I just moved from an '83 300SD to a 1989 560SEL. Any advice, experience, tips, tricks, or comments?

Anything I should look out for (it has 163,000 miles on it, 2 previous owners)?

Any feedback, positive or negative, would be appreciated.

Pics and details here: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=4536094014

Thanks!!

-gil

what a bargain.... if my volvo dies...

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With best regards

Al

Great car! I just bought 2 of them and am in the process of doing the timing chain job on them both. You should make sure the timing chain guides have been changed, I imagine they have with those miles, a search on it would be a good idea so you are at least familiar with the job. Valve guides might need to be changed if that hasn't been done. I am doing a complete fluid change job on both of mine, synthetic 15-40 engine oil, power steering system fluid and filter change, brake fluid flush with DOT 4 fluid, transmission change with Dextron III fluid, coolant flush with Zerex G-05 antifreeze, rear differential fluid (making sure to use fluid that is specifically suited for the limited slip differential). I also "graduated" from a 300SD, the acceleration diference is nice! I had one of my 560's cruising at 145 mph and it took it no problem, smooth and tight.
Look out for the gas pump, you do know to use premium 91 octane gas don't you?
Other than the timing chain, valve guides, rear suspension accumulators and idle control valve I don't know of anything out of the ordinary to look out for, do a search and you will find all you want to know about those issues.
Looks like you got a good deal there!

Thanks DieselNut for the useful advise. Will do the fluids and check the repair history for timing chain repairs.

Do you really feel that the 91 Octane makes a difference, that it's not just hype? I have to drive it home tomorrow from Chicago, 759 miles and will have to fill her up a few times.

Do you know where I can get a new center console armrest in the same color? It seems to be the only wornout interior item, I would like to replace it.

Looking forward to getting familiar with this 560. Glad to know there are are enthusiasts out there with the same model year.

-gil

Quote:

Do you really feel that the 91 Octane makes a difference, that it's not just hype?

I use premium unleaded in my wagon, just because that's what the manual says to use, as well as the dash guage... I figure the engineers who designed the car know best what kind of fuel to use.
If you run regular or plus instead of premium, a knock sensor will probably retard the timing enough to prevent engine damage, but ... I'm not sure if this engine has one, and why do it on a regular basis? Especially since retarding the timing will cut your gas mileage.
The 560 V8 is made to take you down the road at 150 mph in effortless comfort, not provide good fuel economy.
My gas wagon qualifies as a "guzzler" under EPA fuel economy standards, and I've been using premium in it since acquiring it.
Around here , premium gas is about 16 cents a gallon more than regular, but still cheaper than diesel fuel, at least for now...

Keep an eye on Ebay for a good cheap used one?

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Bob Roe
Lehigh Valley PA USA
1973 Olds 88, 1972 MB 280SE, 1978 Datsun 280Z, 1971 Ford T-Bird, 1972 Olds 88, 1983 Nissan Sentra, 1985 Sentra, 1973 230.6, 1990 Acura Integra, 1991 Volvo 940GLE wagon, 1983 300SD, 1984 300SD, 1995 Subaru Legacy L wagon, 2002 Mountaineer, 1991 300TE wagon, 2008 Murano, 2007 R320CDI 4Matic 52K, some Hyundai, 2008 BMW 535xi wagon, all gone... currently
2007 Honda Odyssey Touring, 2014 E350 4matic

Okay, I picked her up today, drove her two hundred miles.

She downshifts with a "clunk" when I hit the gas to pass someone - not smooth like I would expect.

When I take her over 80MPH the car starts to shake and shimmy a little, mostly in the front.

The ride is not as smooth as I would have expected for a top of the line mercedes.

The left window makes some air noises at >65MPH, as if it were open a little when it isn't.

Right front speaker doesn't work, or I can't find the balance control on the original equipment Becker radio. Sticker says car equipped with "100W 10 speaker premium sound system", sure doesn't sound like one.

Am I being nit-picky with a 16-year old car? Or should I be looking at some maintenece to bring her up to snuff?

Any feedback would be appreciated.

-gil

The whistle might be something as simple as a cracked window seal / door seal / gasket or an adjustment to how tight the door closes.
Try the dollar bill test, close the door on a dollar bill and see if it's uniformly hard to pull out or if there is a weak spot.
Check the ATF level, and cold tire pressures (you mentioned a stiff ride).
On my 1984 300SD I found that changing to Mobil 1 synthetic ATF helped the shifting, but a clunk might not be a good sign. The vacuum modulator can be adjusted ... somewhat.
The shimmying above 80 mph probably means some front suspension parts are worn, or bad tire balance.
My SD took about $1K to get the front end fixed up, and a new tranny might be about $3k...door seals are cheap.
Not sure how the stock radio's are in these cars; my fix is to gut the factory system and install an aftermarket head unit. Although some of the "100W" factory systems do play relatively loud.

__________________
Bob Roe
Lehigh Valley PA USA
1973 Olds 88, 1972 MB 280SE, 1978 Datsun 280Z, 1971 Ford T-Bird, 1972 Olds 88, 1983 Nissan Sentra, 1985 Sentra, 1973 230.6, 1990 Acura Integra, 1991 Volvo 940GLE wagon, 1983 300SD, 1984 300SD, 1995 Subaru Legacy L wagon, 2002 Mountaineer, 1991 300TE wagon, 2008 Murano, 2007 R320CDI 4Matic 52K, some Hyundai, 2008 BMW 535xi wagon, all gone... currently
2007 Honda Odyssey Touring, 2014 E350 4matic

Thanks Robert, I'll have my mechanic check it out.

