Mercedes 190LE
Discussion
After many months of lurking in the Barge thread, I've decided to break cover with my latest purchase, leading to what was supposed to be a light bit of titivation but lead into something all together more substantial.
I'll copy over my first real posting on the topic from the barge thread and continue in real-time thereafter.
Thank you to everybody who operates there own RR threads; it makes for great motivation to start your own. In time I may incorporate my other vehicle, my Series III Land Rover.
Regards.
I'll copy over my first real posting on the topic from the barge thread and continue in real-time thereafter.
Thank you to everybody who operates there own RR threads; it makes for great motivation to start your own. In time I may incorporate my other vehicle, my Series III Land Rover.
Regards.
Edited by Rubins4 on Sunday 2nd June 21:48
Am I correct in thinking you have been working on the rear subframe?
Looking forward to hearing and seeing what you have been up to.
I have had a series 3 Landy in the past. I often think of its simplicity when attempting to remove door or dash trims in the Merc. No hidden fixings in a series 3!
On the other hand, not so sure I fancy a 150 mile round trip in the Landy.
Looking forward to hearing and seeing what you have been up to.
I have had a series 3 Landy in the past. I often think of its simplicity when attempting to remove door or dash trims in the Merc. No hidden fixings in a series 3!
On the other hand, not so sure I fancy a 150 mile round trip in the Landy.
Found it.
Rubins4 said:
I've been itching to draft something to bring together various photos, details and back story to my little Mercedes and now that time has come. This isn't a novella but at least an extended post, so do settle in with a favoured malt.
To be honest, I wasn't particularity familiar with the W201 190E before a friend of mine appeared one day in this unusual old, black, Benz. He had been getting more and more interested with them and fate conspired to have him standing at a burger van one weekday lunchtime when a chap appeared with the rear light cluster in his hand. My fiend identified it as from a W201 and they got chatting. It transpired that this chap had a friend who had one for sale, so my pal went and had a look. Looking a bit sorry for itself, this thing had been loitering on the owners drive for months if not years. A deal was struck and it was brought home for a good clean. This was a J-reg 2.0 auto in black, wearing a full Lorinser body kit. It looked - immense, only let down by some rather poor, undersized alloy wheels which wouldn't look out of place on one of Sadam Hussain's secondary vehicles. Nonetheless, I was proud to be chauffeured around within it on my wedding day with my best friend at the wheel.
Despite leaving my now wife and I stranded the day after our wedding on the side of the road with a flat tyre and no spare, I still had a fondness for it.
After the flat tyre episode and looking into the wheel arches a bit bit further, it was clear that the suspension set up was, well, shot. My pal doesn't bugger about and it wasn't long before a full coil-over setup had been installed behind genuine AMG Monoblocs. The garage that did the work advised that a lower profile tyre needed to be used to it getting sitting 'just right' whilst prevent any rubbing. In both our eyes, they have set it too low, and by doing so have put too-low a profile tyre on. Either way, this no has the lowest power to grip ratio of any car I have ever been in, and zero body roll. It is almost un-crashable. It doesn't look too bad, I must say.
Anyway, all of this is merely background detail to my journey. Some while after, I happened to be walking to the supermarket for my usual sandwich when I spotted this lovely 190 in a fantastic colour, the likes of which I hadn't seen before on any MB, let alone a W201 chassis.
|https://thumbsnap.com/bqhcoddi[/url]
I immediately started looking into this 'LE' badge to discover what they are all about. In short, nothing fancy really, just a run out model but in some interesting colours, but the encounter spiked my interest further. I am always on the look out for.... something.... Land Rovers (Series, older 90s or Defenders, RRC's, a wide variety of modern classics, Honda Africa Twins, T25 campers are amongst my favourites), so 190's quickly feel into that bracket. I wasn't really in the market to buy and I didn't really have the money immediately available but when I found my LE for sale relatively near by, I couldn't resist a look.
From subsequent hunting, it appears that this car was touted round the thread at some stage last year with some admiring commentary from the regulars but obviously didn't find a buyer. Speaking with the vendor Max (a threadist himself) during negotiation, I gather it was originally on for quite strong money, perhaps that was why? Here are a couple of photos from the advert (when I procured it, the rear wing had been removed and a freshly painted boot lid installed).
