Hey I just upgraded to a 260E from a 240D (which most people know a 5 year old on a tricycle can beat this car in a 1/8 mile race). I was wondering if there was anything to give my car an extra boost with avoiding nitrous. I'm looking for either a cold air intake, chip, or possibly a turbo. All of my closet friends run american F-body cars pushing way over 300 hp. I'm looking to be less embarrased when I drive with them. Obviously getting the 260e over the 240d was a step in the right direction but still not all the power that I want. Don't get me wrong I'm not trying to put 400+ horsepower in a car that's 16 years old to show up my friends, I just want a little extra kick in my car for those warm summer days and long curving roads. Any input on what I can do without totally killing the bank account would be great. Also I'm about to have this system installed. If anyone has any comments good or bad about the set up please let me know before I spend the money and end up sorry that I did.

http://www.cardomain.com/sku/BOSRIP896
http://www.cardomain.com/sku/PIODEHP6700MP
http://www.cardomain.com/sku/PIOTSA1057
http://www.cardomain.com/sku/PIOTSA6991R
http://www.cardomain.com/sku/ROCPL1112

Thanks for all who can help me out!

The main problem is that the engine is not tuned for performance at all. If you can work on cars then you might want to think about putting a 320 engine into it or better yet get an el cheapo 190E and tap the experience of those that have done the 190E to 3.2 conversion. http://www.car-part.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?userSearch=exact&userPID=1000&userLocation=All+States&userIMS=&userInterchange=%5B%7C%7Br&userSide=&userDate=1993&userDate2=1998&dbModel=49.13&userModel=Mercedes%20320&dbPart=300.1&userPart=Engine&sessionID=882&userPreference=price&userUID=0&userBroker=&iKey=&userPage=3

The 2.6 is a SOHC and just too detuned. Nitrous is definitely the best bang for your buck if you want to keep this engine but it will still only get you up to maybe a 320 level. I dunno how much you have to spend but if you know how to work on cars I imagine getting a 3.2L engine or rigging up a turbo system for it would be the best way. The problem with turbo installs is that they usually take a ton of time to do and the costs get out of hand quickly.

Exactly. By the time that's done and all the issues are sorted out, you'll be at the realization that starting with a 400E/E420 was a much better option.

[QUOTE=Cr260e88] All of my closet friends



don't ask
don't tell

Sell the 260E

Buy a 400E/E420

or if you really want to move 500E

Faster yet E60

__________________
1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Have you taken cost into consideration?

Two things to consider.
One, a V8 W124 may have more power but, it does not handle nearly as well as our I6 motored 124's. How do I know this? Well, I own both. Besides the 500E is supposed to have a sporty suspension and the stock E320 still out corners it. I'm not even going to mention my 300E, it's almost Formula 1!!

Secondly, What's the fun of just buying performance. I think it's much more fun building performance. When I finish my 300E I fully plan on tearing apart the 500E and modding the hell out of it too.

Just my 2 cents!
Adam

__________________
Current Stable:
01 ML55 AMG
92 500E (a few mods)
87 300E (lots of mods)
00 Chevy 3500HD Diesel Box Truck
68 18' Donzi Marine
06 GT i-Drive7 1.0 Mountain Bike (with GPS!)

PREVIOUSLY OWNED:83 300SD, 87 420SEL, 88 420SEL, 90 420SEL, 86 560SEL, 86 190E 2.3-16V AMG, 94 E320

MB are not cheap cars to modify.

Personaly I would buy the fastest stock car made then modify from their. I'd rather start with a 275hp V8 then a 170ish I6. Both are probably going to cost a small fortune to tune for a large increase in power.

At least with the 500E you have a better suspension that can already handle the power.

He didn't mention handleing and a stock W124 with a better set of tires can probably give his friends F bodies a run for their money. I would be surprised if its stock brakes were not also better.

__________________
1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

I honestly do not know of anything other than NOS that you can do to a computer controlled MB engine without having to hack the computers and replace a bunch of junk. I keep thinking that there must be something because the engines are really good and have a ton of potential because they are not tuned for performance at all. If MB would open up their computers like Honda does there really wouldn't be much competition on the street. These engines are over engineered and most of the items that everyone replaces when building a fast Honda or Chevy etc. are already there. As far as I can remember the 3.0L was 177 and the 2.6 was 150-160.

I think cost and also hassle is the main reason to just buy the best you can get stock. As I am finding out anytime someone makes a Mercedes sedan into a race car it surprisingly does start acting like a race car. The first week I had my car I blew off the intake hose, a couple of vacumn hoses, and a fuel line. This means having to fix stuff all the time, not letting someone drive it because if they don't know what gauges/warnings to watch etc. they are very likely going to blow something up, and having to adjust things that are normally automatically adjusted via a computer with built in safety margins and sensors that know when to shut things down before something bad happens. To not have these issues is to either spend a fortune on updated components and computer systems + enormous amounts of time or to do moderate modifications. Good gauges alone for a turbo install will run ~$1K. I think NOS has got to be the cheapest and easiest system for stock MBs. I personally don't want it because A. I don't need it and B. I prefer having power on tap all the time but it is definitely worth considering IMO if you are trying to get the best bang for your buck and still maintain the character of your car.

