Hi Gang,

I think I need to replace the thermostat on my W114 280C. I don't have a shop manual, but since it is a M110 engine ,I tried looking here (http://skinnerbox.steaky.org/Service/W123/Index/110index.html).

I have not had luck finding any istructions, so does Mercedes call a themostat something else or is it not listed? Does anyone have any instructions or words of wisdom?

Thanks!

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Alfred Gee
1975 Mercedes 280C
1992 Lincoln Town Car Cartier
1996 Cadillac ETC
1981 Cadillac Seville Elegante

It's not a God-awful job, just requires a little time.

The one thing you will want to be careful with is removal of the vacuum pump, as it is held on with allen bolts and they can round off easily if you're not careful. You'll also need a new gasket that goes behind the vac pump.

Otherwise, it's simply a matter of logical disassembly and reassembly. I would suggest that if your coolant has been changed fairly recently already that you close the heater valves before draining the coolant as the heater matrix is a bad spot for nasty air pockets to develop. If you want to do an entire flush with the valves open, keep a close eye on the temp gauge when you're running the car up to temp. Turn the heater on to speed the process along of purging the system of air. If the car starts to overheat, shut it down and let it sit and burp itself. Leave the radiator cap on only to the first detent, not locked all the way down, that will also help in purging.

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Regards,
Aaron

I am driving my 280C this week and refreshed my memory about the thermostat replacement. I believe that I unbolted the housing from the head and either pulled it out enough to get at the small bolts, or removed it rather than mess with the vacuum pump.

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Chuck Taylor
Falls Church VA
'66 200, '66 230SL, '96 SL500. Sold: '81 380SL, '86 300E, '72 250C, '95 C220, 3 '84 280SL's '90 420SEL, '72 280SE, '73 280C, '78 280SE, '70 280SL, '77 450SL, '85 380SL, '87 560SL, '85 380SL, '72 350SL, '96 S500 Coupe