Yep, the SR frame wouldn't loosen from the shell so I used a wide slotted screw driver to pry them apart. I pushed the tip of the screw driver into the joint between the frame and shell then gave it a gentle push. I feared snipping paint off the shell so I never really got them separated much. After loosing the bolts on my parts car the frame came down

I put the seal in twice with no luck getting the lower portion to seat properly. Finally after I lubed it and the metal with Ivory Liquid straight out of the bottle and seated the lower section well before starting the upper part it began to cooperate.

It's is magnificent and I feel quite a bit prouder than I should. I could probably do this start to finish in two hours if I had it to do again. I kept failing and putting the project off and wasted a ton of time doing it wrong.

The side seals are absolutely NLA at this point but there's an aftermarket supplier who claims to have a complete set of seals which fit the 116 123, 126 and a few more. The price is close to 100 bucks and I'm suspicious of the quality of the rubber in that kit. Ebay if anyone wants to roll the dice.

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84 300SD
85 380SE
83 528e
95 318ic