Sensible family daily wagon - Mercedes Benz S211 E500
Discussion
bolidemichael said:
Prior to the service, I had the MOT; the only advisories... surprise surprise, the old 1.1.11 - yes, I hear you exclaiming knowingly, "No member of the Corps should report for active duty in a ginger toupee."
bolidemichael said:
The mention of Toulouse sausage has really made me miss our annual pilgrimage to France to see family. More specifically to a lovely comune called Belcastel. They have what seems like 20 residents, a castel full of MOMA style art, a Michelin starred restaurant, and most importantly a small eaterie.
They do a Saucisse 'salad' which is basically sausage and chips with a load of salad thrown on top. Massive, and wonderful.
Love this thread, and it makes want a Mercedes again! (500SEL please)
bolidemichael said:
The following morning we awoke to a breakfast served slightly later than the hostess would've preferred but, as we were the only occupants during the off-season, there was no leverage on her part. It was a hot chocolate, bread, juice, jam, fruit and cereal type of affair. I was also delighted to see a 3D map of the 'ecrins-queyras' region:
I love these maps, where have they all gone? They were a feature of restaurants and cafes of every childhood holiday (especially in hilly areas).
JakeT said:
bolidemichael said:
Prior to the service, I had the MOT; the only advisories... surprise surprise, the old 1.1.11 - yes, I hear you exclaiming knowingly, "No member of the Corps should report for active duty in a ginger toupee."
bolidemichael said:
The mention of Toulouse sausage has really made me miss our annual pilgrimage to France to see family. More specifically to a lovely comune called Belcastel. They have what seems like 20 residents, a castel full of MOMA style art, a Michelin starred restaurant, and most importantly a small eaterie.
They do a Saucisse 'salad' which is basically sausage and chips with a load of salad thrown on top. Massive, and wonderful.
Thanks for the recommendation for Belcastel, your tip and Tog's means that I have another couple of destinations to chalk off, whilst I built a trip around them. I would like to make more time to visit water sources in France and a sausage and chip salad supper makes for an enticing end to the day - washed down with a local white, perhaps even a nice pinot noir.
Edited by bolidemichael on Wednesday 17th June 10:09
tog said:
Love this thread, and it makes want a Mercedes again! (500SEL please)
Thanks Tog, the big V8 is a wonderful powerplant pushing out suitably hirsute horsepower. There is a chap that runs a 560SEL and attends the Bicester Heritage Sunday Scrambles regularly with two child seats in the back. I like that a lot and it's a handsome car with only around 56k on the clock, iirc. I know that I would.bolidemichael said:
The following morning we awoke to a breakfast served slightly later than the hostess would've preferred but, as we were the only occupants during the off-season, there was no leverage on her part. It was a hot chocolate, bread, juice, jam, fruit and cereal type of affair. I was also delighted to see a 3D map of the 'ecrins-queyras' region:
I love these maps, where have they all gone? They were a feature of restaurants and cafes of every childhood holiday (especially in hilly areas).These are IGN 3D Relief Wall Maps and are very cool things to possess indeed.
Edited by bolidemichael on Tuesday 16th June 22:56
bolidemichael said:
I'm pleased to see that the love for Red Dwarf is out there! How large is the bill for the Beemer?
Thanks for the recommendation for Belcastel, your tip and Tog's means that I have another couple of destinations to chalk off, whilst I built a trip around them. I would like to make more time to visit water sources in France and a sausage and chip salad supper makes for an enticing end to the day - washed down with a local white, perhaps even a nice [i[pinot noir[/i].
Total bill came to £1411. That included a new sump gasket, and general titivation too. I don't plan on any bills like that for quite some time now.Thanks for the recommendation for Belcastel, your tip and Tog's means that I have another couple of destinations to chalk off, whilst I built a trip around them. I would like to make more time to visit water sources in France and a sausage and chip salad supper makes for an enticing end to the day - washed down with a local white, perhaps even a nice [i[pinot noir[/i].
