This weekend I had planned to do some "cosmetic" work on the engine bay of my 300TE. I was going to replace the "ugly" distributor dust cover and the cracking plastic cover where the spark plug wires are routed.

When I got into the plastic distributor dust cover I relized that there is another part that fits over the actual distributor cap. It looked kind of ratty so I figure I replace that too. In order to get to it, you need to remove the fan shroud and, if you are going to do the job right, you need to remove the fan itself.

So,now I am removing more parts than I had originally intended to. While removing the fan I noticed that the head of the bolt that holds the fan in place was a little stripped (the hole where the allen wrench fits was beginning to get "smooth"), so I figured, what the heck, I might as well replace that too. Then I removed the distributor cap and I notice dthat the points look pitted and pocked. So I figured (once again) oh what the heck, "in for a penny, in for a pound."

By the time I was done I had replaced the rotor, the distributor cap, the fan bolt, the cap that fits over the distributor, the distributor dust cap, the spark plug wiring cover. I also, while I was at it, removed the valve cover, cleaned the cover and replaced the valver cover gasket.

Now the car's idle is silky smooth.

Amazing what a new distributor cap and rotor can do. As an added bonus, the engine bay looks nice and clean.

With a little elbow grease, and not too much invested in parts, these engines can be kept running smooth and looking good for a long, long time.

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Current Benzes

1989 300TE "Alice"
1990 300CE "Sam Spade"
1991 300CE "Beowulf" RIP (06.1991 - 10.10.2007)
1998 E320 "Orson"
2002 C320 Wagon "Molly Fox"

Res non semper sunt quae esse videntur

My Gallery

Not in this weather!

Funny how that happens. I remodeled a bathroom that way. It started by looking down at the floor thinking "man that looks bad" and a week later the only thing left original was the tub.

........plumbing projects.............

You have no idea how many of my projects start out like that!!

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

yep, mine started with rear brake pads..



and went on to: Calipers, rubber hoses, and some hard lines.







.......and a complete brake flush

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-1983 VW Rabbit LS Diesel (5speed, VNT/Giles build)

Any of you start a "how-to" fix it only to get entrenched in a full-blown resto!?

Been there once...

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2009 ML350 (106K) - Family vehicle
2001 CLK430 Cabriolet (80K) - Wife's car
2005 BMW 645CI (138K) - My daily driver
2016 Mustang (32K) - Daughter's car

I am getting there. Part of the project included changing the rear liftgate shocks on the 300TE. With the shocks finally replaced I no longer need to use a piece of wood to prop.r the gate up!!!

Working ont he engine bay still. Then come the interior. Replacing some of the wood and the trim around the door (the flet piece around the door, it is in good shape, it has just become discolored with age).

My hope it to have the 300TE looking good (it already runs well) to drive it to Santa Fe, NM and join the Mercedes Benz Club caravan back to Santa MOnica, along Route 66.

Yeah!

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Current Benzes

1989 300TE "Alice"
1990 300CE "Sam Spade"
1991 300CE "Beowulf" RIP (06.1991 - 10.10.2007)
1998 E320 "Orson"
2002 C320 Wagon "Molly Fox"

Res non semper sunt quae esse videntur

My Gallery

Not in this weather!

Funny, I was just out of the shower, looking down and thinking the same thing the other day.....


but some things are just plain biological!

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Current:
2014 VW Tiguan SEL 4Motion 43,000 miles.

2016 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport (wife's).

Past:
2006 Jetta TDI 135,970 miles. Sold Nov. '13.
1995 E-320 Special Edition. 220,200 miles. Sold Sept. '07.
1987 190-E 16 valve. 153,000 miles. Sold Feb. '06.
1980 300-D 225,000 miles. Donated to the National Kidney Foundation.
1980 240-D manual, 297,500 miles. Totaled by inattentive driver.

I just jumped in with "strip it to the studs and subflooring and redo everything"...Did that in my Kitchen, and both bathrooms. I know what and where everything is and what shape its in as well. Plumbing, wiring...everything

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Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
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Section 609 MVAC Certified
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"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche