Bootsie's 240d - Page 3 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

barry12345 · #31 09-11-2021, 12:54 AM

As they say a clean car is nicer to work on. Plus more enjoyable if you can keep it that way. An old car does not have to look old.

Bootsie · #32 09-11-2021, 02:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by barry12345

As they say a clean car is nicer to work on. Plus more enjoyable if you can keep it that way. An old car does not have to look old.

Much agreed!

To address the headlights....

New H4 Headlight Housings: I always thought I'd be buying euro lights if I got a w123. But it didn't take long for me to appreciate the charm and nostalgia of the US circle lights. This is what evokes the 80s for me and everyone I pass. When you put the euro lights on, the w123 turns into a sleek expensive luxury vehicle. With the circles, you look like you're just havin fun and reliving old memories. I was truly torn on which way to go. Then I realized I can get the best of both worlds and install the Hella H4 upgrade kit to get better lighting and maintain my 80s American styling. Done! Not only did I get better lighting, but I had no idea my light adjustments were so off beforehand! Yikes!!

Bootsie · #33 09-11-2021, 02:27 AM

Also did my second roadtrip, this time with two passengers, for 1200 miles. Didn't skip a beat

But it did highlight a common issue for me, the rear sag

t walgamuth · #34 09-11-2021, 08:05 AM

is that loaded or empty?

brownrice78 · #35 09-11-2021, 11:31 AM

beautiful car and awesome thread...not sure if you mentioned doing it but diesel purge, changing the fuel filters and valve adjustment should help this baby get even better!

Bootsie · #36 09-14-2021, 03:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by t walgamuth

is that loaded or empty?

It's just two passengers in the rear of that photo, at 160lbs each. Nothin crazy enough to warrant that. I need to raise the rear and stiffen it up.

My plans: New rear springs + rear sport shocks + new rear diff mount.

rrgrassi · #37 09-14-2021, 03:24 AM

As old as that car is, new springs will help. Replacing the front springs on my truck with stock, raised the front end about two inches.

Shern · #38 09-14-2021, 04:11 AM

If you're doing the rear shocks, you'll want to do the front shocks too.

The difference is astonishing...

vwnate1 · #39 09-15-2021, 11:24 AM

I'm in agreement with getting new shocks, I use Bilstein HD's and the car still rides as new but handles far better .

So far I've not had the coil spring sag but it is a normal thing, the metal only takes so many flexes before it begins to degrade .

Bootsie · #40 09-19-2021, 02:42 PM

This is one of my favorite things to do for older cars: Cocomats!!

There's arguably two cars that rock them the best: w123s and air-cooled 911s.

Normally when I see cocomats in w123s, it's the calico design and it's easy to see why. The orange/tan/black combo works so well and it's so unusual to see inside a car, but I kept getting concerned that they'd draw too much attention and distract from the overall design. I also wanted something more subtle, complimentary, and unique.

I'm not exactly sure if you'd call my white/black mats unique, but at the same time, I don't think I've seen someone do this combo before...

Bootsie · #41 09-19-2021, 03:30 PM

A few more things....

New Front Rotors, Fluid, & Pads: Braking safety was my biggest concern with buying a W123 to be honest. I had a Volvo 240, both ABS and without, and the version without it was startling at times. I really didn't enjoy it. I had the same sensation early-on while braking in this car, but that was while it was under full neglect. Now with new lines, fluid flush, rotors, pads, alignment, and new tires that are slightly wider - it's fantastic! What a huge difference (duh)! The 240d is surprisingly strong to stop for not having ABS, and I haven't locked the tires up since. I've tried too, roughly 8 or 9 tenths of the way while trying to threshold-brake, and they still won't lock. Sometime this week I'll have to see exactly where that line is, but for now, I'm really surprised at how well the brakes perform.