The Aveyron valley is really nice, with lots of very classic French villages. Places like Najac and Saint-Cirq Lapopie are just wonderful. As per your relief map, it's hilly, which makes for some great views. That combined with good food and wine is a winner. One day I'll move down there. I just need to figure out how to afford it.
JakeT said:
Total bill came to £1411. That included a new sump gasket, and general titivation too. I don't plan on any bills like that for quite some time now.
The Aveyron valley is really nice, with lots of very classic French villages. Places like Najac and Saint-Cirq Lapopie are just wonderful. As per your relief map, it's hilly, which makes for some great views. That combined with good food and wine is a winner. One day I'll move down there. I just need to figure out how to afford it.
I`ll second that ,been living here for 25 years and still finding new roads and valleys in the Segala to exploreThe Aveyron valley is really nice, with lots of very classic French villages. Places like Najac and Saint-Cirq Lapopie are just wonderful. As per your relief map, it's hilly, which makes for some great views. That combined with good food and wine is a winner. One day I'll move down there. I just need to figure out how to afford it.
bolidemichael said:
Thanks Tog, the big V8 is a wonderful powerplant pushing out suitably hirsute horsepower. There is a chap that runs a 560SEL and attends the Bicester Heritage Sunday Scrambles regularly with two child seats in the back. I like that a lot and it's a handsome car with only around 56k on the clock, iirc. I know that I would.
These are IGN 3D Relief Wall Maps and are very cool things to possess indeed.
Thanks for the map tip, I'd get one in a shot if I had any wall space. Our house is quite open plan and has lots of windows (Swedish timber framed kit house built in 1975) so we are always short of places to hang pictures sadly.These are IGN 3D Relief Wall Maps and are very cool things to possess indeed.
Edited by bolidemichael on Tuesday 16th June 22:56
While plotting your next tour, another place I'd recommend is the Puy du Fou. Your kids look like a good age to enjoy it still, but even as an adult it was a phenomenal experience. Between Nantes and La Rochelle and really quite a spectacle, the French son et lumière tradition turned up to 11. We did a day a few years ago, but you would need two to see it all.
harrycovert said:
JakeT said:
Total bill came to £1411. That included a new sump gasket, and general titivation too. I don't plan on any bills like that for quite some time now.
The Aveyron valley is really nice, with lots of very classic French villages. Places like Najac and Saint-Cirq Lapopie are just wonderful. As per your relief map, it's hilly, which makes for some great views. That combined with good food and wine is a winner. One day I'll move down there. I just need to figure out how to afford it.
I`ll second that ,been living here for 25 years and still finding new roads and valleys in the Segala to exploreThe Aveyron valley is really nice, with lots of very classic French villages. Places like Najac and Saint-Cirq Lapopie are just wonderful. As per your relief map, it's hilly, which makes for some great views. That combined with good food and wine is a winner. One day I'll move down there. I just need to figure out how to afford it.
Thanks for the Aveyron valley info, I have found quite a lengthy article on CNN Traveler [sic] which says what you have described, expect they must get paid by the word.
tog said:
bolidemichael said:
Thanks Tog, the big V8 is a wonderful powerplant pushing out suitably hirsute horsepower. There is a chap that runs a 560SEL and attends the Bicester Heritage Sunday Scrambles regularly with two child seats in the back. I like that a lot and it's a handsome car with only around 56k on the clock, iirc. I know that I would.
These are IGN 3D Relief Wall Maps and are very cool things to possess indeed.
Thanks for the map tip, I'd get one in a shot if I had any wall space. Our house is quite open plan and has lots of windows (Swedish timber framed kit house built in 1975) so we are always short of places to hang pictures sadly.These are IGN 3D Relief Wall Maps and are very cool things to possess indeed.
Edited by bolidemichael on Tuesday 16th June 22:56
While plotting your next tour, another place I'd recommend is the Puy du Fou. Your kids look like a good age to enjoy it still, but even as an adult it was a phenomenal experience. Between Nantes and La Rochelle and really quite a spectacle, the French son et lumière tradition turned up to 11. We did a day a few years ago, but you would need two to see it all.
