just joined the r107 club. its a driver1984 280sl

[C.Doner]

I just drove a bit to pick up this car. I liked the color and straight body. I could not find but a small bit of minor rust on the passenger floor pan. The clearcoat is peeling on the trunk and top It seems tohave some paintwork on the front of the vehicle, but i see no issues showing an accident or anything. The interior is shot unfortunately. I may have to go with MB tex.
I plan to get it running properly and have the ac fixed. I think i needs a blower fan. It blows fuses when its hooked up.
It has issues but i'm trying to get it to idle nicely at 750RPM but it lopes all over the place. I suspect the warm up controller and or single wire o2 sensor. I see these later 280 euro's dont have much support as far as info on the fuel and emission stuff.
It did pass smog barely with high HC. It starts instantly when cold with no roughness. When hot sometimes it takes a bit of cranking to start and will idle rough for a few seconds. It then idles ok for a little while then begins to lope up and down about from 750 to 600 or so.
I read as many old posts as possible to get information, but there seems to be not much information available.

[meltedpanda]

welcome, nice looking car
I would strongly suggest you get this book

How to Tune and Modify Bosch Fuel Injection by Ben Watson
it will help

A lope can be a lot of things, first rule out vacuum issues .
The key is doing one thing at a time, the fuel air delivery system in these cars is complicated but with patience somewhat easy to troubleshoot
How many miles, any service history?

[C.Doner]

It does have extensive work done to the AC. I have not gotten it to work yet because of the blower fan . The compressor looks brand new along with the ac hoses. I think the fan could possibly be the last thing needed to get it working.
It seems the work with the smog systems has been done recently as well. There is a door sticker with smog info dating 2012.
its definitely not a candidate for an original restore, but i may justify some new seat skins. It wont be the original cloth unless i can get some new cloth sewn to my old leather. I do not even know if that will work. I have seen the raw material for the cloth seats, but it seems it would be cost prohibitive to completely restore the seats that way. Using new cloth with old leather seems odd, but may be an option since it looks well intact. MB tex may be my best option. I would love nice cloth seats though.

[rowdie]

You won't find anything on the emissions system because it is not Mercedes. The 280SL did not have it.

[C.Doner]

I just did an air fuel adjustment and the idle is greatly improved. The Lope is gone. I still have kinks to work out but it runs quite well. I got a great deal, but i gave the PO a good deal too.
I kinda feel l saved this car. The PO was a young chap not even 21. A computer guy going into the service. He new nothing of cars. I asked him if he checked the oil ever and he says. It has got an oil gauge whats the need. i'm like i hope this dosn't mean anything bad.
Whan I got it home I changed spark plugs and cap and rotor. All the plugswere well worn but no fowling at all. I did all the rev testing check for blue smoke and there was none.
It has good power and starts when its quite cold with only a click of the ignition. However it does start slow when it is hot. Maybe its the accumilator. Where is that? I have no book yet. I must order it. No one even seems to stock the Haynes 280e repair manual.

[rowdie]

Here is a link to the on line service manual. Model 107
The chassis info. is generally the same. Use the '84 380SL for most. The accumulator is part of the fuel pump package located behind the right rear axle.
The EPC is also a great source for looking up parts. The subscription is free to US residents. You need to provide a credit card number to prove residency but it will not be charged. You also need to be on a PC as MAC and other OS not supported. EPC-net Online
I have 3 107 Euro models and the EPC allows me to cross part numbers to similar US models. I huge help and money saver.

[C.Doner]

I went to get a new key and tumbler for the ignition. Mine was aftermarket, I want the original key back. The dealer does not have it on file, not in Germany or anywhere. They could not tell me the delivery date either. Weird. Then I asked about the fuel system. The dealer lists a carburetor. Im like what! Then I go look the car up on detail.ru. They say its a Carb too. I then look over the list of fuel system parts and I realize the CIS system is called a Carburetor by MB.
I thought for a minute my car had been converted from carburetor to CIS.

[Druk]

Originally Posted by C.Doner

It has good power and starts when its quite cold with only a click of the ignition. However it does start slow when it is hot. Maybe its the accumilator. Where is that? I have no book yet. I must order it. No one even seems to stock the Haynes 280e repair manual.

