My turn to be ridiculously excited - my first AMG!
Discussion
Back after a long weekend in the Peak District (never been before, but absolutely stunning part of the world), I’d intended to get the car washed, clayed, polished and waxed.
I thought I’d clean the roof seals first, which entails making some temporary supports for the roof to hold it in its half open position. Screwfix supplied a brand new broom handle and some rubber door stops to go on the ends. You have to stop the hood as it is opening via the roof switch, wait a few seconds for the car to beep furiously, and then the roof begins to sink on its own - at this point you need to fit the supports between header rail and the front edge of the roof section...
This allows access to all the roof seals, all of which were horribly dirty and full of years worth of muck:
Once the seals were clean (i got through a full bucket of warm water with shampoo in - it was black by the end of it!), it was time to treat them with a Gummi-Pflege stick - this is mainly Vaseline I think, and rejuvenates the rubber and will hopefully reduce the creaking when the roof is up.
Forgot to take any ‘after’ pictures, but they came up like new.
Washed the car, dried it, then the rain started... bugger.
I did clay, polish and wax the boot, as well as fitting a new SLK55 badge to the boot lid, as this was missing from the car. The rest of the bodywork will have to wait until the weekend...
Also managed to clean all the drain holes in the boot and underbonnet - all full of muck to begin with, and dressed all the black plastic parts around the car.
Getting there....
I thought I’d clean the roof seals first, which entails making some temporary supports for the roof to hold it in its half open position. Screwfix supplied a brand new broom handle and some rubber door stops to go on the ends. You have to stop the hood as it is opening via the roof switch, wait a few seconds for the car to beep furiously, and then the roof begins to sink on its own - at this point you need to fit the supports between header rail and the front edge of the roof section...
This allows access to all the roof seals, all of which were horribly dirty and full of years worth of muck:
Once the seals were clean (i got through a full bucket of warm water with shampoo in - it was black by the end of it!), it was time to treat them with a Gummi-Pflege stick - this is mainly Vaseline I think, and rejuvenates the rubber and will hopefully reduce the creaking when the roof is up.
Forgot to take any ‘after’ pictures, but they came up like new.
Washed the car, dried it, then the rain started... bugger.
I did clay, polish and wax the boot, as well as fitting a new SLK55 badge to the boot lid, as this was missing from the car. The rest of the bodywork will have to wait until the weekend...
Also managed to clean all the drain holes in the boot and underbonnet - all full of muck to begin with, and dressed all the black plastic parts around the car.
Getting there....
Bit of an update. Still loving the car - the noise is totally addictive!
Bought some OEM boot gas struts which fitted perfectly (unlike the eBay specials) and now hold the boot lid up, which is nice. Also bought new ones for the bonnet which are also much better. Really cheap but effective ‘upgrades’
Having fun and games with the antenna, which services both radio and remotes.
The range is pants - about three feet at best. The antenna amplifier on the car had a broken coax connector so the antenna cable was bodged on with insulating tape. Bought a secondhand amplifier off eBay with an intact connector and fitted that, but the range is still poor. I suspect it’s the connector between the aerial itself and the connector which comes through the bodywork - they are known to corrode and I cannot separate the two parts. Can’t find the assembly for sale in uk. There is one in the US, but with shipping it is £££s, so leaving that for now.
Finally got round to getting new tyres fitted this morning, using KwikFit mobile. Car had a mix of Michelin PS3 on the front and Nexen (?!) on the rear. Now has lovely PS4s all round.
Was very impressed with the mobile fitter - she took lots of care jacking and undid everything by hand rather than by air gun, and was happy for me to clean under the arches and inside the wheel rims as she did each wheel. Refitted again by hand and then with torque wrench.
Brakes and suspension all looked in good condition all round.
I already knew that the locking wheel nuts had seen better days from a comment on one of the service receipts, and sure enough, one of them had a chewed up thread. But... putting the last wheel back on, she couldn’t get one of the bolts to tighten. The thread looked good when she took it off the car, and was torqued up, but we got to a position where it would spin fairly freely both directions, but would not undo to allow us to remove... arse.
Eventually, we went to KwikFit in Banbury and they managed to get the wheel off. The thread on the bolt was destroyed - I can’t really see how it happened, as the wheel came off easily, and she only used hand tools to refit. Really weird.
Here are the knackered bolts (top one is the locking one)
They tried to recut the thread with a new bolt but it didn’t want to know, so I’m taking it in to a friend’s garage next weekend to get it properly re-tapped and have ordered new bolts all round...
Other than that, I’ve got some new wipers to fit once I’ve given the windscreen a really good clay and polish.
It’s a lot of fun
Bought some OEM boot gas struts which fitted perfectly (unlike the eBay specials) and now hold the boot lid up, which is nice. Also bought new ones for the bonnet which are also much better. Really cheap but effective ‘upgrades’
Having fun and games with the antenna, which services both radio and remotes.