[url]
It was presenting very nicely and had clearly been looked after, although I was nervous of the age of the thing and potential rust; and rightly so, but we'll come to that shortly. After a bit of too-ing and fro-ing, Max and I agreed on £2,100 which, knowing what I know now, was a bit strong but not so much that I feel aggrieved. I hope Max feels the same as I know he was originally after more. Had it been a 2.6, or a Sportline or something I think it could have been, but this is a 1.8 auto, and although the LE might facilitate a faster sale, I'm not convinced they command a premium over the 'lesser' models. It had 113,000 miles on the clock and an MOT from June 2018, but not a great deal of service history available. The LE spec offers 4x electric windows, tilt & slide sunroof, a limited edition colour (well, this one does anyway) and a bit extra wood trim in Zebrano rather than walnut. What we don't have is wind, skin or heated anything (I do like the idea of heated seats, I must say). In fact, the spec is pretty low.
Having had a hunt round for some images to draft this, I found some from the advert that sold the car to my vendor; Max did a nice job tidying her up.
So, I started sharing the daily car duties with my company run-around. Its 18 miles each way, almost exclusively dual carriageway with bumper to bumper traffic into and out of town each day so the auto is welcome. I'll also enjoy the increased income I'll receive no longer paying £3,500pa BIK tax once the company appliance goes back, one year on the road and it will have paid for itself!
Having got used to the old girl, I really enjoy the wafty driving style but found a bit of looseness from the back end. I know the MOT advised some surface rust to the rear sub-frame and chassis so it seemed a good idea to have the whole lot out (you can see where this is going, can't you). Que weeks of me grabbing a couple of hours here and there to get the whole back end suspension rebuilt. Fortunately, Lemfoder offer a pretty comprehensive kit to replace the 5-link suspension components and I went in for anti-roll bar bushes and drop links, springs (MB) and dampers (Sachs). I also replaced the sub-frame bushes (MB & Lemforder). As alluded to in a previous post, I was advised to use Bilt Hamber Hydrate 80, which appears to be just the ticket, all of which has gone under two coats of satin finish chassis black paint. The front has also taken virtually identical treatment. I've also replaced the brake hoses all round as the fronts where showing wear on the MOT list. Here are some general before and after pictures.
After a long day at work and once the little one has gone down, this is how I spend my evenings; I must be mad. It was a very good claret, though.
I got the hand brake cables, fuel lines, brakes lines & bleeding and exhaust all back together, I now just need to put some more petrol in (you have to drain the tank to get the sub-frame out) and run her up, whilst checking the coolant is bleeding (old stuff drained to check hoses and replace for stainless jubilee clips. I probably should have back flushed the heater matrix & rad but the vehicle is immobile inside and I don't want to fill the place up with water; a job for another day).
I'll probably get the MOT sorted then get someone to look at the rust which needs cutting out. Fortunately, none appears too structural so fingers crossed they don't nobble me at the MOT centre. The photos don't come out well in the dark of the barn so I'll save that for another instalment. Finally, a good engine service and gearbox flush, sunroof windows and and wiper mech lube, new bluetooth head unit to fit, speakers to upgrade, new tyres all round.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I may copy this into Readers Ride to prevent thread creep.
Robin
To be honest, I wasn't particularity familiar with the W201 190E before a friend of mine appeared one day in this unusual old, black, Benz. He had been getting more and more interested with them and fate conspired to have him standing at a burger van one weekday lunchtime when a chap appeared with the rear light cluster in his hand. My fiend identified it as from a W201 and they got chatting. It transpired that this chap had a friend who had one for sale, so my pal went and had a look. Looking a bit sorry for itself, this thing had been loitering on the owners drive for months if not years. A deal was struck and it was brought home for a good clean. This was a J-reg 2.0 auto in black, wearing a full Lorinser body kit. It looked - immense, only let down by some rather poor, undersized alloy wheels which wouldn't look out of place on one of Sadam Hussain's secondary vehicles. Nonetheless, I was proud to be chauffeured around within it on my wedding day with my best friend at the wheel.
Despite leaving my now wife and I stranded the day after our wedding on the side of the road with a flat tyre and no spare, I still had a fondness for it.
