Yes, I tried silicone lube a couple times, and also ATF.

SLD emblem
 

I got the 300SLD emblem installed today. It actually looks pretty good. I also removed the TURBODIESEL emblem to clean and wax under it. I will paint the part black like the other one while I have it off.

It looks just like it was made that way!

If you look up close, you can see it is Hollywood, but hopefully it is good enough to keep most everyone guessing.

Emblem, parts, condenser
 

I had some time today to work on the car. I masked the TURBODIESEL emblem and painted the black stripe. With both emblems on, the back of the car looks complete now. I received the condenser I ordered, and started mounting it. I used some aluminum angle and flat bar. After installing the condenser, I realized I could not get the Gen II W126 fan through the hole in front. I have to put the condenser up through the bottom, but I think there will be enough room to mount the fan first, and then slide the condenser in between the fan and radiator. I also got a box of parts from Pelican. The boots on all the tie rod ends and drag link are cracked and rotted, so I decided to order new ones. I will replace the idler bushings, and steering damper as well.

A Simple Solution
 

"If you look up close, you can see it is Hollywood"

So, drive faster ! :P .

This is beginning to be a stunning automobile.....

Twins (sort of)
 

I visited my neighbor today, and showed him my car. He has an SL as well. His is yellow, mine is ivory. He has been in Europe for the past month, so the car has just been sitting. I inspired him to get it cleaned up and drive it. I will talk him into bringing it to some car shows.......Rich

Meet & Greets
 

I miss your old meet & greets very much Rich .

You and your friend plus any other Mercedes drivers old or new are welcome to our monthly Saturday afternoon meet in Sunland Tijunga .

We usually get one or two R107's .

Nice work Rich. Beautiful car.

I miss them as well, but have been so busy I have not had time to even think of planning one. There is always Super Car Sunday each month in Woodland Hills. I would like to go soon, but it is kinda hot in So.Cal lately! Maybe towards the Fall, I will be attending more shows, and will plan a drive/get-together.....Rich

Thank you Bill and others for your positive comments about the car. I am truly blessed to be able to enjoy it, even with all the fixing going on.


The last major repair is going to be the A/C. There is not much room between the subframe and engine block for the compressor. I may have to notch out the subframe to be able to get more room for the compressor and it's mounting. Paul was able to get it in there and working, but belt misalignment caused some problems. I am thinking of modifying a Gen III bracket. I won't know if it will work till I get the compressor out. That requires the removal of everything above it (P.S. pump and bracket, maybe fuel filter stand). Thanks again all, Rich

AC & Meet & Greets
 

Well ;

Just leave your SLD idling with your AC going, maybe crack the driver's side window 1/4" so whomever bends down to look inside will get a nice puff of frigid air in their face and then look at your card advertising.....

Yes, it's been hot .

Wheel polishing
 

My polisher guy finally got the wheels done today. I/we decided to finish them a little differently than originally planned. He used an industrial strength stripper (only available out of the state) on the entire wheel, but only the paint on the outer rim came off. We suspected the the inner part is powder coated, and only the outer rim is polished. He only polished the outer part, and I will just paint (or have powder coated) the inner. I think they look pretty good like this. He polishes Airstream Travel Trailers, and man they look good!

Good looking wheels. That Airstream looks fantastic. Almost blinding on a sunny day!

Nice Bambi there .

What do you think?
 

What do you think of this paint scheme? I tried out the ivory color on one of the wheels. The paint job is not all that good, so I may have to redo it. I found that Rustoleum Ivory and Almond mixed together is a very good match to the factory 623 Light Ivory (Ivory too light, Almond too dark). I rigged up two spray can guns that point the spray of both cans together at about eight inches away, thereby mixing the colors before landing on the surface of the wheel. It actually worked pretty good. I had to modify the guns a little. I painted the inside of the wheels Silver, and masked the holes so the ivory would only be on the face of the wheel. I am also debating if I should clear coat the entire wheel (polished and painted parts), or just the painted part. So many decisions. Whatever I decide to do, it needs to be done by Wednesday evening, as I am leaving early Thursday morning to drive to Monterey for the Legends car show.

Custom Wheel Paint
 

I think it will look terrific on your R107 .

I should have made it a poll, but this will work:

Thumbs up= 1
Thumbs down= 0

It is important to remember that in matters of taste, everyone else is always wrong .

That's a creative way of mixing paint! The wheel you did has a nice look to it.

Thanks! It is a lot cheaper than automotive paint, and is so close to the car color. The four wheels actually look pretty good. I am planning on using a ceramic coating on the car and wheels. That should protect them for a while, and even keep the polished part looking shiny.

300,000 miles today
 

I knew it was close to 300,000 miles, but had forgotten to look at the odometer and take a photo until it was a mile too late. Oh well, close enough. It was a good time to change the oil, so I did just that today. I will then change it every 5,000 miles.

New tires!
 

I just got back from the tire shop with the new tires and wheels. Since I took too long to decide what tire size and brand, I had to go with the only tire that was available today that I could afford. I needed them done today, as I am leaving early tomorrow morning to drive to Monterey for the car show. The tires I was able to get are Mastercraft made by Cooper. I really like the tread pattern and the size, they will look good on the car. The tread is not like your basic soccer-mom mini-van passenger car tire. It is a little more aggressive, and has larger blocks. It looks more like a performance tire than the others I have seen for this size. Now to clean and ceramic coat the rims before installing them on the car.....Rich

The SLD with the new tires and wheels
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...1&d=1565831782

You were right about them being a perfect color match.

Two Tone Wheels
 

I tolja they'd look sharp ! :P .

Some years back I had a VW Rabbit Rag Top and slapped some of those Coopers on it, they stuck well and wore reasonably well too .

They do look great! Good work!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Squiggle Dog You were right about them being a perfect color match.

Thanks all! I am actually pretty happy with how they turned out.

Mats and plates
 

I got back from Monterey, only to find the Coco Mats and license plates I ordered had arrived. The mats are a perfect fit, and they match the color of the car both interior and exterior. I ordered the natural color with white spots. The spots are actually ivory, and match the exterior of the car almost perfectly. If you have an Ivory/Palomino car, this mat color choice looks excellent.

Brass expansion tank
 

Paul sent me a "care package" filled with parts for the car. The most exiting part was a brass expansion tank from a W116. I took it to my local radiator shop and Charlie took it apart, sandblasted the inside, and soldered it back together. Today I started the job of polishing it. It looks pretty good! I will finish it and post a photo.....Rich

I finally got the entire tank polished. I am thinking some kind of clear coat would be good. What do y'all think is best?

A clear ceramic coating would probably last the longest.

I thought about that, and I am sure it would last longer than any spray clear coat. I did the paint on the car and the wheels with ceramic coating, and I have some left. I will apply it before installing the tank.

Speaking from experience, I polished and then waxed mine and it tarnished in only about a year or two. So, I painted mine black as it would have been from the factory. A clear coat or good ceramic coating might work, though.

ATF leak and front brakes
 

ATF leak

The transmission has developed another leak. Upon inspection, it appeared to be coming from the gear selector shaft. I ordered one from our sponsor (among other parts), and cleared my schedule and the use of a lift to change out the seal. Thanks to Kent (you all know who he is, and the videos he makes) for the info on replacing that seal. The shaft was easily removed by removing the bolt holding it on the shift mechanism. The detent roller arm needed to be removed first, thereby taking the pressure off the mechanism. I used a screwdriver to pry the old seal out. I then used a deep socket and a bar (against the trans tunnel) to press in the new seal. The whole job was actually much easier than I had anticipated. I am sure it would be harder in a 123 chassis, as there is less room in the trans tunnel area. Lowering the rear of the trans should help.

Front brakes
The brake wear warning light came on a few times lately, so I ordered front brake pads and wear sensors along with other suspension parts a week ago. I removed the rotors, and took them to my friend (Gerold has a full-on machine shop in his garage) to be turned. I installed the rotors and calipers, and then the pads and sensors. I pushed the pistons all the way in, and could barely get the pads to slide in. I am thinking that maybe there are two different thicknesses of pads and/or rotors. Even though the rotors only had a few thou taken off, the pads fit very tight. I imagine if I had new rotors, I would not be able to get the pads inserted. It all worked out good though, the wheels turn freely and the brakes work great! The pedal is nice and firm as it should be. You can see in the last photo where the lining has worn down to the sensor. I'd say the brake wear sensor system worked flawlessly!

