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#1
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Done it again — W123 230TE Restoration - UAE
After a short-lived affair with a 6.9 as a daily driver, I could not reach an agreement with the owner on the price and found myself in the market again for a set of wheels in the UAE. While touring the Industrial Area in Al Ain, I noticed a familiar face...
What a find! I noticed that it had not moved for a while. Peeking into the interior, noticed the mileage (444,000km, about 287k) and the overall bad shape in the interior. In its defense, the car was 99% rust free. But there was this... A sticker from the municipality! Later on I found out the car was heading for the junkyard if it was not moved from its current spot in the next three days. As I tried to decipher the Arabic message, a smiling man approached me. "Salam Aleikkum!" —he said in a cheery tone. He happened to be a Mercedes mechanic and the current owner of the wagon. I asked if it was for sale, and he offered it to me for $1100. Apparently, it ran, so the next day I scheduled a test drive. I soon found out that most of the rubber was gone and the brakes were weak; besides that, the car seemed solid and free of any pre-purchase red flags. Differential was a little bit noisy, but within tolerable levels. Engine and transmission were flawless. I gave him my business card and told him I'd call him that afternoon. The Chairman at the Museum had a brilliant idea, yet a risky one. The owner would not budge under $1100, most likely because of my European provenance (Westerners = big money). So, following his advice, I phoned an offer of $550 that was immediately —yet politely— rejected, and proceeded with the Machiavellian plan: to send one of our workers, a friendly Pakistani kid, with an offer of $680 "for scrap". He accepted. And thus, I am now part of the Cheap Wagon Club with a running, driving, braking 230TE in need of some rubber bits and a lot of cleaning.
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[GONE] - 1995 Mercedes E300 Diesel - 130k miles - Smoke Silver (702) over Mushroom leather (265) - Bladder blasting, coast-to-coast work machine. |
#2
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Nice score and a good story on the acquisition .
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"Senior Luna, your sense of humor is still loco... but we love it, anyway." -rickymay ____ "Your sense of humor is still loco... " -MBeige ____ "Señor Luna, your sense of humor is quite järjetön" -Delibes 1982 300SD -- 211k, Texas car, tranny issues ____ 1979 240D 4-speed 234k -- turbo and tuned IP, third world taxi hot rod 2 Samuel 12:13: "David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die." |
#3
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M102 powered W123 is a really neat car to drive.
Nice find!
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68 280SL - 70 280SL - 70 300SEL 3.5 - 72 350SL - 72 280SEL 4.5 - 72 220 - 72 220D - 73 450SL - 84 230GE - 87 200TD - 90 190E 2.0 - 03 G500 Nissan GTR - Nissan Skyline GTS25T - Toyota GTFour - Rover Mini - Toyota Land Cruiser HJ60 - Cadillac Eldorado - BMW E30 - BMW 135i |
#4
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First order of business is to be able to seat in it. Springs on the driver's seat had collapsed, but luckily I still have one of the seats from the 450SEL 6.9.
First, we remove the front seat. Four 10mm bolts on all four corners of the tracks, and a 10mm bolted to the transmission tunnel track. Close enough! Still, I will buy a correct upholstery kit or good used covers in the near future. Notice the awful wear on the driver's seat back and armrest! Pool noodles are your friends. Mercedes-Benz sells a similar product for an astronomical price, neatly packaged and with the MB logo. I'll save my money to put into other parts! Two full pool noodles will be enough for one seat. Tried and tested several times until I found a good comfort level somewhere in between a collapsed mess and a church pew.
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[GONE] - 1995 Mercedes E300 Diesel - 130k miles - Smoke Silver (702) over Mushroom leather (265) - Bladder blasting, coast-to-coast work machine. |
#5
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Nice one Miguel
When you have the time photographs of the plumbing around a M102 in a W123 will be of great help. But until then - check that single row timing chain!
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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver 1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone 1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy! 1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits! |
#6
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Finally got back to the Museum. Good battery, one turn of the key, and came back to life on the first crank. Will soon start ordering parts... thinking of a SLS delete (car's a beater, and the Arabian Desert is NOT a good place to get stranded) and a few suspension bits.
Parts request here: http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/mercedes-used-parts-sale-wanted/374177-anyone-parting-w123-wagon.html
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[GONE] - 1995 Mercedes E300 Diesel - 130k miles - Smoke Silver (702) over Mushroom leather (265) - Bladder blasting, coast-to-coast work machine. |
#7
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Put it on the lift today to start a parts order. Had a nasty surprise; besides the noisy differential and collapsed suspension, the car has a blown head gasket. Previous owner hid the problem too well on the pre-purchase inspection
Car runs, shifts and drives pretty well; 10 minutes running and it starts overheating. Electromagnetic fan clutch works properly, as does the water pump and electric fan. I'm bummed, but we have a competent mechanic in house and the gasket kit is about $50. Not too much of a headache, I hope. Otherwise, there's a 6.9 in the local auction and local buyers are petrified at the collapsed suspension
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[GONE] - 1995 Mercedes E300 Diesel - 130k miles - Smoke Silver (702) over Mushroom leather (265) - Bladder blasting, coast-to-coast work machine. |
#8
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Quote:
If you are unlucky things such as the pins for the timing chain guides will also be corroded in place. I would expect the valve guides to be shot - just because it has been round the block! You are possibly looking at a head refurbishment if you want this car to be reliable. If the engine has over heated then the head will need to be skimmed. (More tips are available on request - I don't want to bring you down)
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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver 1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone 1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy! 1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits! |
#9
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Miguel, how is this project going? It is good to hear that you are back in the wagon club. It is hard to imagine you NOT owning a wagon.
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All Diesel Fleet 1985 R107 300SLD TURBODIESEL 2005 E320 CDI (daily) LOTS of parts for sale! EGR block kit http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/355250-sale-egr-delete-block-off-plate-kit.html 1985 CA emissions 617 owners- You Need This! Sanden style A/C Compressor Mounting Kit for your 616/ 617 For Sale + Install Inst. Sanden Instalation Guide (post 11): http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/367883-sanden-retrofit-installation-guide.html |
#10
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Be sure to snag that wheel and slip it into your suitcase!
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