It burned 2 quarts of oil on the drive home.

How often is a tune-up recomended on a 5.6L V8? Any advantage of Synthetic motor oil over standard? How about shock absorbers affecrting the ride, how often do they need to be replaced?

-g

Gil,

The "clunk" shifts are probably related to soem vacuum control not having as much vacuum as it should have.

Front shake is either a front suspension problem or front tires/wheels out of balance or bent wheels. Have your mechanic pull the tires and wheels off first and check each of them for deformations and then go from there.

The audio balance control switch should be right in the center console along with the window switches. If adjusting that doesn't work, check the fuses. In fact, I'd advise you to change all of your fuses to start the car afresh. I've never heard of a W126 speaker that doesn't work, especially when yours is just 16 years old and has low 14x,xxx miles. A lot of these cars are running around 25 years old and over 300K miles with functional speakers that have never been repaired.

Oh, your car's engine is actually a 5.5L V8. I don't know why MB named the car 560 as if it had a 5.6L V8. Advantages of synthetic over natural, crude oil based engine oil? Just search the forum and you'll get more than you wished for. Oil topics are hot around here.

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1999 Mercedes-Benz S600, 103K miles - garage queen
1988 Mercedes-Benz 560SEL, 89K miles - daily driver
2007 Hyundai Sonata Limited, 31K - daily driver

I'm leaning toward front end suspension problems for the shimmy - tires were installed new and balanced in November.

The audio - I found the right amp lying in the spare wheel well in the trunk. The Left side works fine. The rocker on the console is a fader, front-to-rear, which works. The Balance control is obtuse on the Becker front-end, but I figured it out (thanks to this forum) and there is no signal on the right side. I am sure it is related tro the amp in the trunk, will probably attempt to fix this myslef.

The Becker is useless as the LCDs have gone kaflooey plus it's casette-only, so I'm going to go with a nice iPod-enabled aftermarket head unit with a CD player.

I got the car detailed today, am still looking for upholstery and later in the Spring will get the body work down and hopefully that will be it for a while.

-g

Good to see you're getting the audio problems sorted out. Considering your audio expertise and career, I expected no less.

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1999 Mercedes-Benz S600, 103K miles - garage queen
1988 Mercedes-Benz 560SEL, 89K miles - daily driver
2007 Hyundai Sonata Limited, 31K - daily driver

So...

The 560 is burning about a quart every 10 days (averaging 20 miles a day). Previous service history shows that the original owner brought it in for a similar complaint last year.

I have an appointment Monday for a full tune-up, oil and filter change, caps rotors wires belts etc all being changed out. My indy mechaninc will look deeper than for source of oil consumption.

The shimmy went away once he brought all the tires to proper pressure - I fell like I dodged a bulllet on that one. The car pulls to the left a bit, so will have the front end checked out regardless.

As to the stereo - the box in the trunk turned out to be the vacuum pump, not the right amp. The forum posts say the amps are behind the rear seat, as I have the reclining type I don't see how to easily remove them - the ownemrs manual says only a MB dealer should attempt it.

My installer says that maybe the Becker is the problem - it's old, the LCDs are shot, perhaps it lost its right channel. On Wednesday he is going to install a new HU, and we'll know more.

The only other problem is on starting up and idling, the engine knocks loudly, but not from within the engine - it feels more like a motor mount type issue (I hope that's what it is). It is disconcerting.

The ride is still stiffer than I expect form a cruiser - don't know if it's shocks or springs. It's always something!!

-gil

Wow... that oil consumption is not really normal. You're speaking of 5 quarts per 1,000 miles!! If it is due to the valves, I'd really question why valves with less than 150K are already needing work.

As per the service records, what was done to try and solve the excessive oil consumption issue the previous owner was experiencing? Your motor mounts may be bad depending on how often the car was driven on really rough roads. For just 16 years old, I wouldn't be expecting the mounts to be due for a change already, but it all depends on usage.

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1999 Mercedes-Benz S600, 103K miles - garage queen
1988 Mercedes-Benz 560SEL, 89K miles - daily driver
2007 Hyundai Sonata Limited, 31K - daily driver

Service records show car brought in in June 04 with following customer complaint:

"idle goes up and down - advise

consuming oil - advise

shaking sometimes when it starts - advise"

they replaced 8 spark plugs and charged for 2 hours labor, but it doesn't say what the oil consumption issue was or whether it was resolved.

What's interesting is that it still shakes when it starts, the engine knocks until the idle stabilizes at a slightly higher RPM.

I will have it back Wednesday from the tune-up and wire/fluid/etc replacement, see what my mechanic says then.

-gil

The problems the previous owner was having with the idle (as well as the ones you're currently experiencing) could be caused by many different things. I had the same issues with my 500SEL and the solution to those problems was cleaning out the fuel injectors, adjusting the timing and replacing the idle control unit as well as the idle control valve as they were both faulty. Just bear these processes in mind as your mechanic tries to tackle those problems.

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1999 Mercedes-Benz S600, 103K miles - garage queen
1988 Mercedes-Benz 560SEL, 89K miles - daily driver
2007 Hyundai Sonata Limited, 31K - daily driver