1984 190 2.3 Purchase
 

I am in the process of acquiring a 1984 190 2.3 with a 5-speed. It has some rust, yet is very solid. I have two items to repair and I am seeking wisdom for these repairs.

The first repair is my biggest concern. The key will not turn in the ignition unit, thus the steering wheel can not be unlock to turn the wheels. The keys work fine on the truck and doors. Since the key must be turned to remove the tumbler I am uncertain how to get this unit removed. Any thoughts?

The second repair is the front springs. One is broke and the other is cracked. Has anyone ever replaced theses or should I take it to a shop for this repair?

Usually when the key is turned to the #2 pos, there are holes in the front plate where you push in a couple of large paperclips and the tumbler assy is released. I had the same problem with my parts car so I just used a slide hammer to remove the tumbler assy and then turned the ignition switch with a screwdriver. Alternately you can estimate where the holes would be and then drill there, but you may get more aggravated. Since your tumbler assy is toast anyways, why not just drill a hole in the plate and pop it out to get the car started. Go to the dealer with your registration and order a new tumbler assy; it will come with a spare key as well.

The front springs are really easy to replace; you don't even have to remove the strut assy, just get the car high enough.

The ignition in my '88 300E started to get very difficult to use a couple of years ago. My mechanic convinced me to have it replaced immediately, saying that if it failed and locked up, he would need to "break the steering column" to remove the ignition unit. Sorry I can't be more specific, but I hope that helps...

-John

When ours in 300E failed out in the boondocks I called 800.for.merc

The procedure was to keep trying, i.e. put a lot of muscle into trying to turn the key. It worked. Clearly you don't want to have to do this very many times

One key is already broken from doing that.

This one feels as though the wheel lock is jammed.