Thanks for the tip for Puy du Fou, Tog. I looked into it and ordered a brochure, which arrived today.
So, back to September 2019 and Le Grand Depart from Aups. Prior to that, Mrs Bolide insisted on grabbing from truffle gouda with which she had developed an odd holiday affair.
Next, we had to get out of the enclosure into which we had so painfully reversed the previous evening (click the Bugatti logo). This was a family affair.
and the journey stats, prior to the return leg, captured for the record. The mpg isn't tooooo bad with the roof box. Without, I would've expected about 25.
For the journey back to l'Argentiere to collect my Mother, Mrs Bolide insisted on driving and I was happy to chillax, but in the front seat. We approached the Alps on the same route in reverse and as we approached the horizon, the horizon grew ever larger. This was taken on the A51, just north of Sisteron, which I've always considered to be a strange name.
This image was taken about twenty minutes later, as we approached the road to Embrun
and around 45 mins later, we had crossed the idyllic Lac de St Croix, with her sparkling azurite water and shortly after, stopped for a scenic view at curve engineered around the mountain side, overlooking the river valley.
the chariot. Tally Ho!
and arrived in time for a welcome lunch
and departed on the road that we should've taken on the previous leg, the D1091 between Grenoble and Briancon. What a spectacular drive this is, on a fine day.
We eventually reached our destination for the evening - Chalon-Sur-Saone. I had looked at the journey and figured that if we pushed it a little today, we'd have a more leisurely drive tomorrow and I could stop at the Circuit du Reims for a classic photo op.
Once again, we were rewarded with the wonderful 'golden hour' light that France has to offer in places.
Our brief visit exposed us to an awful restaurant, where I had a standoff with the recalcitrant owner over our ludicrous waiting time and also the very nice architecture in the old town.
The following morning, we opted against breakfast at the hotel and walked across the road to the thriving boulangerie and its delightful aromas and then over to the charcuterie to stock up for luncheon items. It was after this leisurely munch on a pain au something or other, that I realised that I'd somehow miscalculated the time/distance available and that we'd lost an hour in travel time! We jumped in the car and I maintained a slightly faster than normal pace, ruing the opportunity lost to stick in any motoring related tourist activity.
Anyway, we made it on time, with a ridiculous mpg as a result of the roofbox
and I made a tactical top up, in order to ensure that we could get home in SW20 without having to stop for fuel. Planning ahead like this is useful, when we had timed to get back in time for dinner, as the children returned to school the following day.
So, once home, the stats for the day's journey were
and overall for the journey
The car was great, carried five and luggage, the V8 purred and the air suspension suspended. Top banana.
Next, we had to get out of the enclosure into which we had so painfully reversed the previous evening (click the Bugatti logo). This was a family affair.
and the journey stats, prior to the return leg, captured for the record. The mpg isn't tooooo bad with the roof box. Without, I would've expected about 25.
For the journey back to l'Argentiere to collect my Mother, Mrs Bolide insisted on driving and I was happy to chillax, but in the front seat. We approached the Alps on the same route in reverse and as we approached the horizon, the horizon grew ever larger. This was taken on the A51, just north of Sisteron, which I've always considered to be a strange name.
This image was taken about twenty minutes later, as we approached the road to Embrun
and around 45 mins later, we had crossed the idyllic Lac de St Croix, with her sparkling azurite water and shortly after, stopped for a scenic view at curve engineered around the mountain side, overlooking the river valley.
the chariot. Tally Ho!
and arrived in time for a welcome lunch
and departed on the road that we should've taken on the previous leg, the D1091 between Grenoble and Briancon. What a spectacular drive this is, on a fine day.
We eventually reached our destination for the evening - Chalon-Sur-Saone. I had looked at the journey and figured that if we pushed it a little today, we'd have a more leisurely drive tomorrow and I could stop at the Circuit du Reims for a classic photo op.
Once again, we were rewarded with the wonderful 'golden hour' light that France has to offer in places.
Our brief visit exposed us to an awful restaurant, where I had a standoff with the recalcitrant owner over our ludicrous waiting time and also the very nice architecture in the old town.
The following morning, we opted against breakfast at the hotel and walked across the road to the thriving boulangerie and its delightful aromas and then over to the charcuterie to stock up for luncheon items. It was after this leisurely munch on a pain au something or other, that I realised that I'd somehow miscalculated the time/distance available and that we'd lost an hour in travel time! We jumped in the car and I maintained a slightly faster than normal pace, ruing the opportunity lost to stick in any motoring related tourist activity.
Anyway, we made it on time, with a ridiculous mpg as a result of the roofbox
and I made a tactical top up, in order to ensure that we could get home in SW20 without having to stop for fuel. Planning ahead like this is useful, when we had timed to get back in time for dinner, as the children returned to school the following day.
So, once home, the stats for the day's journey were
and overall for the journey
The car was great, carried five and luggage, the V8 purred and the air suspension suspended. Top banana.
Edited by bolidemichael on Thursday 25th June 00:03
bolidemichael said:
Jake, I've become normalised to bills like that with this car and the miles that I put on it!
Thanks for the Aveyron valley info, I have found quite a lengthy article on CNN Traveler [sic] which says what you have described, expect they must get paid by the word.
It goes with the course. Current bus has been owned a year today, and has done 21,000 miles with me now. Thanks for the Aveyron valley info, I have found quite a lengthy article on CNN Traveler [sic] which says what you have described, expect they must get paid by the word.
I'm sure CNN have to sell ad revenue too. Nobody wants to advertise with me, that's a guaranteed.
JakeT said:
bolidemichael said:
Jake, I've become normalised to bills like that with this car and the miles that I put on it!
Thanks for the Aveyron valley info, I have found quite a lengthy article on CNN Traveler [sic] which says what you have described, expect they must get paid by the word.
It goes with the course. Current bus has been owned a year today, and has done 21,000 miles with me now. Thanks for the Aveyron valley info, I have found quite a lengthy article on CNN Traveler [sic] which says what you have described, expect they must get paid by the word.
I'm sure CNN have to sell ad revenue too. Nobody wants to advertise with me, that's a guaranteed.
Next up was some titivation; the chrome shroud was irritatingly loose and though functionally okay, the action was sub-optimal.
Firstly, the rubber seal was removed and then the chrome - it's simply four (iirc) philips head screws.
I had looked up the fixtures on the MB EPC (electronic parts catalogue) and ordered the retaining clips. There are six of them:
and here is the new placed alongside the old, in situ:
as you can see, the difference is that the newer clip has a slot out of which an embedded piece slides. This piece located within the angled fold in the chrome shroud, retaining it firmly in place.
here is the fold - which juts out commensurate to the location of the clip, if you can make it out from this awkwardly focused shot
It's always a good idea to get into the middle in order to give this a clean - I had only done this a year or so previously and quite a bit of detritus had worked its way in and eventually this prevents the sprung gate from opening unimpeded.
and the clips removed - the bodywork is a little flimsy here, but I managed to get them out and where the apertures were opened a little, they were easily knocked back into place.
This is the old clip
and much to my surprise, these also retained the retractable piece!
Nevertheless, I opted for the shiny new bits that only you'll see
I set them up
refitted the shroud
in the meantime, I'd fed the seal with gummi pflegge
Everything went back nicely
and that littlefettle titivation feels gooood
Firstly, the rubber seal was removed and then the chrome - it's simply four (iirc) philips head screws.
I had looked up the fixtures on the MB EPC (electronic parts catalogue) and ordered the retaining clips. There are six of them:
and here is the new placed alongside the old, in situ:
as you can see, the difference is that the newer clip has a slot out of which an embedded piece slides. This piece located within the angled fold in the chrome shroud, retaining it firmly in place.
here is the fold - which juts out commensurate to the location of the clip, if you can make it out from this awkwardly focused shot
It's always a good idea to get into the middle in order to give this a clean - I had only done this a year or so previously and quite a bit of detritus had worked its way in and eventually this prevents the sprung gate from opening unimpeded.
and the clips removed - the bodywork is a little flimsy here, but I managed to get them out and where the apertures were opened a little, they were easily knocked back into place.