The range is pants - about three feet at best. The antenna amplifier on the car had a broken coax connector so the antenna cable was bodged on with insulating tape. Bought a secondhand amplifier off eBay with an intact connector and fitted that, but the range is still poor. I suspect it’s the connector between the aerial itself and the connector which comes through the bodywork - they are known to corrode and I cannot separate the two parts. Can’t find the assembly for sale in uk. There is one in the US, but with shipping it is £££s, so leaving that for now.
Finally got round to getting new tyres fitted this morning, using KwikFit mobile. Car had a mix of Michelin PS3 on the front and Nexen (?!) on the rear. Now has lovely PS4s all round.
Was very impressed with the mobile fitter - she took lots of care jacking and undid everything by hand rather than by air gun, and was happy for me to clean under the arches and inside the wheel rims as she did each wheel. Refitted again by hand and then with torque wrench.
Brakes and suspension all looked in good condition all round.
I already knew that the locking wheel nuts had seen better days from a comment on one of the service receipts, and sure enough, one of them had a chewed up thread. But... putting the last wheel back on, she couldn’t get one of the bolts to tighten. The thread looked good when she took it off the car, and was torqued up, but we got to a position where it would spin fairly freely both directions, but would not undo to allow us to remove... arse.
Eventually, we went to KwikFit in Banbury and they managed to get the wheel off. The thread on the bolt was destroyed - I can’t really see how it happened, as the wheel came off easily, and she only used hand tools to refit. Really weird.
Here are the knackered bolts (top one is the locking one)
They tried to recut the thread with a new bolt but it didn’t want to know, so I’m taking it in to a friend’s garage next weekend to get it properly re-tapped and have ordered new bolts all round...
Other than that, I’ve got some new wipers to fit once I’ve given the windscreen a really good clay and polish.
It’s a lot of fun
bolidemichael said:
New struts are so satisfying as it offers that 'new' car feeling. It's nice to maintain a vehicle to operate as it should and these little fettles matter!
Absolutely agree! For under £20 a set, and 5 minutes to fit, they make such a difference.Forgot to add that I’ve also replaced the filler cap as the retention strap had broken on the original one. Another satisfying fix. Does make my wife
though Edited by 595Heaven on Saturday 12th October 20:45
Two steps forward...
During the week I bought new wheel bolts for all the wheels and snagged an unused set of original Mercedes locking wheel nuts for £15 on eBay - absolute bargain as used sets normally seem to go for around £40! Lovely...
Went to my local garage, run by an old neighbour and his son this morning and they got the car onto the ramp.
|https://thumbsnap.com/AWTkdwbx[/url]
Luckily, they were able to tap the stripped thread on the rear hub and then cleaned up all the threads on every corner before refitting the wheels with the new bolts. All the bolts took the right torque so that problem is solved.
Also managed to get the exhausts better aligned at the rear of the bumper which looks much better.
One step back...
Once the car was off the ramp, they went to start it and the starter was really sluggish, but did manage to start the engine, ignition had been left on whilst it was on the ramp, so battery voltage must have dropped. For some reason, the roof module didn’t like this and the instrument pack was displaying ‘Vario Roof Fault. Visit workshop’.
I said I’d take it away and suspected the error would recover once the battery was charged up, but it is stubbornly remaining. We’ve discussed and I’ll drop in one day next week so they can connect it to their diagnostics and see if it can be reset. We decided against a battery disconnect in case this causes further issues. Bugger!
Got it washed this afternoon and fitted the new wipers. Had to take it out for the obligatory ‘drying the brakes’ blast... it does go well
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During the week I bought new wheel bolts for all the wheels and snagged an unused set of original Mercedes locking wheel nuts for £15 on eBay - absolute bargain as used sets normally seem to go for around £40! Lovely...
Went to my local garage, run by an old neighbour and his son this morning and they got the car onto the ramp.
|https://thumbsnap.com/AWTkdwbx[/url]Luckily, they were able to tap the stripped thread on the rear hub and then cleaned up all the threads on every corner before refitting the wheels with the new bolts. All the bolts took the right torque so that problem is solved.
Also managed to get the exhausts better aligned at the rear of the bumper which looks much better.
One step back...
Once the car was off the ramp, they went to start it and the starter was really sluggish, but did manage to start the engine, ignition had been left on whilst it was on the ramp, so battery voltage must have dropped. For some reason, the roof module didn’t like this and the instrument pack was displaying ‘Vario Roof Fault. Visit workshop’.
I said I’d take it away and suspected the error would recover once the battery was charged up, but it is stubbornly remaining. We’ve discussed and I’ll drop in one day next week so they can connect it to their diagnostics and see if it can be reset. We decided against a battery disconnect in case this causes further issues. Bugger!
Got it washed this afternoon and fitted the new wipers. Had to take it out for the obligatory ‘drying the brakes’ blast... it does go well
[url]Edited by 595Heaven on Saturday 19th October 20:43
Mr lestat said:
It might be worth posting on SLK world or the MB forum to see if there is a standard quick fix for the roof issue
Thanks. I’d already done that. Consensus seems to be that a battery reset (disconnection) will fix it. I tried pulling just the related fuses for the roof system but no change, so will try this next.Have to say, whilst I normally have the roof down, it makes quite a cosy coupe with it up!
The battery disconnect fixed the roof issue which was great news.
I've also finally sourced a new aerial for the car, so I can now listen to the radio, as well as being able to lock / unlock the car with the fob from more than a couple of feet away! The old aerial had corroded at the connector between the aerial itself and the base on the car, so the only actual 'aerial' was the 5" coax lead from the antenna amp to the base, which is inside the rear wing. Been waiting patiently for one to come up on eBay for weeks, and two popped up last week! Five minute job to fix the new base and aerial on the car and it transformed things...
I may look at adding a Pure DAB adaptor to the car as well - the Highway 600 looks pretty good as it allows Bluetooth streaming as well as handsfree calling, all delivered to the car audio via either FM or 3.5mm plug. I've already got a Bluetooth to 3.5mm receiver which is good, and my car has the high end Harmon Kardon Logic 7 Surround audio, so sounds brilliant. However, as all the components communicate over a MOST (fibre optic) network, it is not easy to upgrade to a new head unit, so the Pure unit will deliver pretty much everything I want other than CarPlay for not much money...
I've also finally sourced a new aerial for the car, so I can now listen to the radio, as well as being able to lock / unlock the car with the fob from more than a couple of feet away! The old aerial had corroded at the connector between the aerial itself and the base on the car, so the only actual 'aerial' was the 5" coax lead from the antenna amp to the base, which is inside the rear wing. Been waiting patiently for one to come up on eBay for weeks, and two popped up last week! Five minute job to fix the new base and aerial on the car and it transformed things...
I may look at adding a Pure DAB adaptor to the car as well - the Highway 600 looks pretty good as it allows Bluetooth streaming as well as handsfree calling, all delivered to the car audio via either FM or 3.5mm plug. I've already got a Bluetooth to 3.5mm receiver which is good, and my car has the high end Harmon Kardon Logic 7 Surround audio, so sounds brilliant. However, as all the components communicate over a MOST (fibre optic) network, it is not easy to upgrade to a new head unit, so the Pure unit will deliver pretty much everything I want other than CarPlay for not much money...
At last, I'm at home at the weekend and it is not blowing a gale and throwing it down with rain!
Managed to get the sensor changed in just under two hours. I'd be a lot quicker next time, and would hopefully have less scratches and gouges on my right arm!
When I took the engine cover off, I knocked the dipstick cover (the red plastic part) off, and it tinkled it's way down behind the engine, very deep - could only just see it. After cursing and trying to reach it from above, I got the torch out and realised it was sitting on the drive! D'oh...
The access is so tight, and once your arm is in the gap between engine and bulkhead, you can’t see where you are aiming for. Have to do it by feel. It’s somewhere down here.
Once I’d moved the grey sleeving out of the way, I could see the top of the sensor and removed the connector.
Once I'd got the old sensor out, realised it had a different part number. It was a Bosch part, but with Mercedes Benz moulded into it. Bosch part number was 0 261 210 171, but the one I bought was 0 261 210 170... Double checked, and I'm confident it is the right part, so not sure what the difference is?
The new one was a really tight fit, and the lack of access meant I coudn't put much pressure on it - I was also nervous I'd never get it back out of I needed to! I ended up very lightly sanding it and with a bit of 3-in-1 oil round the body it went back in fine.
As the car has been sat for so long, the battery was completely flat, so it's on charge before I can try to start it back up. I'm not confident in the battery anyway, so may decide to replace it soon.
Managed to get the sensor changed in just under two hours. I'd be a lot quicker next time, and would hopefully have less scratches and gouges on my right arm!
When I took the engine cover off, I knocked the dipstick cover (the red plastic part) off, and it tinkled it's way down behind the engine, very deep - could only just see it. After cursing and trying to reach it from above, I got the torch out and realised it was sitting on the drive! D'oh...
The access is so tight, and once your arm is in the gap between engine and bulkhead, you can’t see where you are aiming for. Have to do it by feel. It’s somewhere down here.
Once I’d moved the grey sleeving out of the way, I could see the top of the sensor and removed the connector.
