Introducing "Peachy" My 1991 190E 2.6!
 

A few of you great people have seen me around either going a few years back working on getting my Son's (Ps2cho) 300TE and 260 upto speed and fixing issues, and my own "cheap'n'cheerful" 1984 190D that is ongoing...
Well, the 190D seems to have slipped from my grasp into the hands of various children, and as it is so loved by them(they are paying their own gas!), I just don't get a look into driving it.... But am expected to fix it!
So, I was kinda looking for something for me... and maybe to pass on to my next driving child(16 now) next year.
I looked at some 300sdl's I liked but what I wanted I cannot afford, and what I could afford was not what I wanted!

I think I struck some gold!
I found this stunning 1991 190E with 88k miles! A California babe I named "Peachy".

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...c/DSC07683.jpg

No history in my hand yet, but it seems to have spent a lot of its life being pampered and under cover.
The paint is all original from the look. No sign of repair or damage aside from a few chips and door dings. I plan to clean, claybar and lay down a deep coat of wax in the next week.

The interior is immaculate. Seats and carpet are super clean, dash is uncracked, and no sign of the fading that I see on so many. No sign of it having been smoked in. A nice Sony CD player is working nice. Only thing I spotted so far that needs fixing is the drivers seat side needs reattaching to the frame.
All the electric windows work, as does the Moonroof!
The A/C is not working, but the good news, its still R12, so unmolested! A sticker under the hood tells me it was recharged 5 years ago, and dye added, so I will check pressures, and break out the UV lamp.

Mechanics, look good, Oil pressure is 3 bar at anything over 1500rpm and a bit over 1 bar hot at idle. The oil looks ok but I will change it in the next 2 days. Not sure if I will go sythetic or just good old Rotella.
Engine is super clean in general, but signs of some weepage on the valve cover and maybe front cover... all normal stuff.
The Ignition system will be gone thru as its needs it, and the Hoodpad needs replacing.
It is as clean as a whistle underneath, and looks like it had a complete exhaust system recently with a Cat too! Fresh Bilsteins all around bode well too!
More to come later, but wanted to share as I am very pleased!

So, going thru Peachy today and making a fix list...
My AC tools are in storage, so I will start on some other stuff.

1/ The Power locking is not working at all... I searched for a troubleshooter here but found nothing on the 190... anyone got some pointers for me?

2/ The Exterior mirror foot/mounting are crazed a little... anyone know where I can find them?

3/ Whats is the best Transmission fluid... my son says Redline?

Great car, they handle nicely.

The locking problem could be the electric vacuum pump underneath the rear seat. Check to see if it's working.

The rubber exterior mirror boots are cracked on mine as well. As far as I can tell you can't buy those things without buying the whole mirror assembly. $$$ Let me know if you can find them separately.

Yes, I would definitely say that Redline D4 Synthetic is the best ATF for the car. Redline anything is ultra-great stuff. I use Redline Shockproof Heavy in my rear differential as well.

I used Shell Rotella Synthetic 5W-40 for a couple of oil changes, it was fine I suppose. However I just switched back to Mobil-1 Synthetic 10W-30 High Mileage and the car seems to like it better. The Rotella is cheaper but seemed to need changing more often. Other people with cars running the M103 engine swear by the Rotella. It's probably all pretty much the same.

I found a filter and Rotella-T 15-40 locally so i did that yesterday.
The oil I drained didnt look too bad but I love to start with a baseline of fresh fluids all around.
I will order some redline and a filter with my stack of other items.
Changing the oil is always easier with the airfilter housing off, and I wanted to look around and check stuff too.
In doing this I found a vacuum nipple on the front LH side of the intake manifold exposed and sucking air... took me a while to find the pipe that should have been connected and Hey Presto, the Vacuum locks are working again!
I pulled out the plugs, they are the correct non resisters, so clearly someone knew what they were doing at it last service!
Here is how they looked... no deposits from Oil burning I have seen in the past on M103's!
They are in order so note the #1 plug is an odd one because someone had taken it out, and we could not find it.
Here is how they look:
http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...c/DSC07689.jpg

The Plug leads look brand new, so I will strike that from the list for now. The OVP looks fresh as well.
After changing the oil I sat and listened to the engine at idle... its the smoothest M103 in our fleet, and I bet I can balance a quarter on the valve cover!
One thing I did spot is cracks in the front shock mount rubbers... so adding those to my shopping list!

