W108 Rocker panel triml
 

I'm re assembling my 1972 280 SEL 4.5 after a complete bead blast and new Glasurit paint job. I wanted to replace the rubber trim under the rocker chrome
strips. Every supplier I queried on this said that the trim came with ten holes
for fasteners. My rocker panels have 20 holes for the blue inserts. Has anyone ever seen the trim with 20 holes in them. The EPC website doesn't really show
it clearly either. I realize that I could punch additional holes in at the proper
intervals but I prefer o use the correct trim if possible.
Thanks for any help.

Sorry, I don't have a clue toward answering your question; but, would like to see some pictures of the car.

Thanks and good luck!!!

Thanks, I’ll post pictures. It was totally taken apart. Fenders and doors removed. All glass and interior removed. All seats rebuilt with new cushions and MB Tex. Working on A/C and a new heated core now.

SEL has 11 holes on each side. SE has 10. Each welt pad should have 11 holes

@80 SEL 4.5 Rocker panel fasteners
 

Please take a look at pics in the ShopForum Gallery
under Glazer124. Note the 20 holes in the rocker
panel both sides of car.!

Just curious, did you go over your car well and see if there were any dust nibs or irregularities anywhere in the paint, or excessive orange peel? Did they reinstall the interior without grease smudges on the headliner, scratching the wood or anything like that? I'd just like to hear about a totally satisfied, trouble-free service as it often seems tough to make that happen at body shops with this level of work involved.

And I'd like to hear why you would leave that sort of work to a typical body shop?

In my experience I had high confidence talking/visiting with them ahead of time, certifications, show car history etc. Unfortunately it ultimately didn't turn out that way for me. I'm going to try yet another one in the future. Was yours one that did Mercedes or older cars/shows often, and did everything turn out right the first time?

To answer some of the questions about the restoration of the paint. The car was totally clean after dismantling. I personally removed the interior,
glass etc. and will reinstall it when I finish the heater core box and the AC evaporator. The shop is owned by a friend and they are a Certified Glasruit paint shop. I will install the wood soon but am cleaning/ refurbishing all HVAC duct work which is on my bench at this time. Still haven’t solved the mystery why rocker panels have 20 holes for trim inserts!!

Simply, "Because".

It is not uncommon for a manufacturer to change designs in the middle of a production run. Hence the, "up to chassis # XXXX", we are all familiar with. What might have been deemed necessary when the car was built might have been considered "over-kill" on subsequent production.

My wife's '72 W114 has double the number of trim holes as my '73 W114 had. Same part number for the trim back in '92.

Either plug the holes or add the desired number of clips. Your time, your money.

I have to say the paint job on my SEL is flawless. Yes this shop does many
high end cars and a few classics from time to time. Their painter Jim is an
artist. His passion is 356 style Porsches; but does an awesome job on anything.
He is a Glasurit certified professional painter here in South Florida. I'll post a
photo shoot when I get the chrome and polished trim back on and the dash installed.

I've been restoring MB cars for over 40 years and there's always a problem on every build. Depending on what part of the restoration you're involved with, the body shop, or upholstery, or mechanic, will be your nightmare. It's very hard to find three or four places that can meet or exceed your expectations without breaking the bank.

Doing this for a living? Almost impossible not to have something go wrong.