A Potpourri of W126 questions
 

After a couple of years ( moving to a new house, and family events)-I am FINALLY getting back to my 1982 300SD. I have several issues, so I put them all here--they are all chassis issues; not engine-related. I have been away for a few years so answers from a few years ago may not be the same as now....

Windshield Trim-1
Car had a new windshield installed 3 years ago, but there are no clips in the weatherstipping to which the SS trim can be attached. What are my options? Does anyone sell the clips, as they are not with the car.

Windshield Trim-2
The painted metal pieces at the sides of the windshield are retained by a small stud at the top. It slips into a keyhole and then the piece slides down, and that stud keeps the top of that trim in place. Except, my car doesn't have them--they got ripped out by aggressive use of a wire wheel in striping off paint. Can I just use a sheet metal screw of the proper size, or are those studs available? Any other advice on what to do would be appreciated.

Axle boots--Mine are deeply cracked, but, quiet and not leaking. I think I just want to pull them, reboot the CVJs and replace, switching sides. What are the current best boots and installation techniques?
I already checked, and both the drain and fill plugs are not stuck. I can turn both with the proper hex wrench.

A/C I am going to replace Compressor, Receiver/Dryer, Expansion Valve, Condenser, and all the hoses. Should I bite the bullet and do the evaporator, too? What Condenser should I use? I want the later one designed for R134, but will all the connections still work?

[B]Sunroof side seals[B] No side seals on this sunroof, and from what I see, they are NLA. What to do? Fuzzy, brush-type seals are available from antique car restoration shops. Has anyone tried that? I think attaching the fuzzy with pop rivets would work, but the size is probably critical. Too tight. and the motor will not be able to open the sunroof; too loose and they won't seal out the rain. Has anyone sourced a workable solution?

Service Manuals- My "new" computer will not read the original, 2 disc service manual--it was designed to operate under IE, I think. I got a new, single disc W126 Maintenance-Service Manual and it only "sort of" works. The information is all there--I can open the individual pages and view and print, but the link from the page where the program allows you to choose which section you want to view is broken, as nothing happens when you click on any selection. Is there a DVD that someone can recommend that actually works?

Thanks, all. It is good to actually be working on the car again. I have removed ALL the old base and clear coats. Looks nice like that, but it will eventually turn rusty brown, so i hope to get the epoxy primer on it this week. Needs only minimal body work--I count about a dozen door dings, and one, 1/4" rust spot.

Stay with Freon. Most of the forum agrees that you will not get enough cooling in the SD with R134a. The original compressor is R4 and that is what bought when I replaced the compressor in my '81 300SD. Several folks say you should upgrade to a Sanden compressor; if you do be sure to purchase the special support system - it is different from the R4.

For the FSM I have a two CD set that I bought from someone on the forum; it is very difficult to use but it does still work. I have to use a computer with Windows XD and I have to use Navigator (not I.E.) to open it up. That said I have never been happy with it and only go to it when absolutely necessary. I am really an old paper book guy and with I had a real paper manual. You might get your new computer to emulate XP and get your CD to work; that is a special feature that some of the newer products like Windows 7 had and I do not know if Win10 has it or not.

I have been using the big Astoria Flexx gun with boots. Work well for me.

Skip the R4 compressor, it is junk. I went around and around with new and good used ones, they all seemed to want to leak. Either case seals or those damned stepped ports.

Same with the 134A on the early condenser. You simply will not have good output, it may work marginal on the '85 units. I bought a drop in PF kit from Klimakit.com nice stuff, this for R12 as the '85 MY condensers are impossible to find. They also have a very nice Sanden kit, it is on my car too. I did a write up about it in the Diesel section a while back.

Stock evaps are pretty good quality, but at this age I am sure it is full of debris that restricts it ability to pull heat.

Quality tint helps big time also for A/C performance.

Beware the Nissens heater core. Dunno about Gen1 w126, but I got a Nissens for my 300SE and the stupid keyways for the coolant tubes were in the wrong place. I had to dremel out the tubes to make it work. I also replaced several vacuum pods on the hvac assembly, as well as replacing all the deteriorated foam seals with billiard felt for the flaps, and caulk for the case seals. Taking that thing out is a bear of a job, you have to pull the whole center console and dash. Be prepared to replace anything in there that looks aged while you've got it apart. Go ahead and do all the small bulbs while you're in there and REALLY test those vacuum pods with a mityvac or similar. Some of those are impossible to get at with the unit installed, so this will be your one chance to get them.

Thanks all, (I think)---so after I reassemble after painting, I need to re-dis-assemble for the evaporator. got it.

You can have decent A/C performance with a dirty evap, from what I recall they were the same on all W126s. Check EPC to verify, could be a VIN break for late ones.

The SD for sure changed condensers (smaller tubes for better heat dissipation), cooling fans (electric and mechanical), and water pump pulleys (volume and fan speed). Go for all of the late items for increased A/C performance.

If you want really great performance, a Volvo I6 RWD dual speed fan assembly will just barely fit on the SD. It moves a pile of air on low speed and easy to hook up.