If you are looking for something that will be a consummate track car, I suggest you look at one of these....



Since you've already got a 300E, I would sell that and attempt to get the "iS" model with the Getrag 5-speed. A skilled driver will pull a 7.4 second 0-60...without any modifications. First mods I would buy would be an exhaust and a Jim Conforti or Dinan chip, then some suspension components, maybe a short shifter after that....yeah.



-Sam

Seems to me as though your car is plenty quick! When I first got my C280, I wanted more horsepower also... but now I have really come to appreciate the power that I have! And it's not slow... I get to 60 mph in 7 seconds easy (well barely ).
You don't need to be going too fast... I love flying away from stop-lights... but how fast do you really need to zoom away?!
You have a great car... I'd keep it that way! I have added a K&N air filter and I felt as though it revved easier/faster at higher RPMs, but this is unconfirmed. I would give it a shot if I were you... but I wouldn't start cutting away.
There are better things to spend your money on... such as fixing problematic areas of the car (top end rebuild...? interior touch ups?).
Whatever you decide, I wish you the best.

__________________
2006 E350 w/ 155k miles (Daily Driver)

Previous:
1993 300E 3.2L Sedan w/ close to about 300k miles
2003 E500 Brilliant Silver (Had 217k miles when totalled!)
1989 300E with 289,000 miles (had for <1 yr while in HI)
03 CLK 500 cabrio (Mom's)
2006 C230k (Dad's)
1999 S420 (Mom's/Dad's)
2000 C230k Sport sedans
2001 CLK320 Cabrio (Mom's)
1995 C280 My First Mercedes-Benz... (155k miles. EXCEPTIONAL AUTOMOBILE. Was Very hard to let go of!)

Chris,

I have the same car as you. It does feel slow off the line when driven normal but if you mash the throttle this car screams. Now I have ridden in a corvette c5 so I know a little about what 0-60s in the 4s feels like. Ive tried the k and N with not much improvement except more intake noise. I think yopur best mod for the money would be a diffrential swap so you'll take off faster. Or you can trade in for a 400e or e420. Just be glad you dont have a 93 300e which is slower cause of the additional weight. Our car is the fastest of the 6 cylinder 124s. These german bombers are best cruising the highway at triple digit speeds without breaking a sweat.

Hmmm... the 93 had 217 horsepower though...! I believe the 93-95 E classes with the M104 are slightly faster than the early year W124s (lighter weight)...
Though not as "nimble."

__________________
2006 E350 w/ 155k miles (Daily Driver)

Previous:
1993 300E 3.2L Sedan w/ close to about 300k miles
2003 E500 Brilliant Silver (Had 217k miles when totalled!)
1989 300E with 289,000 miles (had for <1 yr while in HI)
03 CLK 500 cabrio (Mom's)
2006 C230k (Dad's)
1999 S420 (Mom's/Dad's)
2000 C230k Sport sedans
2001 CLK320 Cabrio (Mom's)
1995 C280 My First Mercedes-Benz... (155k miles. EXCEPTIONAL AUTOMOBILE. Was Very hard to let go of!)

Even tho the newer 300Es have more horses, i have also read that the older ones had more kick to them...goto www.Car-stats.com that'll have what ur lookin for.

Thanks for everyones replys

Actually i did if for ya...

1992 Mercedes-Benz 300E 8.6 16.6

1990 Mercedes-Benz 300E 8.7 16.8

1987 Mercedes-Benz 300E 7.5 16

Im not sure how reliable these are. but their site says it only takes credible info now.

Hey, if you want to improve your times a bit, try the r-16 modification and the 470 ohm fuel enrichment trick, they worked for me...

what thread is that fuel enrichment info located in? i remember reading a bit about it but i don't remember where. or, please describe the mod again.

thanks

__________________
dew
86' 190e 2.3L 16v

To be quite frank and to save yourself a full headache of pointless modifications that won't do diddly squat for that slow car (no matter what, you'll NEVER break the 7.0 mark), just buy a W124 500E. You can get a 1992 model for the high teens and you'll instantly be in the high 5's for 0-60.

Satish
1989 560SEC - with M119 32-valver 335hp
1999 E430 Sport

Using cold start valve for enrichment...

and

R-16 Resistor on a 300E ?

And btw... the mods aren't pointless. Even if they give you 5 extra hp, you only have to spend 10 minutes doing them... I think thats worth it.... Nobody has dinoed a 300E with the mods (to my knowledge), but apparently somebody with a 16 valve 190 gained 15 hp with the r-16 mod... and add a very conservative 5 more hp with the fuel enrichment... and you have a 20hp net gain for 10 minutes of work and $.12...not a bad deal if you ask me.

I agree on the 500E though, its a fantastic car, I had the privledge to drive one the other day, and it was a blast. However, some people just can't afford a 500E. Or some people can't afford to pay the insurance on a 500E...

Chris.... just for the fun of it, try to enrole in a performance driving school. There are many good ones around.
The first thing they'll tell you is to slow down. The faster you'd want to go, the slower you would be around the race track. You will learn that going fast, real fast, is much more than pushing the right pedal to the metal. I'll bet you that an average good race driver will have you watch his rear lights (with identical cars) with a 3/4in wooden block under his gas pedal.
Traffic lights drag races really do not impress many people. Real performance is much more than a quick 0-60.
JackD

I met my friend Jay at Bondurant. He brought his bone stock 217hp 944T.

I watched him run circles around a guy with a hot-rod 400hp 911. Jay's been to perf. school many times, including the excellent open-wheel program at Skip Barber.

Before ANYONE thinks about modifying their car, they should spend the money on track time and professional instruction.

I went to my first school with a chip on my shoulder, having raced motorcyles. "I know the racing line..." HAH! I was dog slow.

The previous post is the best advice so far. Forget K&N filters. Forget wheels and tires. Got to school and learn to maximize the performance your car has now.

__________________
John Shellenberg
1998 C230 "Black Betty" 240K

http://img31.exs.cx/img31/4050/tophat6.gif

Jack,

Very good point about track driving and learning about one's car, etc.

However, truth is, 0-60 times DO matter in the real world. And in the real world, it doesn't take much skill to outrun another car from a traffic light, just hp and a lead foot. And in the real world, that Porsche 911 Twin Turbo WILL blast right by a 944T; especially on the highway...and that IS what matters.

Yeah, it's great if we were all on slalom tracks using pedestrians as pylons, weaving in and out of lanes, etc. but in the real world, driving is very linear. You wanna pass someone, push the pedal and see if when he pushes his pedal, who pulls away faster. He who pulls faster, wins the game. That's all there is. For example, sure a 300E is great in turns, exit ramps, etc. I'm sure a skilled driver could maneuver it better than an average driver in a 500E. Still, in the real world, on regular "straight-line" streets, that 500E driver is gonna blast past the 300E guy with no contest.

Satish

Exactly. No contest. So, what's the point?

I didn't suggest that someone take driving school to learn to stop-light drag race. I didn't even suggest it had anything to do with "beating" another car.

1. Most stop-light-to-stop-light races happen in traffic. No further discussion needed.

2. Even on a highway, a pure straight line contest proves little other than horsepower. One day a Z-06 gave my C36 a serious straight line spanking. Didn't bother me a bit. I know that a Z-06 is quicker than any MB. Didn't boost the Z-06 driver's ego either. It was interesting to see just how fast those cars are...

3. Spending your last dime on some HP mod instead of driving school does nothing to up your odds of survival on the street.

In the years I owned my 911 Turbo, I don't remember one straight line speed contest. Not that some others weren't feeling froggy. I reserved that car's speed for solo runs on certain roads, or in a group of drivers I trusted.

__________________
John Shellenberg
1998 C230 "Black Betty" 240K

http://img31.exs.cx/img31/4050/tophat6.gif

No, but you suggested that people forget about spending money on increasing hp, modifying engines to go faster, etc. and spend their money on driving school to better realize their car's current performance potentials.

Fact is, the poster wants to go FASTER, period. Not learn how to outmaneuver a Corvette in a tight bend, etc. He wants to go fast. People want to go fast...usually for short bursts, o-60, 60-80, 1/4 mile, etc. Just go fast. Modify the car to go FASTER. No increase in driver skill is going to cure a slow car when driving on "linear" civilian streets.

Satish