This is the old clip
and much to my surprise, these also retained the retractable piece!
Nevertheless, I opted for the shiny new bits that only you'll see
I set them up
refitted the shroud
in the meantime, I'd fed the seal with gummi pflegge
Everything went back nicely
and that little
Shortly thereafter, I took a day to deep detail the car in preparation for winter. It's the first time that I had attempted to wash it after the trip to France.
I had purchased a few more bilt hamber items and after de-contaminated and cleaned with the two bucket method. After that, it was an 'iron out' with korrosol, then a clay bar followed by stripping previous polish with the cleanser polish. The next stage (it was started to get on in the day by now) was an application of auto balm.
The effort was worth it though and the headlights look great having been polished a month earlier.
I had purchased a few more bilt hamber items and after de-contaminated and cleaned with the two bucket method. After that, it was an 'iron out' with korrosol, then a clay bar followed by stripping previous polish with the cleanser polish. The next stage (it was started to get on in the day by now) was an application of auto balm.
The effort was worth it though and the headlights look great having been polished a month earlier.
bolidemichael said:
"Gummi Pflege" is one of the most strangely satisfying names in automotive maintenance.
Do you need an account / subscription to access the EPC? Do you get stuff delivered to your home or do you need to collect from the dealer?
Hereward said:
bolidemichael said:
"Gummi Pflege" is one of the most strangely satisfying names in automotive maintenance.
Do you need an account / subscription to access the EPC? Do you get stuff delivered to your home or do you need to collect from the dealer?
The EPC... is a game of kiss chase between Daimler Benz and MBUK owners' club. The access is disabled after a year or so and then one has to embark on a clandestine and scarcely conceivable series of digital hoops in order to regain access.
One can only use the part numbers for one's own requirement- there is no feature to order directly from MB dealers, which is a shame.
Hi Michael
Great thread which has taken me two enjoyable evenings to read through. Great to see my recommendation for the headlight refurb paid dividends they look great now.
Also seeing my old roof box in all of the photos feels like a part of me is travelling with you. Good to see it has trashed your fuel consumption in the process!
Some amazing photos there please keep this going it is very enjoyable to read. I think I might have to show my S211 a bit more love now having seen yours.
Best wishes to you and your family
Ray
Great thread which has taken me two enjoyable evenings to read through. Great to see my recommendation for the headlight refurb paid dividends they look great now.
Also seeing my old roof box in all of the photos feels like a part of me is travelling with you. Good to see it has trashed your fuel consumption in the process!
Some amazing photos there please keep this going it is very enjoyable to read. I think I might have to show my S211 a bit more love now having seen yours.
Best wishes to you and your family
Ray
Edited by 300sl-24 on Thursday 17th September 22:52
Well there's nothing quite like the well meaning observations of a fellow enthusiast to spur on the 'titivation'! The headlights made such a difference and were really the spur to get me thinking about reversing the age related knocks on the bodywork.
I'm pleased that you've enjoyed it so far, it's due an update and I'm plotting how to catch up with the present day... it looked possible for a moment within lockdown and now, after a prolonged spell at the bodyshop it's far away, once again!
Isn't the roof box a handsome thing? The three tone is very elegant and distinctive on the road. There is a bit of whistling from the roof bars and boy, does it drink fuel, but then again - I have a heavy right foot and a boot large enough to carry spare fuel, too
Look at that lack of social distancing in a pre-COVID world!
I'm pleased that you've enjoyed it so far, it's due an update and I'm plotting how to catch up with the present day... it looked possible for a moment within lockdown and now, after a prolonged spell at the bodyshop it's far away, once again!
Isn't the roof box a handsome thing? The three tone is very elegant and distinctive on the road. There is a bit of whistling from the roof bars and boy, does it drink fuel, but then again - I have a heavy right foot and a boot large enough to carry spare fuel, too
Look at that lack of social distancing in a pre-COVID world!
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