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Raptelan's 1980 300SD

Started by Casey, 30 April 2011, 09:52 PM

Casey

This morning before work I decided to have another quick go at the fuel pump.  I sprayed the joint with Powerblaster, beat on the pump with a wrench, and then used a "combination attack" - with both the crescent wrench on the bottom and vice grips on the top.  It felt futile, but I persisted, and suddenly, it broke free!

I was happy to find that in fact the screw threading was the same as the stainless steel threads on the new part, rendering the cheap aluminum adapter completely unnecessary.  I promptly threw it away, and installed the new pump.  I think I don't have any fuel leaks anymore! :D




R.I.P. old buddy:


Casey

Driving this morning...

This is worth watching just for the sweet music. ;)

1980sdga

Glad you got the pump worked out!

Funny, when you first posted about Clarence Carter I was thinking that old novelty song "Strokin" and thought WTF  ;D

That first song is awesome!  So, was he singing about your car? Sure sounded like it  ;D

That road looks a lot like the stretch that I was driving when I fell in love with the 116's. Friggin' magic...

Casey

Quote from: 1980sdga on 06 May 2011, 10:36 AM
Funny, when you first posted about Clarence Carter I was thinking that old novelty song "Strokin" and thought WTF  ;D

Yeah, that's the song I remembered from the 80's when I was at Good Will looking for cheap cassettes to buy to test out my cassette player.  It's definitely the best tape I bought, and very well-suited to driving in a W116.

QuoteThat first song is awesome!  So, was he singing about your car? Sure sounded like it  ;D

Yep!

Quote
That road looks a lot like the stretch that I was driving when I fell in love with the 116's. Friggin' magic...

Yeah, such stretches of road are a lot of fun and make the W116 really shine.

jbrasile

Nice Casey!!!

I am glad the pump replacement worked out perfectly. Sometimes it is better to just wait until the next morning and have another go at it.

You should probably give your engine compartment a good cleaning to make sure there are no other fuel or oil leaks.

A fresh coat of high temp black paint  on the air cleaner pan will make an amazing difference on the eyes too...

Have fun!

Tks,

Joe

calvin streeting

Quote from: Raptelan on 06 May 2011, 09:15 AM
Driving this morning...

This is worth watching just for the sweet music. ;)

and thats why i like these old girls... a good tune on the radio, and a long road to no where... enjoy :)

1980sdga

Well, I fell in love with the benz while listening to Radiohead ;) Mostly night driving...

Speaking of night riding, have you checked your regulator?

Casey

#22
Quote from: 1980sdga on 06 May 2011, 07:00 PM
Well, I fell in love with the benz while listening to Radiohead ;) Mostly night driving...

My first experiences riding around in a new Mercedes was in the late 90's, that my boss had bought, listening to Enigma.

Quote
Speaking of night riding, have you checked your regulator?

No.  It can be checked?  I just ordered a new one.  Well...it hasn't been shipped yet, but it should be sent soon along with a new vacuum hose to replace the broken one in my engine bay.  I have noticed that my glow plug light never flashes when the headlights are at full brightness, so there seems to be some connection.  I should probably just buy a new battery next paycheck, too.

Casey

I got the right motor mount replaced!  It really wasn't that hard once I got the right tools.  I ended up buying a breaker bar and socket adapter, which released the big bolt that screws in from the bottom.  Then it was just a matter of jacking the engine up enough with a floor jack and piece of wood (I used a pretty square piece of firewood) under the oil pan to the point that I could squeeze in a hex socket attached to a universal joint.  Then I linked together extension after extension (using every one I had) to get to a point where I could attach the ratchet.  This worked great, and I had no problem swapping in the new motor mount from the Classic Car Center.  The old mount was obviously more cheaply-made, and was STK brand.  Fair warning to anybody considering cheapy motor mounts!  It's definitely running somewhat smoother now, and I don't have to stuff a bunch of cardboard between the air filter and the body to keep it from badly knocking.  However I now feel remaining vibration more towards the driver side, and if I hit a bump hard enough the engine makes a knocking sound on the driver side as well.  That motor mount is a pretty new one but probably another cheapy.  I'll be replacing it along with the engine shocks and transmission mount in the near future.