After the flat tyre episode and looking into the wheel arches a bit bit further, it was clear that the suspension set up was, well, shot. My pal doesn't bugger about and it wasn't long before a full coil-over setup had been installed behind genuine AMG Monoblocs. The garage that did the work advised that a lower profile tyre needed to be used to it getting sitting 'just right' whilst prevent any rubbing. In both our eyes, they have set it too low, and by doing so have put too-low a profile tyre on. Either way, this no has the lowest power to grip ratio of any car I have ever been in, and zero body roll. It is almost un-crashable. It doesn't look too bad, I must say.
Anyway, all of this is merely background detail to my journey. Some while after, I happened to be walking to the supermarket for my usual sandwich when I spotted this lovely 190 in a fantastic colour, the likes of which I hadn't seen before on any MB, let alone a W201 chassis.
|https://thumbsnap.com/bqhcoddi[/url]I immediately started looking into this 'LE' badge to discover what they are all about. In short, nothing fancy really, just a run out model but in some interesting colours, but the encounter spiked my interest further. I am always on the look out for.... something.... Land Rovers (Series, older 90s or Defenders, RRC's, a wide variety of modern classics, Honda Africa Twins, T25 campers are amongst my favourites), so 190's quickly feel into that bracket. I wasn't really in the market to buy and I didn't really have the money immediately available but when I found my LE for sale relatively near by, I couldn't resist a look.
From subsequent hunting, it appears that this car was touted round the thread at some stage last year with some admiring commentary from the regulars but obviously didn't find a buyer. Speaking with the vendor Max (a threadist himself) during negotiation, I gather it was originally on for quite strong money, perhaps that was why? Here are a couple of photos from the advert (when I procured it, the rear wing had been removed and a freshly painted boot lid installed).
[url]It was presenting very nicely and had clearly been looked after, although I was nervous of the age of the thing and potential rust; and rightly so, but we'll come to that shortly. After a bit of too-ing and fro-ing, Max and I agreed on £2,100 which, knowing what I know now, was a bit strong but not so much that I feel aggrieved. I hope Max feels the same as I know he was originally after more. Had it been a 2.6, or a Sportline or something I think it could have been, but this is a 1.8 auto, and although the LE might facilitate a faster sale, I'm not convinced they command a premium over the 'lesser' models. It had 113,000 miles on the clock and an MOT from June 2018, but not a great deal of service history available. The LE spec offers 4x electric windows, tilt & slide sunroof, a limited edition colour (well, this one does anyway) and a bit extra wood trim in Zebrano rather than walnut. What we don't have is wind, skin or heated anything (I do like the idea of heated seats, I must say). In fact, the spec is pretty low.
Having had a hunt round for some images to draft this, I found some from the advert that sold the car to my vendor; Max did a nice job tidying her up.
So, I started sharing the daily car duties with my company run-around. Its 18 miles each way, almost exclusively dual carriageway with bumper to bumper traffic into and out of town each day so the auto is welcome. I'll also enjoy the increased income I'll receive no longer paying £3,500pa BIK tax once the company appliance goes back, one year on the road and it will have paid for itself!
Having got used to the old girl, I really enjoy the wafty driving style but found a bit of looseness from the back end. I know the MOT advised some surface rust to the rear sub-frame and chassis so it seemed a good idea to have the whole lot out (you can see where this is going, can't you). Que weeks of me grabbing a couple of hours here and there to get the whole back end suspension rebuilt. Fortunately, Lemfoder offer a pretty comprehensive kit to replace the 5-link suspension components and I went in for anti-roll bar bushes and drop links, springs (MB) and dampers (Sachs). I also replaced the sub-frame bushes (MB & Lemforder). As alluded to in a previous post, I was advised to use Bilt Hamber Hydrate 80, which appears to be just the ticket, all of which has gone under two coats of satin finish chassis black paint. The front has also taken virtually identical treatment. I've also replaced the brake hoses all round as the fronts where showing wear on the MOT list. Here are some general before and after pictures.
After a long day at work and once the little one has gone down, this is how I spend my evenings; I must be mad. It was a very good claret, though.
I got the hand brake cables, fuel lines, brakes lines & bleeding and exhaust all back together, I now just need to put some more petrol in (you have to drain the tank to get the sub-frame out) and run her up, whilst checking the coolant is bleeding (old stuff drained to check hoses and replace for stainless jubilee clips. I probably should have back flushed the heater matrix & rad but the vehicle is immobile inside and I don't want to fill the place up with water; a job for another day).