Rear Springs: The rear sag is too annoying for me to tolerate, both in function and design. I wanna go tall with this. I wanted to go as high as possible and spent a good amount of time on here looking for info on the African Safari spring suspension. It leads nowhere. You can't find it. You can use w126 springs and whatnot, but I was worried about suspension geometry issues. New Lesjosfors springs are also $130 from Sweden so why not try that? I went with the original OE spring replacements, not the HD versions because I was worried they'd be too stiff without giving me added height. The result was pretty good. There's no more overthetop sag when I have passengers of stuff in the trunk. But unfortunately I don't have a ton of added height either. I swear I've seen OE Mercedes ads and photos where the car looks like a 4x4. I was hoping for more of that. I was still not totally level either.

Rear Diff Mount & Fluid: I did this a week after getting my shocks/springs done, in hopes of raising the rear a little more and for the sake of maintenance. I think it worked for about half an inch, or maybe a solid inch. And that's all I needed to level-out better. Still not as high as I'd want though. Does anyone have any tips or suggestions? My spring spacer/cups have the 4 nubs too, I think they're as big as you can get?

HD Bilstein Shocks: Oooof. I'm torn on this one. I was in love with how the w123 rode. It was so laughably soft and compliant. I had never felt anything quite like it before. I spent 15 years of my life in a caged, coilovered, E30 so this sensation was a treat. It was obviously a little too mushy and too soft though, so I naturally felt the urge to improve that. Some of my faster cornering/braking just felt unstable. I went with the HD version, thinking the difference would be minimal to the car's overall experience. Boy was I wrong. This car feels much much more stiff and stable. That's both and good and bad thing. I'm connected with the road again, and I feel the nuances in the pavement again, from bumps to grooves and all that. My braking it better, my cornering is really tight, and it's overall a better performing vehicle. Hoowwwwever.... I really did enjoy the sensation of gliding over problematic roads. I have full intentions of taking this out on dirt roads too. I feel like perhaps I've destroyed part of what makes this Mercedes so special, the softer and more absorbing experience, just to replace it with more of a BMW driving experience. And I'm tired of that brand. It's not that bad though. And as I've come to get used to it, I like it much more now. Especially after my first mountain drive

Bootsie · #42 09-19-2021, 03:40 PM

Oh, and one more silly thing....

Powercoated Skid Plate: I took this off so I could clean under the engine better. 39 years of diesel grease oil and gunk was everywhere. I had such a good experience with my powdercoater last time that I wanted any reason to return. $60 later I had a beautiful plate, in the matching color to my airfilter housing.

Bootsie · #43 09-19-2021, 04:20 PM

Next up, I try different wheels. This part was just weird.

The white wheels are cool, but they don't really make me feel the right way. This'll be hard to explain. I've had nothing but compliments on the white wheels, and mostly from young people too. It's unusual in today's design language to match colors between the body and wheels like this from the factory. My problem is that it looks too classy. It looks like I'm driving to a wine tasting event - every time I go out. Although the car certainly plays that role well, that's not why I bought it. I drive a w123 in 2021 because I want to experience one the most sensational, dirtiest, smelliest, loudest, mechanical machines on the road before we're plugged into the matrix with battery vehicles. I wanted something utilitarian, tough, cool, and functional and thats what I want reflected in my w123. White wheels are doing it for me. So I thought black would.

I bought one black wheel on eBay that looked nearly perfect.

It showed up... blue. Whatever, I'll just paint it. Easy enough.

By the time it was dry, my other four black wheels showed up from eBay.... green.

What a joke. Obviously no one's looking at these wheels in direct sunlight.

Either way, I threw them on. And dang, it's still not the right look...

Bootsie · #44 09-19-2021, 04:37 PM

So I took all the wheels off until I figure out what to do.

In the meantime, I'm running the OE aluminum "steelies". Apparently the later 240d models had these to help them better manage their low power. They're something like 10lbs right? Even though they look very much like tractor wheels, I think I prefer this overall look the best right now...

Oh and I added a chrome AMG rear plate frame haha

t walgamuth · #45 09-19-2021, 06:10 PM

The centers different looks fine to me.