question about W123 hood hinges
 

On the W123 models, are all the hood hinges the same across the board, from coupe to sedan to wagon? Or are they unique to their own specific model? I need some to replace the ones in my 1978 300CD. Thanks.

Since from the firewall forward all sheet metal is the same. It stands to reason all the hood hinges would be the same.

I do not believe the metal is the same to a coupe vs the rest of the models.

front grille may be the same, but the fenders are different, as well as the hood, IIRC...
the hinges should be the same. you could pull yours, and post a pic of it here, and we could post a comparison with a ruler in the background...

From what I have read and seen in the yards, the coupe Dash Board forward is all the same. the windshield, Roof line, back glass, deck lid, rear quarters, doors and seats, are all coupe specific.

The Hood Hinges should be the same.

Charlie

Fenders
 

I am quite certain that sedan and coupe w123 front fenders are different.

It's a minor variance, having to do (if I recall correctly) with the contour of the leading edge of the coupe doors having a different profile.

I Googled "Mercedes W123 fenders", what I came up with, is, the fenders,
Hood, and deck Lid are the same part #.

Charlie

I couldn't remember so I looked 'em up on the Russian EPC site (EverythingBenz - Mercedes-Benz Forum and Web Search Using Google)

I picked a 123.130 chassis and a 123.043 chassis

Same!

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...1&d=1320939677

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...1&d=1320939677


I've got some more similarities posted here

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/304154-w123-sedan-saloon-w123-coupe-differences-information-reqd.html

Oh sorry I forgot to say the Russian EPC doesn't list all the part numbers for the hood hinges (it is a stripped down racing snake not the real thing). So I can't help the OP.

ah
 

Apologies for having been the purveyor of suspect factoids :o

My hood hinges were destroyed in an unfortunate accident wherein some fuggin guy didnt latch the hood correctly & it opened on the freeway at speed. I bought the car from him and am in the process of piecing it back together. Amazingly, the hood appears to have survived the incident relatively unscathed. Sadly, the same cannot be said for the windshield, with its crazy "gasket/seal" that costs more than the windshield itself!

Anyway, so I'm needing some hood hinges for a W123. VSTech PM me if you have any you'd like to sell. I know you're a busy guy, but it'd be cool if you could make your girlfriend/wife/little sister/personal slave get them to UPS to ship to me in Arizona.

ya need springs too, or just the hinges?

Oh, good thinking! The springs were tortured during the aforementioned incident, so I need those too.

Best get some WD40 or Liquid Wrench on those old hinges to help free them while-you-wait. I had the same issue and mine are rust welded to the sheet metal.

Army had some troubles with hinges a while back - had to drill em I think.

The hinges and levers are the same on just about all 123's in America.

certainly NOT true!

77-81 has a short hook, and pin mount, while the 82-85 has a LONG hook and bolt mount...
be wary of where ye get the hinges from!

The epc has the same part numbers for the support and lever for the following chassis':
123.023
.033
.053
.123
.130
.133
.150
.153
.190
.193

I'll happily take pictures of the different mounting structures between the models, also the length of the crook in the hinge for comparison.

So I was wrong. There may have been some issues with strength and they modified the design somewhat I suspect if this is the case. I have seen 123s with weak beaten hood hinges.

There was no reason to suspect they had been abused in any way either.

Must be that adding the turbo, increased the amount of stress to the hinges from all that extra torque. :D

Charlie

Hmm... maybe he should post pictures of the hinges so that a visual comparison could be made. Pulling them first would make for even better pictures.

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/tech-help/287176-w123-hood-hinge-repair-nightmare.html

And they're still not fixed!!!

hood hinge problems are the worst. mine are in a crisis too. who can i hire to show up at the garage while the engine is out and try to fix the fcking thing?

I tried to get mine out and failed. I even used a ball joint splitter and couldn't get em out.

Ended up bending the sheet metal and misaligning the joint. I'll probably have to drill em out and make a tool to bend it back with heat and leverage.

I'm not prepared to do that, right now, so my hood looks ghetto atm on the wagon.

I can't help unless you happen to be in Holland! However, if you stick your location in your sig then perhaps there's someone nearer by who can.

I reckon anyone who has got more than 8 hours experience of drilling out rivets would have no trouble. Look for someone who has worked repairing old fashioned brake shoes on trucks, trains, and tractors or someone with aircraft sheet metal experience.

In my opinion you are better off climbing into the engine bay with the engine out so you can get a better "angle on the dangle" and drill stuff out. Now is the time to do it. But as Codifex Maximus says that metal is really easy to bend out of shape.