Not only is a 400E going to be much more powerful than a 260E, it is going to be quieter, silky smooth, and have a more comfortable and luxurious interior. As to handling it isn't boaty but having a sporty suspension and a stressless long distance road car currently seem to be mutually exclusive. I have never really considered the cornering ability on a 400E due to the small tires worth assessing from a performance standpoint. When I put low profile wider tires on my 400E I must say that body roll etc. was greatly decreased and I wouldn't be afraid to take on some sports cars with it like that. Also braking was excellent. I have never done 1/4 mile times but 1/8th mile trap speeds were comparable to a Mustang GT and times were not too much slower i.e. 9.7-9.9 seconds. As I reached the end of the track I would always start pulling on them pretty hard and between 80 - 130 the 400E really takes off.

Yeah, If I could afford a Ferrari F-50 I would hack and mod that up too.

You have to understand, not everyone can afford paying $15K plus and then throw $5 - $10K into mods. I know I can't.

Adam

__________________
Current Stable:
01 ML55 AMG
92 500E (a few mods)
87 300E (lots of mods)
00 Chevy 3500HD Diesel Box Truck
68 18' Donzi Marine
06 GT i-Drive7 1.0 Mountain Bike (with GPS!)

PREVIOUSLY OWNED:83 300SD, 87 420SEL, 88 420SEL, 90 420SEL, 86 560SEL, 86 190E 2.3-16V AMG, 94 E320

He meant buy the fastest car that you could afford and then wait until you could afford to modify that. A good idea I think unless you really want the performance right away and are able to work on cars.

Yeah, but the original question was "how do I modify my 260E" not what car should I buy for performance. Obviously the guy is interested in working on his car or he wouldn't have posted the question.

Alright let me clear this up. Right now I am in college I have about $2K I'm willing to use to play with my car. I got this car for free from my grandfather he didn't drive this car much and I just got it when he replaced it with a new Acura 3.2TL. I'm going to put around $800 in the sound system and the rest I will either put in the engine or keep in my bank account. I am not really looking to turn a 16 year old car into a Ferrari, however I don't want to be at a stop light and be embarrassed by a dump truck. I know you guys know a lot about Mercedes but I have played around with Camaro's and Mustang's my whole life and don't know much about cars from across the pond. If this car isn't running 9 sec 1/4 miles by the end of June its not going to ruin my summer I will still have an amazing sound system. I was just wondering if there was a little something I could do like an intake or maybe could I adapt a turbo from another model around the same year and give it a little extra power. This is just a car for me to fool around in for the time being and get good gas mileage while I save up for a Shelby Mustang when it comes out in a year or so. I don't know much about turbos because I mainly play with roots superchargers, but could I add a turbo from like an 88 300D turbo or isn't there a gas model for around the same time with a stock turbo? I know I'm not going to melt my tires with a stock turbo but I'm only looking to gain maybe 30-50 hp max. If I don't get it and end up with like 10 extra thats fine too. But is there anyone one who knows a little something I could do for a reasonable price that doesn't involve swapping an engine or buying another car? If so let me know but thanks for everyone who has responded so far. I know making this car any faster is probably not worth my time or money but maybe there is something I'm over looking Thanks a lot!!

__________________
My Garage....
1983 Mercedes 240D 4-Speed Manual Near Mint
1988 Mercedes 260E
1999 Chevrolet Tahoe LT
2001 Chrysler Sebring Lxi
1997 Bayliner Trophy 150HP Mercury Offshore OB

Neither can I, what I am saying is MB's are built and enginered so well you can't bolt on a better intake and headers for $1k and see a big gain. Like you can with an LT1.

Frankly I wouldn't put $2k into the car because you won't get much. Maybe you could bolt up an exhuast and get a slight gain. Put $800 into the sound system and $1,200 for a nice set of wheels and go for rides in your friends cars and let them beat the crap out of their stuff.

For example I would like to turn my SDL into a super diesel but to do it properly would probably cost at least $5k, lots of custom parts and playing with stuff. Also I need to be able to afford to blow an engine and a trans. Not a good project while I am still in school, someday when I have some extra money I will do it but not now.


I'd save the $2k for a killer set of wheels or exhuast for the Shelby!

__________________
1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Thanks for the advice I figured that would be the case. I kind of regret selling my 2000 Camaro SS LS1 but the insurance and gas would never let me afford my Shelby. I'd have to say the difference between 380hp and 150 something..... is like a bicycle and a fighter jet. I used to be able to tape a $100 bill on the dash and bet someone $100 that they couldn't pull it off with me taking off in first gear, but those days are in temporary retirement. The Benz is smooth and handles tremendously but I can't wait to start my next chapter with my new Shelby. I'm only 20 so I guess its good to take a short break now than later

__________________
My Garage....
1983 Mercedes 240D 4-Speed Manual Near Mint
1988 Mercedes 260E
1999 Chevrolet Tahoe LT
2001 Chrysler Sebring Lxi
1997 Bayliner Trophy 150HP Mercury Offshore OB