108 grill assembly attachment

[deafen]

So I've got my 280SEL in California; I'm in North Carolina. From the shakedown cruise, I remember that the grill assembly is loose from the hood (held on by just one or two points).

I wanted to get the correct parts to fix it before I leave to go pick it up in about 10 days, but when I called the local dealer parts counter, they mentioned something about seven screws/washers, sixteen clips, etc. Of course, without the car in front of me, I can't tell what I need to hold it all together.

So can anyone explain to me how this assembly goes together? The big chrome piece that holds the grill and the star is firmly attached to the grill itself, but is loose from the hood. What parts will I need to get this reattached? Or, alternatively, can someone provide a scan of this page from the parts manual?

Thanks so much!

BTW, if you're interested, the prepurchase photos are up at http://www.haygoods.org/gallery/280sel -- the previous owner took these, I'll take more once I have it back.

[vox_incognita]

try
www.sls-hh.de
http://sls.sparebase.de/bin/dbframes.phtml?mid=IN09
I bought the sealing strip that is between the grille and the hood lip for 12$,plan to change it soon..Anyway,I think you(or both of us) need just several small bolts and nuts and washers,easily obtainable from anywhere....
I`ll browse the picture parts catalogue tonite and let you know if there`s anything special....Great car,by the way !Good luck!!!

[deafen]

Thanks for the info. So I should be able to just go to the hardware store and find something that works?

I'd be a little more comfortable having the exact stock parts in hand from the start, but if it's that simple, I may just do that.

Any luck looking things up?

[300SDog]

From the hardware store look for 3/4" long sheetmetal screws with heads about 3/8" wide.

Your new MB has universal clip-on tabs fitted around the top edge of the grill. These tabs accept practically any sheet metal screw. Some of these tabs might be missing too.

You gotta be crazy to think MB has parts #'s for every nut'n bolt. For sure you can find what you need at the hardware store, even on location after picking up the car.

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Last edited by 300SDog; 03-31-2005 at 11:23 AM.

[vox_incognita]

Hmm,pictures in the parts catalog are no different than those in the links I mentioned,which is good...As DieselDog said,several small nuts`nbolts from the warehouse will do....Good luck!
D.Vengerov ,w110 200D

[JMela]

There's a bunch of exploded 108 diagrams here, didn't have the time to dig through them and locate a grille diagram...

http://www.mercedesstory.pl/skany_w108_109.php

[deafen]

Thanks a lot for the info, folks. I'll take a few with me, and if they don't fit, no biggie, I'll head to the hardware store.

And yes, I am crazy, but I'm also certain that they have a part number for each and every little screw. If they needed it to build the car, they needed to inventory it, so it needed a part number. Or rather, I should say, it needed a part number when they built the car. They may have reused it in the meantime...

The car is in San Jose, so I'll be taking the route through Barstow and then straight across I-40 -- probably not near Phoenix, where that junkyard is likely to be. I could go the 300 or so miles out of my way, but at 12MPG and $2.50+/gal, that's a pretty pricey little excursion.

Thanks again!

[280SE Guy]

Here are the parts you can order from your local Mercedes dealer:

7 ea 000 994 05 45 Clip Nut
7 ea 007976 004302 Screw, Sheet Metal
7 ea 000 990 03 48 Conical Spring Washer

If you also need the rubber pad betwwen the grill and the hood the part number is 108 888 00 98 Layer

[deafen]

Excellent -- thank you! That's exactly what I was looking for. You're awesome.

[300SDog]

Parts numbers for screws'n clips?? .....i am stunned, amazed!

Meanwhile lifetime owner of junkyard refugee MB's driven for hundreds of thousands of miles, I'd still be surfin boneyards en route across the USA...... even swapping my 123 for 115, or better yet - a reasonable 110.

(edit: nationwide junkyard search engine: http://www.classicjunkyard.com/junkyards/index.html And Arizona boneyards are known as the best in the USA....... LOL, can anybody see themselves driving in there with a near perfect 108 sedan and driving out with a raggedy old 3.5 Cabriolet "project car"? That's the kinda trade I'd make.

[deafen]

Thanks for the tip on junkyards. I know all about AZ yards; I grew up there, spent 26 years in that hellish heat before coming to my senses and escaping my Stockholm syndrome by moving to NC.

I remember with great fondness a motorcycle yard named "Bob's Used Motorcycle Parts" -- acres and acres of bikes, with a giant warehouse of stripped parts inside. Very helpful for a literally starving college student (mmm, ramen) with an aging Suzuki GS700.

My route is pretty much I-40 straight across, so I'll hit Barstow, Flagstaff, Albuquerque, Oklahoma City, Little Rock, Memphis, Nashville, and Winston-Salem. I'll be on the lookout for any particularly cool junkyards along the way, but I'm making this trip on a tighter schedule than usual that doesn't allow for a whole lot of time for other activities (half a day total, maybe).

If anyone knows of any yards I shouldn't miss in any of those places, let me know. Also if you'd like to meet up for coffee; I'm leaving San Jose on the morning of Thursday, April 14th and shooting for 700-800 miles/day.

[280SE Guy]

Here is what the parts you need look like, see attachment.