My altenator of my 83' Euro 500Sel siezed today.. it was either that or the air pump.. but either ways i figure the repairs will be expensive. Inaddtion to these problems the power stering is leaking.. exaust manafold bolts are poping off.. pumatic suspension has a mind of its own.. radio blew.. alot of work needs to be done.. so question is.. its it time for a new mbz.. or should i fix this clunker 1 more time.. and get the last drops of life out of it?... ur opinions please..

P.S. haveing this car.. has discouraged me from buying any grey market cars ever.. just hope that would stop some1 from making the same decision that i made..

btw ne sugesstions on a new mbz...
i was condering a C220K.. withthe SE.. pacage.. but should i wate for the new C.. ?

--Jivesh Sabnani...( now liking the rel. of my SD )

Jivesh,

Do you do your own work, or do you have it done by a shop?

Larry

By a shop.. why?

I'd junk it and by a shop.

Or buy a car and hire a shop...

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Benzmac:
Donnie Drummonds
1992 500E (very soon I hope
1981 280GE SWB
ASE CERTIFIED MASTER AUTO TECHNICIAN
SERVICE MANAGER FOR 14 BAY FACILITY
MERCEDES SPECIALIST 8 YRS
PARTNER IN MERCEDESSHOP.COM

I think that Benzmac proposed the correct solution.

The reason I asked the question was purely a cost vs return issue. If you do your own work, I was going to encourage you to dilligently work through your problems, and get it up in shape. You would be able to justify this, because it would be economically feasible.

Since you take it to a shop, and since you live in CA. I doubt that Donnie or Steve do your work. If you have a competent shop that you know and trust, determine what it's going to cost to get everything done, and then determine whether it's worth it or not. If you don't have that shop, find it.

There a lot of MB's in good shape as long as you're not in rust country. If it's going to cost a fortune to get your car the way you want it, find a solid car that you can keep up, instead of chasing to catch up. Then find a shop in your area with someone like Steve or Donnie to consult and do your work.

At that point, if the least little thing is broken or needs adjustment, go get it done as soon as possible. By taking this approach, you will keep from letting the car run down to the same point, which causes the same emotions and puzzlement you feel now.

Good luck,

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Larry Bible
'84 Euro 240D, 516K miles
'88 300E 5 Speed
'81 300D Daughter's Car
Over 800,000 miles in
Mercedes automobiles

Not dead yet..
found out it was the air pump..
i figured it just for emmissions?
so i took it off.. and its running fine..
does anyone know what its used for..
the shop i took it to that gave me the estamate said that they took it off and chared me 50 bucks 2 do it.. their justification was that it took and hour to take off and they cheked the belts and added some bolt onto my exaust manifould.. but back to the original question.. what does that air pump do and will anything be effected if its gone.. the black tubing is still thier as well as a black cylender thing.. what does all of this do?..

As far as I know, the air pump injects extra air into the exhaust stream, to further aid combustion of hydrocarbons, thereby reducing emissions. I also know that this process can produce alot of heat, and I have seen many cast iron manifolds crack or warp because of this added heat. (so far only on american cars though)

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03/83 300D 184k
07/73 280 160k