I'll probably get the MOT sorted then get someone to look at the rust which needs cutting out. Fortunately, none appears too structural so fingers crossed they don't nobble me at the MOT centre. The photos don't come out well in the dark of the barn so I'll save that for another instalment. Finally, a good engine service and gearbox flush, sunroof windows and and wiper mech lube, new bluetooth head unit to fit, speakers to upgrade, new tyres all round.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I may copy this into Readers Ride to prevent thread creep.
Robin
Edited by Rubins4 on Tuesday 14th May 07:10
Yogioes said:
Good going there, especially as well as working. I am not working so can afford to take a leisurely approach to repairs.
There are some boxes with ball joints in them. I am assuming that they are for the front lower control arms and are changeable?
It can be hard to find the time between work and a young family. The space I have to work in is also a not at home, which makes popping in for an hour or so unviable. These things however, are a labour of love. I can't wait to get a workshop/garage at home. One day....There are some boxes with ball joints in them. I am assuming that they are for the front lower control arms and are changeable?
I bought the ball joints in advance, in the expectation of merely changing those (yes, they are removable from the lower arm), and you will see there are 3 (there should have been 4, don't ask) as i would have done my friends 190 (the black one above) too. In the end, all the bushes were shot and the price and availability of complete Lemforder lower arms made it an easy decision.
Mr Tidy said:
Great car, and they just look so good in that colour! 
Many years ago I had a 1989 2 litre manual 190e in blue/black Metallic (as so many were) but it was a great car!
Sadly I decided to replace it with a W202 C280 Sport auto, which although quicker, wasn't nearly as good.
I really enjoy the colour and can't wait to get polishing and waxing (I appreciate a bit of beading as much as the next man), even though the paint is probably one of the weakest aspects of this particular car. It has had a lot of quite poor touch-ups in the past, and much of the rear has been resprayed. The c-pillars (certainly on the drivers side) are extremely flat, as are the Sacco panels which I discovered were resprayed still attached to the vehicle Many years ago I had a 1989 2 litre manual 190e in blue/black Metallic (as so many were) but it was a great car!
Sadly I decided to replace it with a W202 C280 Sport auto, which although quicker, wasn't nearly as good.
The boot lid is also a replacement (the previous owner replaced the 'spoiler-ed' original and had that resprayed); that has been done very well and has a deep colour and good finish. I'm hoping a good polish will lift the rest.Edited by Rubins4 on Wednesday 5th June 22:43
So, this is where we left off; car up on stands, panels off, wheels off, coolant changed but engine not started for approximately 4 months. No fuel.
Dont worry, I'm not eyeing up a potential wheel swap - this is getting ready to bleed the brake system after a 4x brake hose replacement. I also took some of the hard lines out of the rear to undertake a thorough wire brush/Hydrate 80/Chassis Black paint job. I use a Gunson Eazi-Bleed and have never had a significant issue, but make sure to tighten the lid to the bottle up tight; brake fluid is no friend to paint work.
With the brakes sorted and some rust holes identified in the wheel arches and sills, it was time to get everything back together in preparation for the MOT. I debated taking it down without the panels and sill covers on, but that just felt a bit wrong. Knowing that the clips for the panels become brittle with age I studiously ordered a bag of 35 replacements in advance from here. The clips themselves are ideal HOWEVER - there is not nearly enough, this kit doesn't cover the full range of likely broken ones, and the twin pronged ones at the bottom I cant seem to find anywhere on mine.
I suggest this which I believe is the full set. It will be worth it in the long run and at least you'll have some spares for another day.
Taking the panels off and putting them back on again is not for the faint-hearted, especially the first time. After a bit of practice, a technique emerges which helps, but it isn't an especially joyful experience particularly with an ever diminishing number of replacement clips. To help any future follower in this regard, I will say this once, nice and clearly;
THE SILL COVERS MUST GO ON BEFORE THE PANELS.
I will let you think about the implications of that on my journey thus far.
After much wailing and nashing of teeth, both the sill covers THEN the panels are back on, although there are various clips missing or bodged as I simply ran out of, or never had replacements, for what was required. Speaking of bodged, I do believe someone was here before me...
Thats right, that is bathroom sealer used to hold on the passenger side front wing panel. Better yet, that is bathroom sealant on top of a Velcro patch glued to the front wing.
It was doing a reasonable job to be fair, however removal of the Velcro patch also took with it some paint, frustratingly. There is still blue underneath the lifted paint so I don't think it was original paint, but still.
