New 420SEL! Pics! - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

JamesDean · #1 04-24-2010, 08:59 PM

Hello everyone,

My parents decided to buy another w126, this time a 420SEL with 208k. Car was very well maintained. Its was a 2-owner car. I have a large amount of records spanning the life of that car and it looks like it had a top-end rebuilt and the timing chain replaced. The car is, overall, in good shape. Very minimal rust, paint is in good shape, interior is nice. We picked it up in Columbus and drove it home. The ride was pretty damn smooth and even the cruise control worked. I was surprised. None of mine have ever worked

I'm sifting through the records and will probably throw them in a spreadsheet.

In the mean time enjoy the pics, its a bit dirty. It rained on the way back too.

Few Problems thus far:
-radio wont tune to a station, swapped in a 90' 300SE radio..worked fine
-creak in the passenger side front only when wheel is straight
-windows switches are detached
-engine seem underpowered for some reason given amount of Hp/tq it has
-needs passenger taillight
-a few broken bulbs

As for fuel economy..we seem to have gotten just under 200 miles at 1/2 tank..does that sound good to you guys for a m116?

Pics here->
http://imgur.com/a/573AP/1989_mercedesbenz_420sel/5

Let me know your thoughts, comments and suggestions!

Thanks,

Kris

JohnM. · #2 04-24-2010, 09:48 PM

Looks like ya did pretty good. It shouldn't be that slow. Mercedes says it should do a standing 0-60 in a regal 8.2 seconds. Which is just slightly slower than the 300E. Did you try pedal to the floor?

Creaking in the suspension is some bushing/tie rod end/etc...most likely. You should easily be able to top 20mpg highway, 17ish city.

bsmuwk · #3 04-24-2010, 09:50 PM

Nice!

JamesDean · #4 04-24-2010, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnM.

Looks like ya did pretty good. It shouldn't be that slow. Mercedes says it should do a standing 0-60 in a regal 8.2 seconds. Which is just slightly slower than the 300E. Did you try pedal to the floor?

Creaking in the suspension is some bushing/tie rod end/etc...most likely. You should easily be able to top 20mpg highway, 17ish city.

Well I didnt time it or anything. I figure the cat might be done for or something like that.

It looks like we got 190 miles to half tank..so around 18.5-19mpg with the AC on..

My seat-of-the-pants meter says my 190E 3.0 has more acceleration.

latief · #5 04-25-2010, 01:44 AM

Nice car,,,,,

coolant is low, check for leaks

JamesDean · #6 04-25-2010, 01:47 AM

Thanks! Will do. My 300SD sits at the same level too. I'm going over the maintenance logs now. interesting stuff...guy paid a dealership to put the license plates on one time. guy had an oil change done in december..and another one in january. drive 4k miles..

Here are the records I have thus far from new to 1997--just over $12k in stuff
http://viewer.zoho.com/docs/udK3o
(ctrl+scroll wheel to zoom in)

simonshearer · #7 04-25-2010, 08:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesDean

Hello everyone,

My parents decided to buy another w126, this time a 420SEL with 208k. Car was very well maintained. Its was a 2-owner car. I have a large amount of records spanning the life of that car and it looks like it had a top-end rebuilt and the timing chain replaced. The car is, overall, in good shape. Very minimal rust, paint is in good shape, interior is nice. We picked it up in Columbus and drove it home. The ride was pretty damn smooth and even the cruise control worked. I was surprised. None of mine have ever worked

I'm sifting through the records and will probably throw them in a spreadsheet.

In the mean time enjoy the pics, its a bit dirty. It rained on the way back too.

Few Problems thus far:
-radio wont tune to a station, swapped in a 90' 300SE radio..worked fine
-creak in the passenger side front only when wheel is straight
-windows switches are detached
-engine seem underpowered for some reason given amount of Hp/tq it has
-needs passenger taillight
-a few broken bulbs

As for fuel economy..we seem to have gotten just under 200 miles at 1/2 tank..does that sound good to you guys for a m116?

Pics here->
http://imgur.com/a/573AP/1989_mercedesbenz_420sel/5

Let me know your thoughts, comments and suggestions!

Thanks,

Kris

My initial reaction when I bought my $1k project 420SEL was the same about feeling underpowered. I was able to improve the "power" big time by taking some relatively simple steps:

Immediate actions to take...
1. Replace all the spark plugs and make sure they're gapped correctly; also make sure the leads are all connected properly.
2. Replace the rotor under the distributor cap.
3. Have the timing checked; of course if original, the timing chain is well overdue.
4. Replace ALL the fuses - even if they look OK the tips get corroded and sometimes they get hairline cracks in the weakest point.
5. Replace all the rubber connectors, on all the vacuum lines, and check for any breaks in the hard lines.

JohnM. · #8 04-25-2010, 12:08 PM

I wonder why the right head camshaft/rockers were done twice (1995 + 1997)? Why do the records stop at 1997? Did they stop servicing the car or stop keeping records?

JamesDean · #9 04-25-2010, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnM.

I wonder why the right head camshaft/rockers were done twice (1995 + 1997)? Why do the records stop at 1997? Did they stop servicing the car or stop keeping records?

The right was done in 95 and left in 97. Sorry typo on my part. Thats all the records I have for the car, I believe that is when the 2nd owner acquired the car. These where what was with the car, I'll have to ask the guy if he has any others laying around.

I'm not sure as to why they were done. I imagine if the chain jumped then one would do both at the same time?

From the looks of the paperwork, we are the fourth owner. The first two owners were very diligent in records keeping and oil changes. They seemed to have owned the car up to 170k. From 170k to 200k was the guy we bought it from.

JamesDean · #10 04-30-2010, 10:03 PM

So I took her to the shop this week to get a report of what she needs :

1) Full Tune Up
She's running platinum spark plugs right now

2) Timing Chain
3) Ball Joint
4) Front Shocks
5) AC Compressor is leaking oil. Visible dripping..not sure if this can a simple o-ring fix or I need a new compressor...

Everything else looked pretty good. Mechanic said is a pretty solid car.

tinypanzer · #11 04-30-2010, 10:45 PM

Be careful, it can be risky putting your license plate number out there. I'd blur it. Last thing you need is somebody claiming they saw you do __________ and now they're suing.....

JohnM. · #12 05-01-2010, 12:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinypanzer

B Last thing you need is somebody claiming they saw you do __________ and now they're suing.....

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