Discussion
Gents,
Thought I'd start a thread on my long termer, as much to keep a log myself and if someone's interested, then great!
Back when these were new (before i could even drive) my old man had a C180 Estate, so one of these seemed incredibly rare and desirable.
Fast forward a few years, including some work experience at a Merc Specialist and I realised just how under the radar these were. The thinking man's E55 if you like!
Considering how rare they are, it's actually the second one I've owned, the first being used for a continental road trip......(Amsterdam to Stuttgart, where we did both the Porsche and Mercedes Museum's, then across to Brussel's, then home. Even averaged 30mpg!)
That got sold as running V8 wasn't sensible at the time.
Fast forward a couple of years and a chance encounter on eBay, a few glasses of red later and I ended up as the winning bidder of this.......
A whole £530 worth of Stuttgart's finest V8 estate. A trip down to Poole to collect it from its 3rd owner (who happened to own an S-Class and a G-Wagon) of 13 years ensued, the trip back being beautifully smooth, uneconomical and the amusement of the nearside bonnet lifting at anything above 70mph due to a dodgy bonnet catch, never getting old.
So, what had I bought. The fuel gauge didn't work, the nearside rear window didn't shut fully, the service light was on, the drivers door check strap was broken and made the most horrendous noise, plus the front wings were mainly gaffer tape and rust, the tailgate was holed and the door tops were, at best, crusty.
However, it was a low owner, pre-facelift 430 estate that I'd been looking for. Plus it was Green-Black metallic, one of Mercedes' best colours. So obviously worth saving.
It also only had 3 weeks MOT left when I collected it, plus 20-odd advisories on the last test. I did give it it's first wash in probably many years............
After that it was put in a friends barn for a few months until I decided what to attack first. So, next weekend it's coming out of the barn and going to my local Merc man for a thorough appraisal and a plan of action.
I'm hoping if he gives it the go ahead (i.e. its not totally rotten), then first plan of action is dropping the rear subframe, renewing the fuel lines and brake pipes, replacing the subframe bushes and rebuilding. Hopefully then an MOT will be obtainable.
Fingers crossed.
Thought I'd start a thread on my long termer, as much to keep a log myself and if someone's interested, then great!
Back when these were new (before i could even drive) my old man had a C180 Estate, so one of these seemed incredibly rare and desirable.
Fast forward a few years, including some work experience at a Merc Specialist and I realised just how under the radar these were. The thinking man's E55 if you like!
Considering how rare they are, it's actually the second one I've owned, the first being used for a continental road trip......(Amsterdam to Stuttgart, where we did both the Porsche and Mercedes Museum's, then across to Brussel's, then home. Even averaged 30mpg!)
That got sold as running V8 wasn't sensible at the time.
Fast forward a couple of years and a chance encounter on eBay, a few glasses of red later and I ended up as the winning bidder of this.......
A whole £530 worth of Stuttgart's finest V8 estate. A trip down to Poole to collect it from its 3rd owner (who happened to own an S-Class and a G-Wagon) of 13 years ensued, the trip back being beautifully smooth, uneconomical and the amusement of the nearside bonnet lifting at anything above 70mph due to a dodgy bonnet catch, never getting old.
So, what had I bought. The fuel gauge didn't work, the nearside rear window didn't shut fully, the service light was on, the drivers door check strap was broken and made the most horrendous noise, plus the front wings were mainly gaffer tape and rust, the tailgate was holed and the door tops were, at best, crusty.
However, it was a low owner, pre-facelift 430 estate that I'd been looking for. Plus it was Green-Black metallic, one of Mercedes' best colours. So obviously worth saving.
It also only had 3 weeks MOT left when I collected it, plus 20-odd advisories on the last test. I did give it it's first wash in probably many years............
After that it was put in a friends barn for a few months until I decided what to attack first. So, next weekend it's coming out of the barn and going to my local Merc man for a thorough appraisal and a plan of action.
I'm hoping if he gives it the go ahead (i.e. its not totally rotten), then first plan of action is dropping the rear subframe, renewing the fuel lines and brake pipes, replacing the subframe bushes and rebuilding. Hopefully then an MOT will be obtainable.
Fingers crossed.
Edited by SilverStar on Saturday 30th March 10:49
Edited by SilverStar on Saturday 30th March 11:00
Edited by SilverStar on Saturday 30th March 11:01
Edited by SilverStar on Wednesday 24th April 21:01
aaron_2000 said:
Any updates?
Nothing too exciting. A couple of weeks ago I headed over to the barn where it's been since December time and put the battery pack on it...........
and it fired straight up! The ABS/ESP lights stayed on but after a quick cycle of the ignition they went off and stayed off. Drove it home and parked it up here, so it's at least in my sights to get it sorted now, just waiting for my Merc Indi to be quiet enough to have a look at it. Think I'm going to put it in for MOT, see what it fails on then work from there.
Might make a start on cleaning the quite disgusting interior today as it's nice........
Not much to report, however it's now outside my Merc Specialist so ever so slightly closer to being MOT'd/condemned.
I wasn't going to start spending money on the exterior until I knew it was solid underneath, however a mint condition OSF wing came up on eBay, in the correct colour, for £50 so thats one new panel bought!
Hoping to find out the MOT fails within the next week or so.
I wasn't going to start spending money on the exterior until I knew it was solid underneath, however a mint condition OSF wing came up on eBay, in the correct colour, for £50 so thats one new panel bought!
Hoping to find out the MOT fails within the next week or so.
Well after a 3 month stint at my Mercedes Specialist this is ever nearing being MOT'd.
Work done to date:
New rear shock absorbers
Headlights cleaned and polished
Towbar removed
N/S/R window has been fully closed (for the first time in years it appears it's watertight!)
Oil and filter change (finally get rid of the overdue service warning!)
Lots of bulbs/electrical issues resolved with the rear lights
Other service items will happen shortly (spark plugs/gearbox service etc) but I really just want to get some miles done in it this year, potentially the NCT500 or atleast a trip to Scotland shortly. And Goodwood for the revival.
There is a small possibility I will get it back in time for the Mercedes-Benz Owners Clubs' E-Class day in August which I'd like to attend in it. Think it'd make a nice contrast to all the pristine shiny examples!
Work done to date:
New rear shock absorbers
Headlights cleaned and polished
Towbar removed
N/S/R window has been fully closed (for the first time in years it appears it's watertight!)
Oil and filter change (finally get rid of the overdue service warning!)
Lots of bulbs/electrical issues resolved with the rear lights
Other service items will happen shortly (spark plugs/gearbox service etc) but I really just want to get some miles done in it this year, potentially the NCT500 or atleast a trip to Scotland shortly. And Goodwood for the revival.
There is a small possibility I will get it back in time for the Mercedes-Benz Owners Clubs' E-Class day in August which I'd like to attend in it. Think it'd make a nice contrast to all the pristine shiny examples!
SilverStar said:
There is a small possibility I will get it back in time for the Mercedes-Benz Owners Clubs' E-Class day in August which I'd like to attend in it. Think it'd make a nice contrast to all the pristine shiny examples!
Good news! Last year's E Class day had all sorts, including mine... it's designed to encourage participation over presentation, after all, they're workhorses. I hope to make it also and to see you there. Well this now has an MOT til August 2020 so it's time to get some use out of it. This weekend it'll help me move house (which happens to have a big enough garage for the old bus!)
After that it'll be down to the Goodwood Revival in September.
Might get the gearbox serviced beforehand but undecided as of yet.
Atleast it's one more V8 on the road!
After that it'll be down to the Goodwood Revival in September.
Might get the gearbox serviced beforehand but undecided as of yet.
Atleast it's one more V8 on the road!
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