No need to look him up, that's who I bought the car from.

I'm sure I'm opening a can of worms here but I'd like some advice on fluids. I am unsure of when all of the fluids have been replaced so I'm going to do them all. I plan on getting all Mann filters so I think I'll be safe there (unless someone explains otherwise).

Is there a reason to go with Mercedes fluids in any of the following categories? I have a Honda and you can pretty much use any fluid with the exception of Transmission which they are pretty explicit to only use their DW-1 ATF. Is there a similar case here?

Fluids:
Brake Fluid - Any DOT4?
ATF Fluid - ?
Engine Oil - planning on Rotella 10W-40
Power Steering Fluid - ?
Coolant - ?

Brake fluid- Any standard DOT3 or 4. NOT silicone based!

ATF- Dexron III or its equivalent. Mercon 3-4 is acceptable.

Oil- The Rotella is a good choice. I'd suggest the 15-W-40 weight. My personal preference is Delo400 but Rotella's fine.

Power steering fluid- ATF

You are on your own for the coolant. The main thing is any coolant can be used if you perform regularly scheduled flushes.

I flush/change my coolant, power steering and brake fluids every two years. Probably overkill but it works for me.

__________________
“Whatever story you're telling, it will be more interesting if, at the end you add, "and then everything burst into flames.”
― Brian P. Cleary, You Oughta Know By Now

Thanks for the reply Mike.

How do you flush your coolant? When I used to do this on my Buick in my youth I'd just use the Prestone flush kit and follow the instructions. I've read about using Shout and a Mercedes Citrus Flush online to really cut through the oil and rust. Thoughts?

As for the power steering do you take the return line off and run it to a jug and run the ATF through it until it comes out clean? Do you know if you can do that with a vacuum extractor or do you need to have the car on and turn the wheel?

Do you use a pressure or vacuum for the brakes or gravity?

How often do you do the transmission fluid? On my other cars that I've had since new I typically do a drain and fill every 30k miles when the owners manual says do a flush at 100,000k. I figure it's easier for me to vacuum extract what I can (usually about half) and put new fluid in. They are Honda's so the filter isn't accessible. It seems like with the 240D I can do a vacuum extraction then remove the pan to drain the rest without touching the drain the plug. Then I read about rotating the torque converter to locate a drain plug to drain that. Then the filter is under the pan.

Coolant- Not a big fan of either harsh cleansers or power flushes. The first time you have to change out the heater core in one of those old sedans you'll understand!

I run the car to operating temp and drain the coolant. You should have a plug on the bottom of the radiator but if not then undo the lower radiator hose and let drain.

Replace the hose/plug, add one gallon of white vinegar, start the car and top off with tap water (don't forget! Baby needs to be "burped"). Drive around for 10 minutes or so with the heat "on" and the fan blowing.

Drain the mix, refill with fresh tap water only and repeat the process.

Fill with a 50-50 blend of coolant (apx. 1 gallon coolant) and distilled/filtered water. Don't use water from a water softened source! Burp baby and you're done.

Sounds like a lot of steps but they go quickly. Including clean-up, about an hour.

I go with the return line method for the power steering.

Gravity bleed on the brakes. Of course you realize I do this every 2 years so I have a relatively clean system. You might consider the power flush for your first time.

On the trans, when I first get the car I do a filter/fluid/Torque converter fluid change. After that, "If it ain't broke...". The two automatics I own both have over 300K miles on them and no problems.

__________________
“Whatever story you're telling, it will be more interesting if, at the end you add, "and then everything burst into flames.”
― Brian P. Cleary, You Oughta Know By Now

I didn't hear about the hood hinge issue....that means your going to be up a creak with out a paddle....I shouldn't even have clicked this one....kinda a sad situation...I do hope you got it for under 1500$...

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So I vacuumed and power washed the hood pockets out and there wasn't too much rust in there just some plant debris blocking the drains. I think it was because there was so much lube caked on. It should be pretty simple to clean and weld in a mount for the spring and the hood hinges.

Also removed the battery tray and sandblasted it. The bottom of the passenger side of the tray was rusted through but there was only minor rust on the wheel well. I have some POR-15 on order and will wire brush and paint it along with the battery tray.

Also got to the shifter bushings under the car. Was a bit of a pain but a little lube and some machined washers and nuts and bolts and it is back together shifting nice.

Is there a reason to take apart the shifter itself to get to those bushings? Is there a "feel" if they are broken?

While under the car I noticed the transmission (rear engine) mount looks pretty rough so I put that on the list. Is there a particular brand to look for as far as rubber mounts/bushings go? The flex discs and centerline support don't look too bad but I'll take a picture and post it to get some opinions.

As a bonus I got to spend some quality time under the car with my 12 year old having a great time.This is turning out to be a fun project. It will be even more fun when the garage isn't 95 degrees.

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