needed, so he was moving to a newer car. I took it for a test drive and then bought it for $1500 and took it home.



Over the 4 weeks since I bought it a few minor issues have popped up, but I've been able to fix them with a little help.

I hope to take a few more pictures today when my wife gets back. Let me know if there is any part of the car you want to see more of!

Update:

That first picture was taken the day that I bought the car. All I had with me for taking pictures was my phone. I just took some time to take a few pictures with a real camera. Here they are:


Front.


Front again. Cracked fog light lens, replacement lens in the mail.


Passenger side.


Back.


Driver side.


A bit of the interior.


Center console.


Original (I think) radio.


243k miles. Previous owner put in a new, out of the box engine a few years ago.


Under the hood.


Closer.

[Squiggle Dog]

I am so jealous! You scored big-time. I cannot believe how perfect the paint and interior are for what you paid for it, especially with a newer engine. I used to live in Washington and had a 1979 300SD in Milan Brown just like yours. When I got it, though, it had already been parted out, the interior was missing, and the paint was cracked all over.

I went down to Oregon to look at one that looked as nice as yours in the pics for $1,500. The seller said it had a brand new engine, but when I saw it in person, the front end was smashed, the paint was bad, and the interior was fried. The pics in that ad must have been about 15 years old. I passed.

I've got a 1980 300SD now.

[jollybits]

After taking it for a drive I was pretty shocked that he only asked for $1500. I didn't even try negotiating, just got out my check book.

It does have its share of quirks though. The air conditioner blows hot air, which sucks because the weather is starting to heat up. A week ago I had to open up the driver door because the pin that connects the key cylinder to the locking mechanism snapped. Also the sound-dampening foam on the inside of the hood is brittle and starting to detach. None of that is too bad though, and I've spent less than $50 keeping it up so far.

I am debating about what to do with the radio though. It seems criminal to get rid of such an awesome piece of the past. But the tape deck doesn't work and I really would like to listen to some actual music while I drive

[Casey]

Yep you scored a nice deal on this one!  Quite a lovely specimen, $1500 was a great deal!  I hope you enjoy the car though are willing to invest properly into what it will be needing over time.  The pad that goes under the hood is inexpensive and not hard to replace yourself. - Just lay down a sheet over the engine bay to keep it from getting all filthy and scrape all the old bits off, then glue the new one on with a couple cans of 3M spray adhesive applied to both surfaces.

[jollybits]

Thanks for the tips. I'm probably going to replace that pad this coming weekend. Also changing my oil because I'm not sure when the previous owner did that last.

On another note, I've decided to replace the stereo with something more modern. I'm hoping to replace the speakers and speaker wiring at the same time, but I'm having trouble finding speakers that will fit without mangling my dash.

I read in a couple places that the front speakers should be 4" and the rear ones 5.25". Luckily I still opened up the front ones before ordering. Mine appear to be 4x6", but with 3 screw holes. Like this:


(not my picture, but these are the same model)

I'm having trouble finding 4x6" speakers with the holes arranged like that. Anybody have experience doing that?

[oversize]

You'd be well advised to remove the bonnet to stick on the pad as it'd be very hard to do upside down with gravity working against you.

It's extremely unlikely you'll find speakers like that, so I'd look for something that fits in the hole provided and make up an adapter plate.  Were they fitted to the top of the dash pad, or at the front of the dash?

[Casey]

On another note, I've decided to replace the stereo with something more modern.

I don't think that's a good idea - a lot of cars have been molested with aftermarket radio conversions and original setups are rare and desirable - but if you go through with it, let me know - I'd love to buy your existing radio!

[jollybits]

You'd be well advised to remove the bonnet to stick on the pad as it'd be very hard to do upside down with gravity working against you.

It's extremely unlikely you'll find speakers like that, so I'd look for something that fits in the hole provided and make up an adapter plate.  Were they fitted to the top of the dash pad, or at the front of the dash?

I'll keep that in mind when I change the pad. The speakers are fitted on the top of the dash, underneath the original grills.

I don't think that's a good idea - a lot of cars have been molested with aftermarket radio conversions and original setups are rare and desirable - but if you go through with it, let me know - I'd love to buy your existing radio!

I can understand the appeal of the original radio, but I'm very particular about my music. AM and FM radio don't really do it for me. Especially since all the stations that play music I enjoy are 60% commercials/talk. Once I've taken out the original radio I would love to pass it on to a new owner. Keep in mind though that the tape deck isn't functional.

[oversize]

To be honest I think the pinstripe radios look quite dated in a W116...  They're from the wrong era!

I agree that good sound is critical if you want a fun cruiser.  If you do modify the car, just do it in a way that doesn't detract from the original tasteful style and try to achieve that while allowing the car to be returned to standard by a future owner.  In saying that though, I can't see why anyone would want to put those old speakers back in the car!  As long as the grilles look standard, no-one would ever know (apart from the fact it sounds far superior to the original).  Back in the day car manufacturers didn't care about sound systems, so new components would be light-years ahead of what's in there now.

At the end of the day it's your car and you have every right to enjoy it the way you desire

[littlefin]

It is possible to get direct replacements from the old country 

https://www.koenigs-klassik-radios.de/en/loudspeaker/front-loudspeaker-for-mercedes-benz-w116-08-1979/a-31146/?plentyID=v27kmodssgi31ib3ca05sul5u2

But it depends how anxious you are for an exact replacement

[Casey]

I can understand the appeal of the original radio, but I'm very particular about my music. AM and FM radio don't really do it for me. Especially since all the stations that play music I enjoy are 60% commercials/talk. Once I've taken out the original radio I would love to pass it on to a new owner. Keep in mind though that the tape deck isn't functional.

The tape deck can be repaired.  I'm not sure what is involved but I know it is possible to send the unit to Becker USA for reconditioning ($$$).  May be just a simple belt replacement or something.  In any case I don't have enough original radios at all, and I love them so.  Now as for the speakers, those just generally aren't so hot after years of sun exposure and use.

[jollybits]

I'm sure it can be repaired. I'll let somebody else worry about that though, and enjoy the result as well. For now I've ordered a new stereo to put in.

A couple or people have expressed interest in the original unit, so once I've removed it I will post in the shop sub-forum and give people a chance to make offers etc.

Can anybody point me to a guide for removing the original radio? I want to leave it in the best condition possible.

[Squiggle Dog]

I don't have a guide, but usually the knobs pull off, then the nuts behind them come off, then the faceplate lifts off, then there is a 10mm screw on each side with retaining brackets that need to be loosened so the whole unit pulls out. When I remove them from vehicles, I go through the trouble of removing as much of the wiring harness as possible (usually complete), but you'll want something left for installing your new head unit.