A/C compressor mount
 

I decided to remove the compressor and mount so I can modify a Gen III mount to fit. I am using my welding fixture (617 block and oil pan) to mock up the plate and braces. I had to grind off the two ribs on the upper pan, as well as the tab casting sticking out just above the upper pan. The engine in the car already has the tab cut off, as it had a highly modified version of the Gen II bracket. I will need to grind off the ribs of the upper pan in the car. I have the plate modified and ready to weld together. Extensive modifications were needed on both the front and rear braces. It looks like it is going to work! If it does, this would be great for those that are using this engine in another vehicle that has limited room for a Sanden compressor. This really tucks the compressor close to the engine. More photos coming as the job progresses.......Rich

Expansion tank and heater ball valve
 

I got some time yesterday to work on the car. I was feeling some heat coming in the cabin with the CCU off, so I am suspecting I have a bad/failing monovalve. Until I get a chance to fix it properly, I installed a 3/4 PEX ball valve in the place where there was an elbow connecting two hoses. Since I drained the coolant, I wanted to install the polished expansion tank as well. Upon removing the plastic tank, I noticed much oil below the crankcase vapor/oil separator tank. I found that the adapter from AN to NP was broken. I will find a new one today. I had to drive the car, so I just connected the breather hose directly to the air filter, and removed the oil separator completely. I will need to clean that area real good before installing the separator. I also replaced all the fasteners with new metric ones.

Oil separator
 

I went to my local speed shop and bought an AN fitting for the oil separator. It was the perfect size to drill and tap for 1/4" pipe. I used a 7/16 drill bit, and then taped it for 1/4" pipe. It worked perfectly. A little Teflon tape, and the tank is ready to paint and install!
EDIT: Sorry for the bad photos......

Bits & Bobs
 

Looking goo Rich ! .

Always remember : there's a turbo vent on the bottom of the pop off valve so depending on how much oil goes out your exhaust you may find an oily passenger side block on a regular basis .

Looking goo? :-)

Oops
 

I have fat fingers , they match my head :P .

Or, some other excuse I'll think of later .

I'd surely love to test drive your 300SL - DT, I'm sure where I like to drive out in the Desert canyons and mountains it'd be sweet ~ very sweet .

The original tank on my 72 SL is brass and it is painted black. Same with rad tanks, so at least consistent :) On 85, was rad plastic?

1985 W123 Radiator
 

Yes~ it had black plastic tanks and an aluminum core .

My 72 has brass tanks. A year or two ago, a seam on bottom tank was leaking. I was going to pull the rad and either try and resolder it myself, or get a local rad shop to rebuild it with new core. Then just by chance, I was scanning kijiji (like your CL) and found a guy who had a long list of NOS Mercedes rads. And he had one for my 72! Shipped it to me and total cost was about same as rebuild of old rad. It was made by Behr. But it looked like someone had done a rough repair and repainted a small area on top tank. I cleaned it up and found that what they had done, is epoxy over the MB Star and then repaint! I guess they were not allowed to sell genuine MB parts!

PS: Sorry to hijak thread.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/t40qc3dvbf...star2.jpg?dl=1

No hijack taken, it's all good.

Metal Radiator Tanks
 

My '77 & '78 300CD's both had factory brass tanks too .

One was rotted away and I was able to find another good used one to clean up and install .

The other I bought an aftermarket (? Chinese I assume ?) all brass radiator from the junkyard and had a new four row core installed into the poorly made brass tanks, it worked flawlessly but didn't look very good to my eyes .

I'd love to find some N.O.S. BEHR radiators for my turbo equipped Mercedes Diesels .

Condenser and fans
 

Yesterday I got around to mounting the condenser and fans. It was quite difficult because the fans had to go in from the front opening, and then the condenser slid in-between the rad and fans, and up through the bottom. After bolting the fans to the condenser, I bolted them to the car. Most all the nuts had to be held with a magnet on a stick, or sticky taped to my finger to get started. The hose routing is going to be a challenge, but doable. The next project is to weld up the compressor bracket.......Rich

SLD in our local parade!
 

I was chosen to drive the Grand Marshal in the Hesperia Days Parade today. It was quite an honor. "Rockin' Our Disabilities" was the theme. Bruce sustained a head injury during a High School football game three years ago. He had to learn how to walk, talk, and do most everything else we take for granted. He has fully recovered, and you would not know that he was disabled.

VERY cool ! .

I love seeing young folks moving ahead .

Congratulations Rich. I am sure that Bruce thought it was a real treat to ride in such a beautiful car. It’s great that Bruce is doing so well.