I got the wheels on (with pressures checked) and dropped it back down onto the ground for the first time in months; sitting a bit high (!) however I am led to believe this will settle down but not by as much as one might imagine as most 190's are sagging somewhat. Thank you Bargist for clarification on that one.
See what i mean...
(This one is not standard in the suspension dept).
So; Jerry can of petrol and a few spins of the starter and its running acceptably after a bit of lumpiness (I cleaned the throttle body during the down time).
I am concerned about overheating. When I put it away at the end of last year, it was left idling for some time which let to coolant blasting out of the expansion tank cap. The top hose was nuclear but the bottom hose was cool - I diagnosed a stuck closed thermostat which I have since replaced but this was the first run-up since then. The top hose is cooler and the bottom hose warmer than previously, however the engine fan didn't cut in, although I did not run it 'up to temperature'. I'll have to keep an eye on that on the way to the MOT centre on Saturday.
The subframe job also required the removal of the back box and rear centre sections of the exhaust which is now blowing slightly from their joint - another job of the garage together with tracking/alignment, torquing the rear hub nuts to spec and staking the nuts, and a weep of diff oil from the ABS sensor housing. They say they are short staffed on Saturdays so I hope that can fit this in.
So, the last I have managed is a quick sponge-off 6 months worth of dust.
So, MOT this weekend. Fingers crossed.
Dont worry, I'm not eyeing up a potential wheel swap - this is getting ready to bleed the brake system after a 4x brake hose replacement. I also took some of the hard lines out of the rear to undertake a thorough wire brush/Hydrate 80/Chassis Black paint job. I use a Gunson Eazi-Bleed and have never had a significant issue, but make sure to tighten the lid to the bottle up tight; brake fluid is no friend to paint work.
With the brakes sorted and some rust holes identified in the wheel arches and sills, it was time to get everything back together in preparation for the MOT. I debated taking it down without the panels and sill covers on, but that just felt a bit wrong. Knowing that the clips for the panels become brittle with age I studiously ordered a bag of 35 replacements in advance from here. The clips themselves are ideal HOWEVER - there is not nearly enough, this kit doesn't cover the full range of likely broken ones, and the twin pronged ones at the bottom I cant seem to find anywhere on mine.
I suggest this which I believe is the full set. It will be worth it in the long run and at least you'll have some spares for another day.
Taking the panels off and putting them back on again is not for the faint-hearted, especially the first time. After a bit of practice, a technique emerges which helps, but it isn't an especially joyful experience particularly with an ever diminishing number of replacement clips. To help any future follower in this regard, I will say this once, nice and clearly;
THE SILL COVERS MUST GO ON BEFORE THE PANELS.
I will let you think about the implications of that on my journey thus far.
After much wailing and nashing of teeth, both the sill covers THEN the panels are back on, although there are various clips missing or bodged as I simply ran out of, or never had replacements, for what was required. Speaking of bodged, I do believe someone was here before me...
Thats right, that is bathroom sealer used to hold on the passenger side front wing panel. Better yet, that is bathroom sealant on top of a Velcro patch glued to the front wing.
It was doing a reasonable job to be fair, however removal of the Velcro patch also took with it some paint, frustratingly. There is still blue underneath the lifted paint so I don't think it was original paint, but still.
I got the wheels on (with pressures checked) and dropped it back down onto the ground for the first time in months; sitting a bit high (!) however I am led to believe this will settle down but not by as much as one might imagine as most 190's are sagging somewhat. Thank you Bargist for clarification on that one.
See what i mean...
(This one is not standard in the suspension dept).
So; Jerry can of petrol and a few spins of the starter and its running acceptably after a bit of lumpiness (I cleaned the throttle body during the down time).
I am concerned about overheating. When I put it away at the end of last year, it was left idling for some time which let to coolant blasting out of the expansion tank cap. The top hose was nuclear but the bottom hose was cool - I diagnosed a stuck closed thermostat which I have since replaced but this was the first run-up since then. The top hose is cooler and the bottom hose warmer than previously, however the engine fan didn't cut in, although I did not run it 'up to temperature'. I'll have to keep an eye on that on the way to the MOT centre on Saturday.
The subframe job also required the removal of the back box and rear centre sections of the exhaust which is now blowing slightly from their joint - another job of the garage together with tracking/alignment, torquing the rear hub nuts to spec and staking the nuts, and a weep of diff oil from the ABS sensor housing. They say they are short staffed on Saturdays so I hope that can fit this in.
