Preping for a long road trip
 

Yep, taking the SDL on a pretty long road trip to Denver in June to the national conference for the student organization I volunteer for as an Alumni.

From where I am to Denver is almost 2k miles. I'm volunteering my car since everyone else int he group was whining about "my warranty, wear and tear, my tires and brakes, etc get the cheese"

So,what ever I like driving the SDL and it has a lot of room in it for 3 other people to ride comfortably and I can take the sub out of the trunk for everyones luggage.

Here is what I plan on putting in the trunk in case I need it

tow line
spare serpentine belt
spare fuel filters
oil filter and oil
spare H4's for when the euros get here(I have spare H4's already)
Triple A in the wallet
Hand tools
50/50 MBZ coolant/dionized,distilled water
Visa in the wallet
brake fluid
power steering fluid


what else do you think I would need?


I hope to get at least 27mpg with 3 others in the car with me and luggage for them.

The other car that will most likely be going along only has a 11 gallon tank(like most cars today) and no where as much leg room or comfort or anything like my SDL... :)

I bet I will only have to fill up like 4 times the entire way there and at $45 a fill up and splitting it up between 4 people each way its so going to be less than a plane ticket(plus we need cars up there for the week so no rental plus gas for those things)

Now the SDL will pass my SD for mileage......I am at just under 279k.....I'll have to do some traveling! :D

Good luck on the trip! Longest I've taken my W126 on was from Michigan to Florida and back (along with about 600 miles of driving while in Florida)....so about 2,600 miles for the whole trip.....I have since driven my car another 25k with no problems. :D

That's plenty. We've driven Bert all over the country the last 27 years and for over 260K miles and just carry: a couple of quarts of oil, fuel filters and plenty of RedLine Diesel Fuel Catalyst - same for Elvira.

the SDL just hit 280k, I need to do the oil next week

The only things I see you missing are:

Transmission fluid
Jumper cables
A better jack than the factory equipped.

I did almost 4k in my sedan last summer, and the only hiccup I had was a battery dying near Memphis (Los Angeles to PA, long way round). And it led to an interesting story as well, since I got a jump start from a bona-fide pimp and his old Caddy diesel. No joke.

Great traveling cars, I'll bet the SDL will be even more comfortable. Take pics.

I keep a jug of M1 oil in the trunk, a cheap set of ratchets, pliers screwdrivers and a big honkin' hammer (came in handy last week to shut a stuck sunroof! A couple taps on the slide and I was able to close it!)

I also keep a jug of coolant, a jug of windshield washer and a jug of distilled water and one main and two primary fuel filters. Oh, and a roll of duct tape (BEST FIX IT TOOL EVER MADE!) Most of my stuff is in the car because there is no other place to put it. I also have a set of jumpers and my digital volt meter in there.

I also carry AAA and the VISA as they are very handy tools!

In the car is the fire extinguisher, paint can opener used to pull the instrument panel and two instrument panel lights. I had one blow out during night driving and it was a PITA not seeing the gas gauge!

You should be fine on the trip as long as the car is running well during your normal driving. Change the oil before leaving and just drive it. These cars were meant to cruise the autobahn all day at speeds we never reach.

I regularly take mine on 5 1/2 hour trips from WV to NY and do 160 miles round trip commuting daily.

Take some Diesel Kleen along as well in case you get crappy fuel... I carry a small jug of DK for emergencies and a gallon of B100 that I use as an additive when I fill up.

I am lucky the W126 has a 'Three Body" trunk!

Consider carrying a spare regulator. It's small, not expensive ($30) and fairly easy to replace on the road if necessary. It's a bummer to be without electricity in the middle of nowhere. At least the engine will run but it's hard to drive at night without lights.

If you want to be proactive, replace the regulator as soon as you get it and put the old one away as the spare. That way, you have a brand-new regulator for the trip and you have a known good regulator as a spare.

Carry 1 quart of diesel fuel or your favorite diesel additive. Handy for filling the secondary filter before you install it, eliminates a lot of cranking to purge the air from the fuel lines.

I forgot about the jumper cables, I have those already and a better lug wrench.

I do have my nice aluminum racing jack but I dont want to bring that since it would take up valuable trunk space/weight

By FAR, that's the only thing I've ever had an issue with. I keep a nice new one in the 300E glove box out of paranoia.

Drat, so you're already ahead! :D Its an unofficial race to 300k. ;)

as for windshield wiper fluid, I dont use those jugs of blue kool aid.. I bought some of those tables that make like two gallons of wiper fluid at a truck stop..

Oh for heavens sake just sitt in a car and drive some people almost named another car in parts to take along. Get AAA memberships AND DRIVE.

(what are you saying? english please)
nah, thats no fun. I was a boy scout and being prepared is something I do a lot. If the serpentine belt shreds at 2 am I have to sit there and wait for a AAA truck to show up and tow me to a shop where we will have to wait even longer and get a replacement belt at 8 am when everyone else opens up, probably have to get a hotel room as well, then hope and pray there is a belt for the car anywhere near by and hope there is a mercedes dealershop close in case I have to go there.

oh wait, this all could have been avoided if I had a spare belt, a quick change on the road(add flashlights to list) and gee, the time and money saved by a simple belt.

wow.... I'll just let you, un prepared, driver sit and think about that.

Punchy. :D

From being on the road for the last few weeks here is my advice on what to bring:

Ratchet set
Spare filters/fuel line/injector return line
Extra quart or two of oil and funnel
A road atlas
In car cell phone charger


And honestly, if you check and replace some of the stuff you are considering bringing along, such as the belt, you should be fine. Doing it at home will be a lot easier then doing it on the road, I know first hand that it is. Auto parts stores and truck stops are everywhere, so don't worry about having to bring antifreeze or even oil (even though I just said to bring it =]). I've done that drive you are doing, you'll be fine.

Just check everything that might go, and replace it if you even question if it might fail or not. I wish I would have done this with my starter.