I was wondering if anyone has done anything to the dull gray #### shaped plastic behind the chrome on the grill at the front of the car. Is it replacable with anything? Has anyone tried painting it? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Mike

I had mine painted along with the bottom half of the car. You can have a look at the results with this image:
http://stormworks.max3d.com/collage_1low.jpg

I like the results...just make sure that whoever does the job uses hi temp paint on the grill strips and a flexing agent, as the handle that pops out when opening the hood slightly flexes the strip at that spot.

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Chris Singh
1983 300D 200k+ (stopped odometer)
1990 300E 123k
1999 E430 12k
http://benz.mp3car.com http://stormworks.max3d.com


Also, I have seen many grill inserts for 124's come and go on ebay so you might be able to score one cheap to test on...

[This message has been edited by flipSyde (edited 02-04-2000).]

Mike:

When I hit a deer at 25 MPH, and it dented the chrome grill surround and crushed in the plastic grill, I went to my local MB dealer, who sold me the plastic grill for $29.00, without the chrome strips.

Bekkers also sells them, cheaper, but by the time postage is added, the price difference was $2.00, so I bought from the dealer.

Since I was paitning the grey plastic black anyway, I decided I didn't want the bright horizontal strips. This makes the car look very nice; no chrome in the grill, and since my car is black, the black grill is very tasteful.

I used spray aerosol cans for plastic materials, and have not had any trouble with paint peeling or chipping. Sure, if a stone hits it the paint may chip, but it can then be touched up very easily, and we're back to normal. The plastic grill is removed with about 8 screws (German engineering again), and be careful with the ones that are deeply recessed. If they fall into the cavity (you'll know what I mean when you look for those screws), you'll have a heck of the time retreiving that screw, though it can be done with a magnetic probe.

If you need more details, just ask; we are here to help......Andras