Quote:
Originally Posted by Graham
Nice looking car and unusual color!
The pad I just removed lasted 14 years. Car is always garaged and driven about 2500 miles in 6-8 months each year.
I could just buy another pad. But I would like to see and feel it first! Not too impressed with the ones I have installed in past on two of my cars.
Hard to know what "original" is:
This site sells an OEM pad, but doesn't say who it is from. They also sell Febi, Meyle, GK.
F.C.P sell the Febi pad and they say that is OEM! Low price!
AA sell a pad that they say is OE but no brand name. They also have Meyle.
OE and OEM are misleading. Says the company is or was a supplier to MB of some parts?
One other thing - Some of these pads have a heat shield above the turbo. Apparently only needed for California cars?
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Ideally, ordering direct from MB would eliminate any guessing. Unfortunately, the W123 hood pad is NLA from MB, so that means your choices are all aftermarket. I would go with the Febi. It has the same waffle type pattern that genuine MB hood pads have, though that's not a real reliable indicator as to whether it's really OE/OEM. In my experience, it seems all MB diesel hood pads start to turn into dust after 10 years or so, regardless of brand. Check out Pierre's video on installing a hood pad. I usually use 3M 08090 adhesive, but he used a different type of glue from MB. That might help your pad last longer?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcYQWiCP3Kc