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Shannons Sydney Autumn Classic 2019 Preview

The Shannons Sydney Autumn Classic Auction for 2019 happens Monday next week. I work close to the display centre, so I went down to check out the collection during my lunch break. As usual, they had a nice range of interesting cars on offer. Also as usual, there were offerings to suit most budgets.

The lots that I will be keeping an eye on during the auction are:

Lot 34: Jaguar S-Type 3.8

The S-Type is the somewhat overlooked compact jaguar. In 3.8 spec, in some ways it is the ideal compact Jaguar for touring, rather than the MK2 which […]

February 27th, 2019 | Tags: , , , , | Category: Auctions | One comment

560SEC Timing chain and valve stem seals

The Timing chain replacement is almost finished on the 560SEC. The new chain is installed, guides fitted and valve stem seals replaced. I stopped by the workshop to pick something up that I had left in the car and I was able to see it almost done.

The photo shows the new chain in place with all new guides. They are a much better colour than the old ones! My timing for this repair was good as one of the existing guides was broken. This car is now my third 560SEC, and the third one where I have sent […]

February 22nd, 2019 | Tags: , , | Category: Mercedes | 5 comments

The M117.968 560 Engine

The 560 is the ultimate M117 engine. This family of engines was introduced in 1969 with the 3.5l M116 and was followed in 1972 with the 4.5 M117. The M117 is a longer stroke version of the M116. Both engines share a SOHC design, 2 valves per cylinder and always had fuel injection.

These engines evolved over time with the final iteration coming between late 1985 and 1991. The 560 was the largest M117 engine offered, although to be pedantic it is actually 5.5 litres. The M117.968 was offered in in the second generation W126 and and is the subject […]

February 20th, 2019 | Tags: , , | Category: Articles, Mercedes | 28 comments

W111 Heater lever upgrade

Most Mercedes from the mid 50s to the late 60s had a similar set of controls for the heater. There are four horizontal levers controlling the amount of heat and the direction of the air flow.

At least on the W111, the lever on the top left controls the amount of outside airflow. The top right controls the direction of the airflow. The two bottom levers control how much heat on each side is allowed in. There is no provision for A/C as this was not integrated into the controls until the mid 70s.

The levers were originally chrome, for […]

February 17th, 2019 | Tags: , | Category: Mercedes | 2 comments

DS Front End Repairs

A couple of months ago my DS had one of the front suspension boots replaced to cure a bad LHM leak. When this was done, it was apparent the bushings in the steering rack were worn. Since the front of the car was apart, it made sense to order these parts and then have them fitted before the front was put back together. I ordered the parts a few months ago, but for some reason Franzose sent them by the slow boat. This was rather irritating as the DS has been sitting partially assembled for months. Some of these repairs […]

February 9th, 2019 | Tags: , , , | Category: Citroen | Leave a comment

Auto Brunch St. Ives February 2019

Auto Brunch event is a cars and coffee event held monthly at St. Ives Showground. I attended back in November and enjoyed the day. It’s an easy event, you can drive in and be parked in minutes and leave whenever you like. With over 100 cars on display its a nice way to spend an hour or so.

This time I took two of my young children who also enjoyed looking at the cars. We only stayed about 30-40 minutes which was enough to have a wander around and check out the display.

As we had another event on […]

February 3rd, 2019 | Tags: , , | Category: Shows | One comment