So, the last I have managed is a quick sponge-off 6 months worth of dust.
So, MOT this weekend. Fingers crossed.
That is some serious DIY you have been doing there. It is very therapeutic between work and family and easier now the light nights are here. The 190 is such a timeless design and that colour (is it Azzuro Blue? I can't remember, I have the LE brochure somewhere) is one of the best. Thanks for the clip set link. Keep it up.
r129sl said:
That is some serious DIY you have been doing there. It is very therapeutic between work and family and easier now the light nights are here. The 190 is such a timeless design and that colour (is it Azzuro Blue? I can't remember, I have the LE brochure somewhere) is one of the best. Thanks for the clip set link. Keep it up.
I really enjoy a bit of spannering, it is a nice distraction from and change to the usual week-day desk job. Yes, it's Azzuro blue; very purple in certain lights. One of Mercedes best colours in my opinion, it's a shame the car to which it has been applied has so many dings!
Edited by Rubins4 on Saturday 8th June 16:53
A pass with no advisories; they must be humouring me. I have dealt with all the bits from the last test but had at least expected something else to have cropped up since, she is 26 after all.
I've just replaced the head unit with a Bluetooth enabled equivalent. I know there are some strong opinions forwarded surrounding originality and 'keeping in period' but I'm not too concerned. I'd love a Becker or similar, but for the money they command I'd rather place that elsewhere. So, out with the old Pioneer and in with the new, err, Pioneer.
Someone has been here before me, too.
Not too garish; the red even complements some of the other red colouring if the heater controls and hazard switch (ah-hum). I've even got the the new stereo to talk to my phone do the world is my audio oyster.
Currently, we only have tinny front speakers as the the rears are quite simply AWOL. It looks like some of the original mountings has been hacked away so I'll need to research what ought to be there, what I actually have, then what the best solution will be. My goal is to have quite a straight forward system with 2 front and 2 rear amplified speakers running off a Bluetooth headunit; the first stage is therefore complete.
Having undertaken all the underneath' work, the ride is lovely and seemingly settling down with each mile that passes. The first outing gave rise to a few groans and creeks which have thankfully passed too. The ride height has also settled nicely as predicted.
My most pressing works are now as follows;
1) Improve the poor starting. Slow cranking and general lethargy in the starter system vresilted in very poor cold weather starting which is mildly better when warmer. OVP relay you say? Why can't I find one behind my battery?
2) Get some holes welded up. I've pictures but I'll save them for another day.
I've just replaced the head unit with a Bluetooth enabled equivalent. I know there are some strong opinions forwarded surrounding originality and 'keeping in period' but I'm not too concerned. I'd love a Becker or similar, but for the money they command I'd rather place that elsewhere. So, out with the old Pioneer and in with the new, err, Pioneer.
Someone has been here before me, too.
Not too garish; the red even complements some of the other red colouring if the heater controls and hazard switch (ah-hum). I've even got the the new stereo to talk to my phone do the world is my audio oyster.
Currently, we only have tinny front speakers as the the rears are quite simply AWOL. It looks like some of the original mountings has been hacked away so I'll need to research what ought to be there, what I actually have, then what the best solution will be. My goal is to have quite a straight forward system with 2 front and 2 rear amplified speakers running off a Bluetooth headunit; the first stage is therefore complete.
Having undertaken all the underneath' work, the ride is lovely and seemingly settling down with each mile that passes. The first outing gave rise to a few groans and creeks which have thankfully passed too. The ride height has also settled nicely as predicted.
My most pressing works are now as follows;
1) Improve the poor starting. Slow cranking and general lethargy in the starter system vresilted in very poor cold weather starting which is mildly better when warmer. OVP relay you say? Why can't I find one behind my battery?
2) Get some holes welded up. I've pictures but I'll save them for another day.
OVP Relay
So, I had another dig in the engine bay for this devilish little thing, and did manage to find it. The reason I am looking for it is I have poor start issues, especially when cold. The ovp (over-voltage protection) relay feeds a number of other circuits (including control units) with stable power; so if the relay and or its fuse go, you can be sure you'll have trouble elsewhere. The relays themselves are renown for the solder drying over the years and cracking, resulting in inconsistent performance.
The internet has it that the relay is located behind the battery, which itself is under the bonnet or the passenger side, at the bottom of the windscreen (in the RHD UK car, at least). Behind the battery is a moulded plastic panel which pulls out to reveal the fuel pump relay, a couple of control units and some wiring.
Really, you need to remove the fuel pump relay (the back rectangle with white writing on top) to see and especially remove the ovp relay immediately behind it. I also unclipped the first control unit (the big black and silver thing on the right) for better access.
So, I got the ovp relay out, hoping the fuse had gone thereby answering my poor start issue nice and easily. Unfortunately, it was fine, and the main pins where in good order with no smell of burning etc.
I popped it all back together and thought I better fire her up, so I know it starts on Monday morning. Queue extremely difficult starting, running on 2 or 3 cylinders when it does finally catch and the ABS light on. I manage to get the idle stable-ish and decide to test the ovp by giving it a bit of a push downward. As soon as I touch it, all cylinders sprang to life, the idle settled down properly and the ABS light went out. I can confirm I have dry joints in my ovp relay. £100 odd quid for a new one, or dismantle and re-flow the solder; having watched this, it's an easy decision. I'll give it a go tomorrow evening once I have a soldering iron to hand. I'm also going to replace the coolant temperature sender as these can play havoc with poor starting too.
So, I had another dig in the engine bay for this devilish little thing, and did manage to find it. The reason I am looking for it is I have poor start issues, especially when cold. The ovp (over-voltage protection) relay feeds a number of other circuits (including control units) with stable power; so if the relay and or its fuse go, you can be sure you'll have trouble elsewhere. The relays themselves are renown for the solder drying over the years and cracking, resulting in inconsistent performance.
The internet has it that the relay is located behind the battery, which itself is under the bonnet or the passenger side, at the bottom of the windscreen (in the RHD UK car, at least). Behind the battery is a moulded plastic panel which pulls out to reveal the fuel pump relay, a couple of control units and some wiring.
Really, you need to remove the fuel pump relay (the back rectangle with white writing on top) to see and especially remove the ovp relay immediately behind it. I also unclipped the first control unit (the big black and silver thing on the right) for better access.
So, I got the ovp relay out, hoping the fuse had gone thereby answering my poor start issue nice and easily. Unfortunately, it was fine, and the main pins where in good order with no smell of burning etc.
I popped it all back together and thought I better fire her up, so I know it starts on Monday morning. Queue extremely difficult starting, running on 2 or 3 cylinders when it does finally catch and the ABS light on. I manage to get the idle stable-ish and decide to test the ovp by giving it a bit of a push downward. As soon as I touch it, all cylinders sprang to life, the idle settled down properly and the ABS light went out. I can confirm I have dry joints in my ovp relay. £100 odd quid for a new one, or dismantle and re-flow the solder; having watched this, it's an easy decision. I'll give it a go tomorrow evening once I have a soldering iron to hand. I'm also going to replace the coolant temperature sender as these can play havoc with poor starting too.
Northbrook said:
Good work and, as you've said, a nice colour.
I tried a 190 before I got my W124 - the example I drove was undoubtedly tired & shabby. Quite how I ended up with an E300 with more miles plus recent disuse, I'm not sure. I blame r129sl.
It's a weird thing. The 190 is the test car for the W124. But it's more charming for that. Of my 2.6 190 and 320 W124 I'd want to keep the 190. It's all around less good than the W124. But there's no way I'd sell it first. I tried a 190 before I got my W124 - the example I drove was undoubtedly tired & shabby. Quite how I ended up with an E300 with more miles plus recent disuse, I'm not sure. I blame r129sl.
Yogioes said:
Hi,
What model of Pioneer did you go for.
I have also been thinking of changing mine, but like most things in this modern world, the choices are bewildering.
Its a MVH-S410BT, although I only paid £60 so it must have been on a deal at the time.What model of Pioneer did you go for.
I have also been thinking of changing mine, but like most things in this modern world, the choices are bewildering.
I'm with you, if you assessed each unit available in any depth you'd never make a decision. I've had Pioneer in the past, wanted one specifically with Bluetooth connectivity and didn't want to spend much, so ended up with this.
Northbrook said:
I blame r129sl.
I think he can be blamed for a lot of things. I'm about to 'pull the trigger' on a private jet to Cannes.Edited by Rubins4 on Monday 10th June 21:08
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