While I wait for my service stuff to arrive I am gonna figure out some other issues...

Power locks still not working properly and I have questions...
FirstlyI only have the "round headed" key which I believe is called the valet key.
Where can I get a replacement master key?
Should this key unlock the other doors and trunk, cos it will not... and I cant open the gas flap either. I can open the front doors with the key, but the rest do not open, but when I lock it I hear/see all the actuators work inc the trunk.
Without access to the trunk(which was open before..) I cant open the fuel door!
I did search the forums and found this thread dealing with the W124... does this apply to the W201?
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/tech-help/283635-w124-lock-system-question.html?highlight=door+locks

I cant hear the pump running....
Does the pump apply pressure and vac, or only pressure, and vac supplied by the engine?

I think the vac pump is there to supply vacuum to stuff like the door locks when the engine is off. Take the title to the dealer and get yourself some new keys. I never hear the pump running either but that may just be because it's quiet. Take the rear seat bench out and use the key on the driver's door or trunk and see if you can hear it run. However, since you only have the valet key that might be the trouble right there.

Odd, could not get the trunk or gas flap open on Thursday when I posted this, and then suddenly it was opening again...

Mmmm...
Look what I found locally...
A set of 18x8 Carlsson 2/6's. They are in OK shape, but one will need the rim refinished, and all need the lip clearcoat stripped. Tires are toast but at least i can see if that combo will fit...
http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...arlsson2-6.jpg

yikes good luck but my gut tells me those wheels won't fit without some fender rolling and other stuff

no Prob
 

Seeing the black one ps2cho's sig... dealing with 18's / offset issues, may run in the family !
Wishing you a good price on the rims - though IMHO they'd look better on a 126 ;)

LOL, he inherited my passion for cars and now he is infecting me with the Mercedes bug!
Maybe theywont fit, but the joy of having even worn tires still mounted will prove interesting...
Will try them later today and report back!

Just for fun....

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...c/DSC07698.jpg

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...c/DSC07701.jpg

I realized after I put them on. that the tires are staggered and I had reversed them... I put the 245/40's on the front and the 235/40's on the rear..

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...c/DSC07702.jpg

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...c/DSC07706.jpg

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...c/DSC07704.jpg

Been busy!
I had a long chat with the PO, and soon I will have all of the service records, original car phone, antenna!
Love that kinda stuff!

I got the temp tags, so I have been driving it, and getting ready to smog. I drives so beautiful! It feels faster than my son's W124's, and yet has a great tight ride. Gonna drive the gas out of it, and change the fuel filter, and refill with some "Top Tier Gas"! :D
Its a real testiment to why we love MB from this era. Well built, and worth the extra work!

I spent a couple of hours at the Junkyard yesterday, and found a replacement tail lamp lens, a cassette holder, and center airvent and surround to replace broken bits.
You can see that the RH vent is missing the control knob, and the RH lower corner of the vent surround is broken, and the LH cassette holder is crunched. too.
http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...BMiZbSwQ_3.jpg
The taillamp lens is punched in on the inner corner.
http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...BMiZmdY3_3.jpg

Also found a pair of mirror foot trims that were not cracked like mine... reall happy about that!

Heartbreaking to see so many MB's in there but pleasing to see 300+k miles on odometers! One 300E had 396K on it, and had been rear ended to send it to the graveyard!

Put the gauges on the A/C and found that I had maybe 20psi static pressure.
I added a can of R12, and within 20 secs the clutch kicked in. A second can gave me cold A/C and a 30psi low and 250psi high and with ambient sitting at 85deg F, I was getting 50deg at the vents!

Two problems today....
The key got stuck in the drivers door lock.. took me 20 mins of sweating and wriggling to get it out..
Whats up with that?

Then the CEL came on... can someone direct me to how to read the codes on this model?

Could be a worn key or worn lock barrel - did you try the spare?

Also, be sure to check the ignition lock. If it is difficult to operate you may want to replace it sooner than later. You can get one from Fastlane/Phil. You will need to provide documentation to get an original - matching lock barrel.

Changing the lock barrel while the key still operates it is an easy and quick (5m) job.

If you get to the point that your key no longer operates the ignition lock - then the job is much harder and involves dismantling the steering column.

Congrats on the 190e. Had ours in the family for over 9 years and still love it.