My pad is literally disentegrating. A 7" piece fell off near the grill, above the oil cap. This is the second pad, I think. When I bought the car about ten years ago the pad was in need of replacement, so this current one is about 10 years old. Is this a normal life of a pad?

It looks like I can remove the old pad, but how is it putting a new one on? I'm not sure if the shop that put this pad on did a good job, as some areas of the pad have separated from the hood. Bad adhesive?

I would say screw replacing it, not worth it. They all disinegrate. I would put an old sheet over the engine bay (so as to prevent the junk from falling down in there) and scrape that bullcrap off as best as you can and then clean the underside of the hood off with cleaner and leave it. Not worth replacing the crummy (and I mean crummy) foam insulation. It's junk....it doesn't help the hood paint from being corrupted and it doesn't do anything to keep an otherwise well running engine from being more isolated audibly from the cabin...forget about...get rid of it and never look back...that's what I did......

you should replace it with the proper Mercedes Benz hood pad which is like a very thick fabric and not some cheesey waffle foam.

A hood pad does quiet down the engine noise from the exterior of the car. Compare cars with and without hood pads and you can tell the difference.

Replacement hood pads are not made of that crumbly stuff anymore.

Make sure you clean all that old crap off before you stick the new one on. For a proper job its a two man effort.

Believe it or not. The hood pad and the underside cover were designed to give a better airflow and better cd efficiency resulting in more mile per gallon.

Removal is a DIY thing; just takes time. Installation is best as a two-person thing and is also a DIY thing, but just be sure you set it correctly the first time.

__________________
- Brian


1989 500SEL Euro
1966 250SE Cabriolet
1958 BMW Isetta 600

Does PeachPart sell the new and improved hood pad?

Hmmm, I think I will remove the pad myself but take the car to the shop and have them install the pad since I do not want to mess it up. I also don't have a second helper :|

Is it ok to drive the car with no hood insulation? I'm concerned about the heat on the hood paint.

Protecting the paint on your hood is an important benefit of hood pads. It is also much quieter, obviously.

__________________
" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles

Bought one here last month. I didn't do it myself under the Murphy law rule. Took it to an indy to do. He charged me about $75 to do it. The cost of the pad was about $75 here plus shipping.. $86 in total. Included in his charge was $30.00 or $35.00 he says for the 3M super adhesive (this seems to be the consensus adhesive to use.)
Search around here. There is a thread on this. After reading it, I decided to have someone else do it.
BTW, the dealership pointed it out to me that it needed replacement. Wanted $300.00 to do it.

You can do it yourself, but, iirc, someone suggested having another pair of hands to help in setting the new one up.
Here's one thread.
Hood pad

Yep, new pad (OEM is best) + a couple cans of 3M super spray adhesive will do the trick. That stuff is gross though, I got some on my arms when I did it, and it helps to have 2 people.

__________________
-diesel is not just a fuel, its a way of life-
'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)

I used over a can of the 3M stuff and a roller to help press it down. It is adhering pretty well, but has still pulled free in a couple of places. It is essentially like cementing formica down to a counter top. The 3M adhessive is a type of contact cement. I believe that it's more challenging to cement the hood pads because it is porous material.

__________________
" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles