Mercedes W123 230 restoration project
Discussion
Hi all.
New member here, I thought I would introduce myself and my project car in one hit.
I have recently acquired a 1980 Mercedes 230 (W123). It's a non-runner, has a few areas of rust to deal with on top of many years of neglect. But it seems to be on the whole solid, is low mileage and the interior is very clean. I plan to restore it to its former glory and keep for the occasional Sunday drive. With a whopping 108hp and nearly 1.4 tonnes, it wont pull the skin off a rice pudding, fortunately my daily driver has just enough oomph to keep that desire in check.
This is my first classic and first attempt of restoring a car so this is going to be a steep learning curve for me.
I have knocked up a blog site as somewhere to record my progress (which is at the below link) but I will put any major progress up here too if anyone is interested.
New member here, I thought I would introduce myself and my project car in one hit.
I have recently acquired a 1980 Mercedes 230 (W123). It's a non-runner, has a few areas of rust to deal with on top of many years of neglect. But it seems to be on the whole solid, is low mileage and the interior is very clean. I plan to restore it to its former glory and keep for the occasional Sunday drive. With a whopping 108hp and nearly 1.4 tonnes, it wont pull the skin off a rice pudding, fortunately my daily driver has just enough oomph to keep that desire in check.
This is my first classic and first attempt of restoring a car so this is going to be a steep learning curve for me.
I have knocked up a blog site as somewhere to record my progress (which is at the below link) but I will put any major progress up here too if anyone is interested.
Moderator edit: no links to your blog please
Edited by jeremyc on Monday 30th December 07:45
Nice - I had one of these a few years ago, same colour too (English Red) but with the black leather interior. Mine was also the boggo 230, non E, from 1979 but manual. I bought it in '96 from a family friend with c350,00kms on it (I was in Germany and it was LHD) and sold it a couple of years later with nearly 400,000kms on it. Tough old buses that are really well engineered. The rear arches were going on mine, they are double skinned and water gets between them. Apart from that mine was in pretty good nick both mechanically and bodily - I still miss it, it was such a leisurely drive. Living in Germany parts were cheap and any old garage could work on them.
TheInternet said:
TheSpudfather said:
With a whopping 108hp and nearly 1.4 tonnes, it wont pull the skin off a rice pudding,
Tell that to the 200D owners with their 59bhp.Veeayt said:
Would be very interested to see how the restoration goes. The car looks to be in a bad shape, but with enough commitment it could be epic.
I don't think it is quite as bad as it looks. The paintwork looks terrible and I first thought there was rust spotting through all over. But after a closer look it turned out it was actually almost all lichen from having been left standing for so long and after a pressure wash it does come off.I did find more rot than I had hoped, but it does seem to be limited to localised areas which are common places for rust to set in. I am yet to get it up in the air and take a look underneath though.........
rednotdead said:
Nice - I had one of these a few years ago, same colour too (English Red) but with the black leather interior. Mine was also the boggo 230, non E, from 1979 but manual. I bought it in '96 from a family friend with c350,00kms on it (I was in Germany and it was LHD) and sold it a couple of years later with nearly 400,000kms on it. Tough old buses that are really well engineered. The rear arches were going on mine, they are double skinned and water gets between them. Apart from that mine was in pretty good nick both mechanically and bodily - I still miss it, it was such a leisurely drive. Living in Germany parts were cheap and any old garage could work on them.
This one only has 55k miles on it, so I am keen to get it back to a good condition. I know what you mean about the rust traps, I have found a few areas that need work. I have been wanting to improve my welding skills for a while anyway......Northbrook said:
It's very orange! Good luck!
It is rather. I wasn't too keen on the colour at first, there are much nicer colours that this car was available in. But to keep it tied in with the interior there are not many options that would work. It's growing on my though, the paint is heavily oxidised which makes it look more orange. Once it it repaired and polished it will hopefully look closer to this. 
20 Nov 2012 by Toby Hildabrand, on FlickrMr Tidy said:
I'm wishing you well. 
I bought a 1980 W123 280e back in 1991 and even with an alleged 185bhp it didn't exactly feel quick!
But the W123 felt like it was pretty indestructible.
I'm looking forward to seeing how you get on.
Thanks. I have to keep telling myself it will only really get used on occasional summer Sundays for trips out for a pub lunch.I bought a 1980 W123 280e back in 1991 and even with an alleged 185bhp it didn't exactly feel quick!
But the W123 felt like it was pretty indestructible.
I'm looking forward to seeing how you get on.
Inspire said:
The rear end and interior look absolutely lovely. Will be good to see some updates with progress on this - good luck!
The car is pretty solid bar the few ares of rot I have found, and has cleaned up quite well after a first wash. Part of me wants to start polishing even just one panel to see if it can be brought back, but it is such a low priority in the grand scheme of things.My daughter (spud) is really keen to help out, so she has already been out there witht he jet washer.
Roof before jet washing.
Bonnet after jet washing.
Moderator edit: no links to your blog please
Edited by jeremyc on Monday 30th December 07:46
Did a bit more work today draining out the old petrol, replacing deteriated fuel pipes and tested the fuel pump.
Then had a go at firing it up.
https://youtu.be/TIdFzwf-KEo
Happy that after 10+ years of sitting it fired up with minimal fuss. Need to get the water pump sorted next.
Then had a go at firing it up.
https://youtu.be/TIdFzwf-KEo
Happy that after 10+ years of sitting it fired up with minimal fuss. Need to get the water pump sorted next.
Moderator edit: no links to your blog please
Edited by jeremyc on Monday 30th December 07:46
There speaks experience (Gary71)!
With the history and that lovely interior it seems worth saving but you will need to find a friendly bodyshop. It could be a forever keeper but a traditional restorer would not blink at asking for GBP 25k for the bodywork and paint. Saying that there are others who just see it as a lump of metal that needs welding and paint and would be alot cheaper- especially if you do much of the work yourself.
You should definitely try to visit Technoclassica Esssen where you will find lots of specialists and parts for old Mercs like this.
In summary I love it and I hope you find a way of finishing it that works with your pockets! Good luck and looks like you and Spud are going to have a tonne of fun!
With the history and that lovely interior it seems worth saving but you will need to find a friendly bodyshop. It could be a forever keeper but a traditional restorer would not blink at asking for GBP 25k for the bodywork and paint. Saying that there are others who just see it as a lump of metal that needs welding and paint and would be alot cheaper- especially if you do much of the work yourself.
You should definitely try to visit Technoclassica Esssen where you will find lots of specialists and parts for old Mercs like this.
In summary I love it and I hope you find a way of finishing it that works with your pockets! Good luck and looks like you and Spud are going to have a tonne of fun!
Edited by Paracetamol on Monday 30th December 06:50
gary71 said:
Best of luck, that’s a big project! Hope it’s not too bad once you get it apart
Paracetamol said:
There speaks experience (Gary71)!
With the history and that lovely interior it seems worth saving but you will need to find a friendly bodyshop. It could be a forever keeper but a traditional restorer would not blink at asking for GBP 25k for the bodywork and paint. Saying that there are others who just see it as a lump of metal that needs welding and paint and would be alot cheaper- especially if you do much of the work yourself.
You should definitely try to visit Technoclassica Esssen where you will find lots of specialists and parts for old Mercs like this.
In summary I love it and I hope you find a way of finishing it that works with your pockets! Good luck and looks like you and Spud are going to have a tonne of fun!
Thanks both. The rust issues do seem to be mounting up, but fortunately none of it is anywhere structural so I am still optimistic.With the history and that lovely interior it seems worth saving but you will need to find a friendly bodyshop. It could be a forever keeper but a traditional restorer would not blink at asking for GBP 25k for the bodywork and paint. Saying that there are others who just see it as a lump of metal that needs welding and paint and would be alot cheaper- especially if you do much of the work yourself.
You should definitely try to visit Technoclassica Esssen where you will find lots of specialists and parts for old Mercs like this.
In summary I love it and I hope you find a way of finishing it that works with your pockets! Good luck and looks like you and Spud are going to have a tonne of fun!
Edited by Paracetamol on Monday 30th December 06:50
There will be no throwing this into a garage with a tonne of cash in the boot. I will be doing all the work myself as far as practically possible, the car owes me nothing and it's something I want to learn.
TheSpudfather said:
Had a spare half hour today so whipped off the water pump ready to strip down later. While I was at it I found the thermostat housing was completely blocked with calcium deposits. Looks like being left standing for so long has hit the engine coolant system hard.
Whoa. How does one go about taking that apart without it breaking into pieces?Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff