Newest mod : Shift knob (from W220)
 

I just acquired a shift knob adapter for W107 (pre-86), W116 and W123. it's basically a shaft that you could put in place of the shifter knob and the top of the shaft is the new standard shaft where you could basically put any of the newer style MB shift knobs.

I bought this shift knob because it was cheap (from ebay - $10). I kinda wanna find something else. Maybe same style (from W220 S-Class) but in black or the black one w/ MB star on top of it.

I like this shift knob a lot though, it's got a nice stubby feel to it... and it's real leather hehe :)

I think it'd look awesome if it was black (im sure there are W220's w/ black shift knobs)

http://users.rcn.com/holsonyap/newshift1.jpg

http://users.rcn.com/holsonyap/newshift2.jpg

The color of the shift knob doesn't really go w/ the Palomino interior. But since some of my interior parts are already pink ;) I guess it doesn't really matter.

If you guys ever see a nice one or wanna get rid of a nice one that u think would fit the 300CD let me know!

BTW, the shaft is precisely made unlike the wooden shift knob I had (the shaft was a little off)

I just found this one, what do you guys think?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2420010570&category=33703

I want to do the same thing, but with my W124. I *think* that for the W124 the adapter is the shift rod from a W202 C class, but I'm not entirely sure.

Ok, so my shift knob (85 190e) isn't front and center when I screw it on tight. I want to 'glue' it in place, but not so hard I can't get it off. Any ideas about the best product for this job?

yeah I wanna do the same thing to the W124. I'm waiting for a catalog from perf. products. Interesting on the 202 shift knob, i'll look into it.

btw,
tscott, im not sure what you mean.
did you buy an adapter shaft for your 190E and the shift knob kinda wobbles at the top?

for those who can't stop staring at the awesome Pioneer stereo and want to just rip it off my dash :p (and throw it away hehe) - I'm thinking of swapping it w/ some OEM MB stereo from the 90+ (like the one in the 124)

No, I just bought a repalcement MB knob for the broken one that came with the car. Screws right on but when it gets tight the shift pattern on top of the knob isn't aligned with the longitudinal axis of the car. Another 1/6th revolution makes it tight but then it points at an angle, not to friendly to the hands. Maybe a real MB mechanic would use a die to cut an extra 2/3rds turn of the threads. Not being such a mechanic I wondered if Locktite or teflon tape might do the job- or if there is something better?

Yes, there should be a lock nut underneath it. You screw the knob down to the last thread where it still points the right way, then wrench the lock nut up to meet it.

Holson - have you seen the shift knob on a W210? Mine is black and would look great in your car. No, you can't have it, but I'll snap a pic tonight.

Rick, the 210 knob looks like the one from the M-class that Holson linked to from eBay, right?

I really want one of those :) but I would guess that they don't make 'em in palomino, so it'd be best to look for one in black...

Oh yeah, that's it. I didn't notice the link in his post. Mine looks like that but the leather is black. Thankfully, MB dropped Palomino before the W210 was introduced. Gawd, I hate that color, and I've had three cars with it! :o

I have to agree there...I'd prefer blue, gray, or black...probably wouldn't be cost-effective to re-do the entire interior of my car, though, and my girlfriend has threatened my life if I ever try to sell it (even for another 123)...

Hey, Palomino is nice :mad: I've two cars w/ Palomino interior and i just love the way it looks :p ;) In fact I fell in love w/ the 124 just because of that :p

Actually ive seen some W210's w/ Palomino interior. I'm not sure if they call my W124's interior palomino or saddle but it sure looks like dark/natural leather to me.

Pink is out
 

I had the pink palomino problem on my 300SD leather.

Easily fixed - do your knob (if you know what I mean) while you are at it.

hhmm interesting. Would it work on the MB-tex seats of my diesel though?

ColorPlus on MBTex
 

Colorplus specifically state that it works on MBTex - it's more of a paint than a dye and that on my rear (leather) seats looks new after 6 years. Call Joann Price at ColorPlus (colorplus.com) and see what she says.

Also check out Leatherique. They sell the BEST leather treatment available, IMO. They also have dyes available that should work on leather and Tex:

http://www.leatherique.com/

:)

Too bad they won't fix cracks and gashes... :(

Regarding the color, call me weird, but I've always perferred having a dark colored interior...it could be wrose, though; my truck's interior is maroon!

Actually you can fix gashes & cracks. The Leatherique site has directions on how to do that, IIRC. It's not easy but it is posible, as long as there's enough material to pull togther - you add a patch on the underside, then use kind of a "leather Bondo" on top, and finish with dye. I've seen some amazing restorations.

For 1980's vintage MB's, it may be a lot easier (and cheaper, if your time is worth anything) to just buy good, clean, used seats from a salvage yard. Silver Star just sold gray leather 1995 E320 seats on eBay for something like $200/pair for the fronts, while the back went for $1.75! Hard to beat that. Of course 123 seats in good condition *may* be a bit more scarce... at least finding ones that aren't that cool pink two-tone sun-faded! ;

I've been thinking of replacing my black shift lever with a wooden one. Any ideas or experiences?

Joe.

The W210 shifter
 

The flash makes the leather appear dark gray, but it is indeed black. This would look great in your car, Holson.

