260e

[JamesBrown]

I recently came into posession of a 260E for free with a motor that needs some work (it has 260K) and a new tranny. At venus-auto.com they have several MB engines for 500$. It'd be phat to have a V8 or a V12 but i don't have the money or the experience, so i want to get a straight 6 but a bigger one so i have a choice between an 86-92 300E long block and an 88-91 300SE. 1) could someone explain the difference between the two? I'm new to the MB game but i know alot about hondas and E30 M3s. 2) which engine would be best? I want to largest one as i plan to rebuild it with high comp pistons and a performance cam. 3) where can i get a higher comp pistons (like 10.5:1 or so), performance cam, header, intake, and ECU to handle all those mods (i don't want to go crazy with performance parts but i want to have an advantage on some people) 4) i want to get a manual transmission as i hate automatics, anyone know a US source for one? When i was in France alls i saw was MT MBs and in the US they're all AT, i don't get it.


Thanks for all your help in advance
James