Once I'd got the old sensor out, realised it had a different part number. It was a Bosch part, but with Mercedes Benz moulded into it. Bosch part number was 0 261 210 171, but the one I bought was 0 261 210 170... Double checked, and I'm confident it is the right part, so not sure what the difference is?
The new one was a really tight fit, and the lack of access meant I coudn't put much pressure on it - I was also nervous I'd never get it back out of I needed to! I ended up very lightly sanding it and with a bit of 3-in-1 oil round the body it went back in fine.
As the car has been sat for so long, the battery was completely flat, so it's on charge before I can try to start it back up. I'm not confident in the battery anyway, so may decide to replace it soon.
Edited by 595Heaven on Saturday 7th March 13:32
Spent a couple of hours today removing the squeak from the fan blower. Went out in the car yesterday and it drove me mad.
Fairly easy to remove the blower assembly from behind the glovebox area, with help from a really useful YouTube video https://youtu.be/HrUnr_hhEl8
Mine had a few signs of water ingress but. I where near as bad as the one on the video. A really good clean and lubricate of all the moving parts and a ‘fun’ time reassembling the fan to the housing (Grommet hell!) and it was silent
Also fitted a new cabin filter that I bought a while ago and it is so much quieter and seemed to blow a bit more keenly that before.
All in all, a most enjoyable couple of hours...
Fairly easy to remove the blower assembly from behind the glovebox area, with help from a really useful YouTube video https://youtu.be/HrUnr_hhEl8
Mine had a few signs of water ingress but. I where near as bad as the one on the video. A really good clean and lubricate of all the moving parts and a ‘fun’ time reassembling the fan to the housing (Grommet hell!) and it was silent
Also fitted a new cabin filter that I bought a while ago and it is so much quieter and seemed to blow a bit more keenly that before.
All in all, a most enjoyable couple of hours...
Edited by 595Heaven on Saturday 30th May 21:05
Rob-c33sg said:
Love the colour. MOT pass always a winner!
Thanks - it looks great when clean and in the sun!pidsy said:
Very much looking forward to getting into one of these one things get a bit easier.
Seen a red one in Teesside that I like the look of.
Do it! They are great fun. Longing to get over to Europe in mine but I am doubtful it can happen until 2022...Seen a red one in Teesside that I like the look of.
First update for ages!
Finally took the car for its MoT yesterday (about 1 month overdue but not used the car). Only done 400 miles in the last year
Failed on a front suspension balljoint which was an advisory last year. Genuine arm is £90 plus about an hour's labour so will be done next week.
Also asked them to do an oil change. I'm a bit paranoid about it being done properly - there are two sump plugs on the engine (either side of a baffle), so both need to be drained to fully empty. Worries me that if they don't do one, and then fill up with the 'right' volume of oil, it will be hugely overfilled. As there is no dipstick, there is no easy way of telling, and the electronic level indicator needs the engine to be warm...
You can vacuum the oil out the the dipstick tube (it just has a plug at the top) but they ordered a sump plug washer (hopefully it is a kit of two) so I think they are draining it.
Would it be bad form to send them a link to the procedure like this: http://www.drakon.us/
I think once this is all done it will sadly be time to part company. It's a brilliant car but I just don't get a chance to use it - It should have been to the Alps twice already but that couldn't happen. My son will need a car as well, so I don't really want four cars on the drive. I've got a couple of people very interested, so need to decide what to do.
Finally took the car for its MoT yesterday (about 1 month overdue but not used the car). Only done 400 miles in the last year
Failed on a front suspension balljoint which was an advisory last year. Genuine arm is £90 plus about an hour's labour so will be done next week.
Also asked them to do an oil change. I'm a bit paranoid about it being done properly - there are two sump plugs on the engine (either side of a baffle), so both need to be drained to fully empty. Worries me that if they don't do one, and then fill up with the 'right' volume of oil, it will be hugely overfilled. As there is no dipstick, there is no easy way of telling, and the electronic level indicator needs the engine to be warm...
You can vacuum the oil out the the dipstick tube (it just has a plug at the top) but they ordered a sump plug washer (hopefully it is a kit of two) so I think they are draining it.
Would it be bad form to send them a link to the procedure like this: http://www.drakon.us/
I think once this is all done it will sadly be time to part company. It's a brilliant car but I just don't get a chance to use it - It should have been to the Alps twice already but that couldn't happen. My son will need a car as well, so I don't really want four cars on the drive. I've got a couple of people very interested, so need to decide what to do.
cerb4.5lee said:
You definitely need to start using it a bit more I reckon!
How can you resist not using that awesome engine loads?!
Get out there bud!
You’re right of course, but it just hasn’t happened with all the various restrictions over the last year, WFH (so no chance to drive it to work) and other stuff going on. It is always easier to take the Defender…How can you resist not using that awesome engine loads?!
Get out there bud!
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