Hey Thomaspin!
 

What do you think ColorPlus would do with this?

OOH, I want that black knob... :D

Looking at that seat, I think my driver's seat is just as bad...except there's an actual hole on the left side of the driver's seat where soemthing rubbed for years, where I don't think there's enough material to cover over. My armrest is just as bad.

The rest...might actually be fixable. It'd be worth taking a look...

Would removing the seat covers from the frame make the repair easier? Offhand, I'm guessing it would...would allow me to replace the padding, as well...it'd be nice if the seat was softer. :)

I still wish I could find cloth seat covers to replace the leather...

How do you like this knob?

Paul, where did you get the chrome surround? Was there originally a rubber gasket type thing there like on the 123's?

I've got the rubber gasket, and it's in rather unhappy shape...according to Phil at Fastlane, it's impossible to replace that part by itself... :(

I don't know how bad your "gashes" are, but coloreplus and leatherique both have crack fillers.

Check out Thomaspin's website to see the DIY pictorial on the restoration of the leather in his 300SD.

www.pindelski.com

holson i thought your wooden shift knob was great lookin'
agree, black would be better.

There is no rubber gasket on the original black plastic shift surround.

The chrome surround is just applied directly over the old one with 3M double sided tape.

I think I got the chrome surround at www.************************

And don't try to find it shown on the website because it probably ain't there. I'm willing to be less than 20% of the items they sell are shown on the website. Call them, or at least request a catalog for your W123.

Also,

The shift knob looks great with the steering wheel:

Darn...I guess they did it different on the 124's. :(

On my car, they have a textured black rubber piece that goes around the hole and is supposed to seal against the black plastic of the shift unit itself. It's cracked in the corners.

I have a feeling that trying to apply that chrome onto the rubber wouldn't work very well, so I guess I'm SOL...unless a 124 lower center console wood piece is the same as the 123's, which I really doubt...

I see I'm not the only one that see's something rather interesting.

How do you like this knob?


Thats a great looking Knob and Steering Wheel! That would look great in my car! Is that standard equipment or aftermarket.

Joe

Check out the shift levers on this site!

http://www.eris-car.com/

Also other wood products. The prices look Ok also.


Joe.

The shift knob is the one used on the W140 chassis S600.

The steering wheels have always been available at the dealer for about $1,200.

I got mine from eris car designs, and they used an OE wheel, which they cut out and have wood inserted.

Yeah I was thinking of getting that one (black w/ mb logo). I'm kinda sold on the W220 style knob though.

Bob,
Yeah all wood is sweet but leather is nicer to grip onto.

The Warden,

my rubber surround is a little weird too. I was trying to think of what I could do to it.. but still haven't come up w/ anything yet.

I'm thinking of designing something in CAD and have my manufacturing engineering friend make it out of aluminum or something.

Rick and Warden
 

The kind of damage (doberman?) that Rick shows in his picture, with bits of leather/Tex missing is not a job for ColorPlus. I once did something similar to the center piece in the seat back in my 300SD which I cut the leather with the hardware on my suspenders.

I took the seat back to a place that did restoration on boats and they sourced a piece of MB leather with the perforations, just like the original, and stitched in a new insert. I seem to recall it was something like $200, but that was some 8 years ago.

ColorPlus does suggest the 'glue in a supporting piece of material then use the Flexfill filler' which may work if your are not too troubled by minor texture differences. In my pictorial I used Flexfill to fill incipient cracks, but your damage looks too severe for that approach.

Generally, the bolster at the driver's entry point seems to suffer most damage, getting whacked every time you get in. On the wife's 380SLC I repaired the damage (the seam was also parting from rotted stitches) and then switched the driver's and passenger's seats, reasoning that the latter was much 'newer'. Illustrated here. A like job on the W126 will be complicated by the need to disconnect seat motors (and heater connections on cars thus equipped), but the key jobs - switching the seat belt anchors and the arm rest - would, I'm guessing, be similar.

Sorry to have wasted your time Thomas. I was really only joking about fixing up that seat. Not only is the cover shredded, but the springs are sprung and the pad is nothing but horsehair dust. I've already swapped the front seats (notice the huge hole in the bolster is on the inboard side), but both seats are going in the trash as soon as I can find suitable replacements.

The Warden - email or IM me. I have some ideas for you.

Found another one for the 300CD!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2422531288&category=33703&rd=1

I think it's pretty sweet! Almost looks like OEM but real leather!

speedy300dturbo, check these out

SK-33210 is the perf. products part number for the 124 shift knob adaptor. But if you have the earlier W124, you need this

SK-33124

good luck!

Do you mean you want to buy one or make one? Depending on how shift knobs attach (something I need to find out on my Benz), making one out of wood can be pretty easy. I made 2 wooden shift knobs (and a stone one) for my indecisive brother. If you'd like some tips I can post them.

If you haven't solved the problem yet, Loctite (blue, use the red and it'll survive a nuclear blast) will work. I made a shift knob for my Honda and after tapping it, had the same problem, Loctite worked.

I believe Phil was mistaken about that. Holson and The Warden, how about this?

sweet, another step closer to perfection ;)

I'm getting that part when I am back in Boston