Another Loss

[PanzerSD]

Do it. I gave up on my 300SD, to drive other vehicles, and I came back to Mercedes...Best car I've ever driven..

[Squiggle Dog]

That is SO sad... But, it does appear to be fixable.

[GGR]

Sad story. The good news is that you now have a good starting point for a nice project. I would find a rusted out W108 4.5 in good working order for cheap and transfer engine, trans, brakes, rear axles atc. as needed. It's all mostly bolt on. Good thing with the 4.5 is that you can fit it with a manual trans (out of a 3.5 if you find one).

[mak]

So sad to see those pictures .Hopefully we l can assist .
mak

i can only assume a fuel pipe came off to trigger this inferno.

[MKUltra]

its sad to see it put into down time like this, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do

[MKUltra]

http://binghamton.craigslist.org/pts/1732333697.html
an hour from me... hopefully its still available.

[tbomachines]

Sorry for your loss . I think it could have been far worse though. Take the engine out and grind the hood down to bare metal (along with other areas effected) and you've got a pretty solid base for an engine swap with a repaint. Or you could part it out and make some money back since it looks like only the hood and engine bay that was effected. Sucks man, but at least you got out okay and it isn't a total loss.

[PanzerSD]

Originally Posted by MKUltra

http://binghamton.craigslist.org/pts/1732333697.html
an hour from me... hopefully its still available.

Do it!! DOOO IIIIT!!!!

[Matt L]

If you're going to fix the car, you need to be aware of the risk of hydrofluoric acid. This is created by many high-temperature rubber and plastic parts when they get too hot. It can be very dangerous. People have lost digits to it.

[GGR]

Originally Posted by MKUltra

http://binghamton.craigslist.org/pts/1732333697.html
an hour from me... hopefully its still available.

6.3s are very good cars. I owned a very nice example a few years ago and drove it for over 50.000 kms. Unfortunately they are quite complicated and VERY expensive to maintain. Unless you have a very big wallet I would not consider this car as a donor for a swap.

[MKUltra]

Originally Posted by GGR

6.3s are very good cars. I owned a very nice example a few years ago and drove it for over 50.000 kms. Unfortunately they are quite complicated and VERY expensive to maintain. Unless you have a very big wallet I would not consider this car as a donor for a swap.

The wallet really isn't that big of an issue. the guy called me back and said the car is still available.

How difficult will it be to get that motor into my 230?

Will it have to be motor and trans together?

Can i use my old standard trans?

Can i unbolt the sub frame from the 300 and bolt it into the 230?

are motor mounts similar to my 230's motor?

[GGR]

Originally Posted by MKUltra

The wallet really isn't that big of an issue. the guy called me back and said the car is still available.

How difficult will it be to get that motor into my 230?

Will it have to be motor and trans together?

Can i use my old standard trans?

Can i unbolt the sub frame from the 300 and bolt it into the 230?

are motor mounts similar to my 230's motor?

The donor 6.3 may not be that expensive but any specific part you will need to replace will be in another league price wise.

The 6.3 engine is very heavy. Best would be to transplant all the air suspension stuff, which, as you guessed, is complicated and expensive to rebuild. Otherwise you can go with bespoke stiffer front springs, but handling won't be really right.

It will have to be engine and trans and you can't fit your standard on it. Motor mounts are specific but you can fit them on your front axle.

[MKUltra]

im not too worried about handling as I dont intend to race this car around corners, however i do understand your concern.

THe airride equipment would be pretty awesome to swap over. though i have never tinkered with such a set up, i would probably end up with stiffer springs.

You say front axle, do you mean the front crossmember i would unbolt to remove the motor from my car out the bottom?

drive shaft? will i have to get a custom tailored one?

[hchinaski]

You may want to check in with the folks over at the M-100 discussion board regarding the feasibility of this, some of them have shoehorned 6.3's into W111 and W112 coupes before. www.m-100.cc

[GGR]

Well, I'm indeed one of the persons who owned an M100 powered W111 Coupe, and my comments are out of that experience. Fitting an M100 powerplant into a W110 will be more complicated and expensive than other options such as a 4.5 or 5.6 M117, handling will be worse (unless the whole air set-up is transferred) and not necessarily faster, especially if this is a US M100 version.

All the above said, M100 are unique pieces of art and truely have a lot of torque. If the work is done properly this could be a very nice car. And people on the m100 board would surely help you. But you should post your idea there to see what comments you get.