Really I'm just being finicky - the car was already running smoother than any other diesel I've owned when I bought it, and now it's considerably better.  But I'm going to see just exactly how perfect the car was engineered to be.  Every part I'm replacing is getting OEM replacement parts, so it should hold up for a good long while.

I also got the power antenna working a little more - the rubber O-ring at the bottom of the mast needs replaced - water was getting in and there was corrosion between the mast pieces I managed to free.  I did not manage to free the bottom two mast pieces, even by wrapping them with grip tape and using vice grips to try to get them to turn independently.  Powerblaster didn't help either.  Ideas welcome for what to try (can just the mast be ordered new?)...

1980sdga

#24
Enigma, "Rivers of Belief", "Principles of Lust".  I remember listening to that on cassette in my Renault  ;D

My first ride in a Benz was a friends SLK (I think, the 2 seater, late 90's?)  I don't remember being terribly impressed with the car.

Didn't you say your lights were dimming?  Mine was doing that before my voltage regulator went out  :o  

Oh, good you got the motor mount fixed!  I gotta agree, OEM is the way to go. I've had some problems with cheap parts.  My low mileage car had factory shocks and 3 of them appeared fine. Only one had leaked down.  30 years and 100,000 miles ain't bad  8) It still has the factory exhaust which has held up well considering the salt my car has seen!

That looks like a nice primer pump. Was it made in Germany?

Squiggle Dog

Nice driving footage! Sorry to hear about your collision with the 300SD, but it looks easily repairable, though I can't see if it's dented.
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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+

Casey

Quote from: jbrasile on 06 May 2011, 03:48 PM
I am glad the pump replacement worked out perfectly. Sometimes it is better to just wait until the next morning and have another go at it.

I don't easily give up, and I really want to do everything on this car I can myself so I know it intimately.  Oftentimes it's just a matter of getting the right tool, or asking for advice on a different technique, or going about it in a more bothersome manner.  :)

Quote
You should probably give your engine compartment a good cleaning to make sure there are no other fuel or oil leaks.

I bought a can of heavy duty degreaser today.  A good thing too.  There was tremendous amounts of grease under the motor mount.  There's still tremendous amounts of grease throughout - I am hoping to find something I can attach my landlord's huge air compressor and a hose to, in order to pressure wash the thing.

Quote
A fresh coat of high temp black paint  on the air cleaner pan will make an amazing difference on the eyes too...

Yep, I was already planning it!  Just hadn't added it to my wishlist above yet...

Casey

Quote from: Squiggle Dog on 06 May 2011, 08:09 PM
Nice driving footage! Sorry to hear about your collision with the 300SD, but it looks easily repairable, though I can't see if it's dented.
The driver door has some bothersome dents.  I may try to find another door as I'm not sure how easy they would be to repair - it will be a while before I have the resources to consider talking to a body shop to find out...



Casey

Quote from: 1980sdga on 06 May 2011, 08:05 PM
My first ride in a Benz was a friends SLK (I think, the 2 seater, late 90's?)  I don't remember being terribly impressed with the car.

The first I rode in was new in 1998, but it was an S-class.  I remember standing up out of the sunroof along with my boss's kids with Enigma blasting on the stereo.

Quote
That looks like a nice primer pump. Was it made in Germany?
It's Bosch, so I would imagine so.  It's part number 000 090 88 50 - available from the Classic Car Center - talk to jbrasile here if you're interested - he's really knowledgeable about these cars and where I've managed to get nearly all of the part numbers I want from, listed in the first post in this thread.  I'll probably be ordering most of those from the same place as funds allow.

I definitely highly-recommend the Bilstein HD's.  I replaced my front shocks with those in my last car and boy what a difference it made.  Don't forget the rubber bumper pieces (forget what they're called) that go at the top of the shocks when you replace them.  They're not often installed, but you'll be happy you did when you hit a hugenormous pothole or a speedbump at high speed...

Casey

Quote from: Raptelan on 06 May 2011, 08:04 PM
I got the right motor mount replaced!  [...]  It's definitely running somewhat smoother now...

Oh yeah, baby.  Did a fair bit of driving tonight.  It was really smooth at higher speeds.  Thought I was doing 40, but the speedo said 65.  It was hard to tell I wasn't going 40 until I approached 85mph, at which point the worn driver door seal caused enough wind noise to be bothersome.  Can't wait to feel it with the other mounts/shocks all replaced along with all the rubber seals.