300D Turbo Back from body shop!!!- pics

[Veloce300DT]

Hey guys

Just uploaded my new profile pic- my 1984 300D Turbo
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/

I just got it back from the body shop and havent had time to re-size and upload a complete set of pics, so until then check out my profile pic.

-Any dings on the car were removed by dent-pro.
-Pin-stripes were re-painted by freehand- the body shop i use has an
amazing woman they contract to do that kind of stuff.
-Wheels were re-painted in the original MB silver
-Front seats re-sprung & upholstered
-rear seat back top dyed and rear deck re-upholstered (sun faded)
-new grille & hood star
-new carpet & floor mats
-new trunk emblems
-stainless-steel door sill plates reading "Mercedes-Benz"

The car currently has 197K miles. And yes thats original paint except for the DS doors which were replaced after being backed into by my neighbor. More photos will follow when I can get to re-sizing them on my PC.

All work was carried out by Charlie Potts @ California Classics automotive services LTD./L.R. Spencer co. www.oursl.com
California Classics specializes in the restoration of SL Mercedes-Benz.

[t walgamuth]

i though first...new paint... so what...but wow!

that car looks really great! and you didnt paint the whole thing just the doors are new. wow, do you mind saying what it all cost you?

i am definately jealous!

tom w

[suginami]

Absolutely beautiful!

I'd love to see more pics.

[Hatterasguy]

WOW! I am looking forward to getting my SDL into that kind of shape in the next couple of years.

If you don't mind me asking how expensive was it to re cover the rear package shelf? Mine is badly faded and it could use to be replaced or redone.

[Veloce300DT]

walgamuth- Youve got it! The car has all original paint except driver side doors. I bought the car 3 years ago from the original owners in San Diego. They garaged the car all its life. Its still partial to the garage these days.
She gets washed and detailed once every 1 to 2 weeks, and waxed once a month, sometimes more.

The Body Shop total was somewhere around $7600, cant remember the exact numbers. But it included the above mentioned work and the driver side door repair. The paint matches dead on and from every angle, California Classics really knows what they are doing and I HIGHLY reccomend them.

More pictures will surely follow as soon as I can get to my PC. Im on thhe mac right now.

[Veloce300DT]

Hatteras- the re-upholstered package shelf cost $250.00 installed. I was also going to have the entire rear seat back upholstered, but aside from the fading on the top the rest was as new. So I just had the top of the seat dyed, very economical and it looks great. I was lucky to find a car with zero "pinkomino" on the interior aside from the top of the rear seat and outer shoulders of the front seats. But thats all gone now.

thanks for the comments guys!

[Hatterasguy]

Cool, I am planing on giving my SDL a make over next year. I lucked out and found a really good shop about a mile from my house! The owner has been doing body work for 30 years and is a big MB fan. He just restored a 95 S500 for fun, the paint is amazing. The shop pretty much only does body work on high end cars.

[Veloce300DT]

Sounds like you have a good find! I definitely think its worthy every extra penny to have an experienced specialist in the body repair & restoration segment do your work. As some say, you get what you pay for, esp. in this industry.

I think I saw some pics of your SDL at some point on here from a shop meet you attended, and I remember that it really looked sharp! Did u have upgraded wheels and euro headlights?

[Hatterasguy]

I have better wheels but no Euro lights; yet...

I have a good lead on some 1986-91 Euro wipers and would love to find a post 86 euro bumper set as well. However they are hard to find. I'll make do with a pre 86 front bumper if I have to.

Bosch Euro lights will be fitted as soon as I get the body work done. For now the DOT lights are fine I'd rather put the $600 towards body work and get that done sooner.

[turbodiesel]

$7600 is INSANE. You really should have shopped around.

[TheDon]

drool drool. how did you get your chrome and anodized aluminum to look soo nice.. i must know

[Veloce300DT]

TheDon-

Aside from using a chrome polish once every couple of months- usually Never-Dull, I really havent done anything to the chrome or anodized trim. There is some light hazing on the trim running down the C-pillars, but thats about it.

And as far as shopping around- I looked at about 10 shops between Sacramento and San Jose specializing in MB & European makes, and I wasnt impressed with any of them when compared to the shop I chose. They were all either filthy, or did what I would consider poor to average work... I saw lots, I mean LOTS of "orange-peel" finishes that were shown to me as examples of work from many of the shops. Im quite happy with the work I had done, and I dont regret laying down the money I did. The repairs included what was mentioned above, and the largest expense in the process was replacing the old dented doors with new ones and finishing them, pulling the B-pillar back out about 1/4th of an inch. The rocker panel had to be pulled a tad as well. I was hit at about 15mph.

The car looks new, the new doors with fresh paint match the rest of the car in every respect exactly & open and close as properly as new. There were some other items that were addressed that i hadnt listed- little things like replacing window rubber, antenna mast & motor, etc etc etc.

As I said before, you get what you pay for.

More photos to follow, and thanks again to all whom share my excitement!

[Ara T.]

Shes a real beauty man. That old paint looks a lot better than many brand new cars right on the dealership lot... nothin beats that deep, thick and shiny MB factory paint. Those wheels really stand out against the paint too, very nice. Unfortunately those bundts are real hard to keep clean!

[boneheaddoctor]

looks sweet..........

[Veloce300DT]

Ara T.- Funny, now that the wheels are nice I find myself cleaning them at least once a day when I use the car for the day... while it used to be a REAL SOB to get all of the brake dust off of them before they were re-finished, now the dust just wipes right off! Smoooooooth. I love it. I have been using Meguiars NXT detailer, which works great, but am probably going to try P21S wheel cleaner at some point just for kicks.

If you guys havent used Meguiars NXT product line, try it!!! Ive been using the NXT line wax, plastic detailer, rubber shine, insane shine (tires), and quick detailer since they were introduced and havent looked back. Great stuff! I use 303 aerospace protectant on the interior and on exterior rubber trim... esp. on window seals and door seals.