Try full throttle when engine is hot. That works for mine. Accumulator is third item beside fuel pump and filter under rear end.

Edit...sorry, Rowdie already said that.


.

[rowdie]

Don't know why your dealer can't pull up any info. Lack of knowledge or interest? Try the MB Classic Center.
MB-USA Classic Center, Irvine CA - Benzworld.org - Mercedes-Benz Discussion Forum

[C.Doner]

I'm pretty sure they had no information at the classic center. My dealer called them when I was at the desk. I heard the conversation. They told me to use an aftermarket one. I went to a locksmith and somehow they reverse engineered a new key. The locksmith said it is to factory specs. They even gave me a key code and said i could possibly bring it to mercedes and have them decode it and give me a new tumbler. I wonder if that is possible. I could get it back into the system that way. maybe they can work backwards like the locksmith did. The whole key cutting took approximately an hour. Each key was $45 . The high security type key.

[rowdie]

The 280SL 107 was equipped with the D-Jet early on and the K-Jet later just like the 350/450SL(C). The EPC shows the parts for both systems on the 280SL under carburetor for some reason.
I have received the data sheet from the MBUSA Classic Center for three Euro models I own. '81 280SL, '84 280SL and '84 500SL. Never know unless you contact them yourself.

[C.Doner]

It is not the updated subframe I don't think. It looks good though. Is there any way to tell if it is the updated part. I really doubt it, but maybe since its a later model is came with the updated subframe.
I'm going to call classics to see if I can get some more information on this car.
It does start fine when hot when I floor it. The starter still has to turn over a lot though. Cold it starts in less than 1 revolution.
I'm still figuring out the LAMBDA on this one it has three little dials connected to resistors inside the little black box. one says "start cycle", one says "run cycle" , the third says "frequency". They seem to do some AF mixture adjustments when turned.
I'm looking for an old smog machine to buy for me to help tune this thing. It seems they pop up here and there.

[C.Doner]

I believe i am not getting into 4th gear. Its a 722.3. The vehicle owners manual says its a 1st gear start. I definitely only feel two shifts when starting out from standstill. When i am in low it does not shift at all. If I start out in S i feel 1 shift only. Then when I shift up to D it shifts only once more.
I am getting to close to 70MPH at about 3800 RPM. I think I should be at like 84MPH with a 351 rear diff. I checked an online web calculator for gear ratio/ speed conversions. I'm pretty sure i got it right. The tag on the Diff. says 351.
I guess i should check the vacuum module on the transmission. The bowden seems OK, but i dont know I'm playing with that now

[C.Doner]

I found an old smog machine to use for tuning. I ended up needing a new catalytic convertor. I got the engine tuned to about .5% CO and it had 190 ppm HC with a broken Cat. Once i got the New Convertor on it reads 0% CO and 7 ppm HC . Very nice. Although now I just put out more CO2 which I think is worse. But it doesn't smell bad.
The transmission is shifting nicely. It starts in first if I give a lot of gas on start up. I don't have to push the kickdown though. If the bowden cable is adjusted tighter it starts in first with less pedal. It seems fine how it is. I had to play with it for a bit, and may do so again to see how it changes the shifting.

Now for the list of the rest of stuff to do.
1 Blower fan. A fix is already in the planning stage
2 flex joints . This should be at the top of the list actually. they are looking bad
3 ball joints The boots are looking shot . No creaking yet.
4 Subframe bushings. + Por15 a little battery acid light rust spot at subframe mount before it gets worse. Its surface only at this point as far as I can tell.
5 Tires for the front or rear, maybe all four.
6. Fix HVAC vacuum controls under dash.
7 reseal hardtop
8 replace soft top
9 seat covers / interior refurbish.
10 who knows what else.
At least it drives nicely at the moment. thats quite a list. That will take me a long time to complete.

[RadioTek]

The flex joints should be your FIRST item on the list. If one of them goes, you are in a LOT of hurt, and not just financially.

Check Your Flex Discs - Benzworld.org - Mercedes-Benz Discussion Forum

Follow the links in the thread, you will be convinced.
Scott