After a three and a half month lockdown, official MBCNSW night drives were back last night. The route was Clovelly to Kurnell. The night drives were supposed to be back two weeks ago, but freak hail again prevented the Berowra ferry drive. It was a lovely spring Sydney evening of about 20c, perfect for an open top Night Drive, so I took my...
Today I spent a bit more time evaluating the 420SEL parts car and the more I look at it the happier I am with my purchase. It has too much wrong with it to make it a viable restoration project, but there are loads of good parts. It didn’t come with a battery, so I hooked up a spare and most of the...
I’ve been thinking about buying a W126 parts car for some time. The number of affordable parts cars is getting thin on the ground as the W126 transitions from everyday transport to classic. I would have had better options five years ago, but there are still some decent ones out there. I was particularly looking for an SLS equipped car as I wanted the...
My 250SE has not been running well lately. Back in April, I hit a Kangaroo and the car was repaired during May and June. In July, the state of NSW plunged into a strict lockdown for COVID-19, preventing more than minor trips up to the shops for necessities. It was during one of those trips that I noticed that car...
I have recently purchased a set of 15×7 AMG ‘Penta’ wheels for my 1977 450SLC. These wheels did not come with lug bolts, but I had a set from when I had the replica Fuchs alloys on the car. The other day I got those bolts out to check them for when I install the wheels on the car. The bolts were in pretty...
Earlier this year I managed to smash a foglight lens on a MBCNSW drive to Berry. I drove over a large stick on the road that flicked up and smashed the lens. I saw the stick, but there wasn’t really a way of avoiding it without risking an accident. The low slung floglights on the 107 model look cool, but they are always at...
Back in May, I had the rear windscreen removed on my 450SLC. The idea was to replace the old windscreen that was delaminated with a good used unit I had purchased from the MB Spares clearance sale. I had the rust under the screen fixed in 2006, so I assumed it would be a straight swap. Sadly, during the C107 rear windscreen installation, no...
My new 15″ AMG Penta wheels did not come with tyres. Choosing a set turned out to be a lot more complicated than I thought. The big downside of the 15s over the 16s is the tyre availability. The table below outlines possible sizes I could have considered. They are all compared to the overall circumference of the original wheel/tyre combination. The...
When I purchased my 1987 560SEC it came with Simmons B45 Wheels. These are a high quality Australian made three piece wheel. I pretty quickly replaced these for a couple of reasons. The 245 profile tyres rubbed quite badly; There was a terrible wheel wobble; and I didn’t think the suited the car. I sold those wheels and replaced them with the replica 8...
When you own a modern Mercedes-Benz, you seem to be playing constant whack-a-mole with the check engine light. I’ve written before how silly I think the check engine light is, but we’re stuck with it. Personally, I would just drive older cars, but this is not for everyone and my wife has a 2007 E350 Wagon. There were two codes this time. The...
I’ve been on the lookout for a different set of wheels for my 450SLC. It is currently running a set of W126 second generation alloy wheels. I like these wheels, but they are not quite right for the 450SLC. My 560SEL uses these same wheels, but they are in need of refinishing. Instead of having some of my spare W126 wheels refinished, I...
A couple of months ago a friend showed me his BM2 Battery Monitor installed on his 420SEL. It is a bluetooth enabled battery monitor that connects to a phone app. The app lets you monitor the battery in real time, run some tests and download history from the battery monitor device. I already have various battery testers which are useful for standalone battery...
This week I got my 560SEL back from having a front suspension rebuild. This wasn’t something I really wanted to take on myself. My SEL drove well, but there was some looseness in the front end. As I plan on keeping the car long term, it made sense to rebuild the front suspension to restore an as-new ride. The front suspension rebuild included new...
After the impact with a Kangaroo, my 250SE Cabriolet is back on the road and better than ever. While the damage didn’t look that bad at first, the repairs required were extensive. Unlike when you hit another car, A Kangaroo is ‘softer’ damage that isn’t as apparent to the naked eye. It would be the same for hitting a Deer or other medium...
I recently changed the flexible brake hoses in my 1986 300SE. I wasn’t sure how old they were and they are a wear item. The next step was obviously bleeding the brakes. Bleeding W126 brakes is really no different to any other car. I recently purchased a Motive Power Bleeder to make this job easier. I’ve bled brakes many ways over the years. ...
I’ve always been a little surprised that my W111 Cabriolet rear seatbelts were lap only. Mercedes-Benz were such pioneers of safety at the time that it seemed odd that they wouldn’t have fitted lap/sash seatbelts. It hasn’t been a problem for me as I so rarely had passengers in the rear of the car. That has started to change as my kids are getting...
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