front lock elements leaking

I have a 1997 SL600, my soft top wouldn't go down because I had a lack of fluid in the reservoir. It seems my front locks elements are leaking very slightly. Is there a rebuild kit for these? I was looking for a place to buy them or a rebuilt kit online but I don't seem to find either.

Also, I filled up my reservoir today after manually puting the top down and it won't go up the whole way, is there a way to "bleed" the hydralic lines? I am reluctant to put it up manually like I took it down because when I did the two front elements squirted out a bit of fluid which made a normally pleasant ride a bit of a irritant. Of course, the Mercedes Dealer said I had to use only Mercedes hydralic fluid which I really doubt...however I paid the 20 bucks for the 2 dollar fluid anyway

Fortunately my baby is parked in the gargage tonight, as usual, so it's okay to leave it down.

Thanks in advance for your help

Robert

[TheV12pwr]

I have the front hydraulic cilinders,they are used but in 100% working condition.
Will sell for $160 (both)
part #129 800 16 72

Let me know ...and good luck!
Sistem is selfbleeding.

[whitcre]

just replaced both my top cylinders. paid $114 each - new. tried to rebuild but could not find the correct u-cup seal (tried some o-rings but did not work)because it is a special size. i am an expert now after doing and redoing. if you need some advice on tools and how to, let me know.

Whitcre,

Please tell me where you ordered them. I found some at the local dealer but they are around 50% more than your price. I would rather have new ones that might last a while. Also if you could maybe detail your process to show where you ran into difficultly to make it easier for me as well as future readers. Thanks in advance for your help.


V12,
Thanks for your offer.

[Carlos Serrano]

Try the top of this page, click on buy parts, follow the menu, this is the best choice for parts, Fastlane sponsors this forum, any problem call Phil at
the 1-888-333-4642 number on the parts page.

[5280BENZ]

Hi rakyn,
When I removed the hardtop on my 1999 SL500 ,which had been covered up for the winter, and attempted to raise the soft top it also would not go up all the way. After a resync of both windows the soft top closed perfectly.

I finished replacing my leaky struts last night and wanted to share my experience for others that will have the same problem. I was able to aquire part #129 800 16 72 for 128 each net including shipping. It is the same part for each side it just flips over. I found them online anywhere from 128-160 net and also at a local import parts dealers for 143. You can use Febi-Bilstein part #0009899103 for hydralic fluid it cost around 8.50 and is the same as mercedes, I verifed it by talking to one of the gents on the buy parts link above. The installation is very simple, just a little time consuming the first time around. It took around 1 1/2 hours to do both. You will need allen wrenches, torx wrenches (which I like to call star), a phillips head screwdriver, standard metric wrenches, blue loc-tite, and most certainly a BIG rag. If you haven't already filled the reservoirs you can wait until your done, it might save a little mess. There are six screws holding the cover on. Two on the latches and two on each side, one visible and the other under the rubber just above the visible one. Becareful of the wire, you can unplug it. Then you can set the top aside. A couple of things to note... loosen the allen screws before you remove the torx screws, once you get the torx screws off place the rag (towel) under the whole latch. You can remove the allen screws easier then. When you pull the pins back on the hydraulic lines the lines then remove easy, put your finger over the top hydraulic line as it is the one that will start to squirt. I put the new strut on at this time so I didn't lose much fluid. The only thing you have to do to the old latch is take two of your wrenches and unscrew it from the base. One wrench will fit on the base and the other will on the strut, It is much more simple than it looks. The blue loc-tite goes on the allen and the torx screws, I used red which I am sure will make it harder to take off, if I have to do it again, but it was what I had Please becareful of the hydraulic lines during this whole entire process as you don't want to damage them if you place force on them when you are unscrewing or screwing in any of the parts. The installation is just the reverse, just make sure your hydraulic lines on the strut go in at the same time and into their matching number slot, if you don't find the right number, flip it over. The pins won't fit over the line until you have them properly seated down over the strut. Once you have everthing completed fill the reservoirs...yes there are two, one in the front and one in the back. The one in the back was a surprise to me, it's under the spare tire. Remove the tire, remove the plastic cover and voila, there it is. Fill it, put everything back the way it was and your done. I hope this helps.