300TE speaker upgrade – Part 2 – fronts

In a previous article I had been undertaking a 300TE speaker upgrade. I started with the rears which were very simple. Next was the fronts. As I outlined in the first part, the W124 uses an odd size and mounting system for the front speakers. They are 12cm and use these clips on the side rather than the normal mounting ears. I guess this system was used in a few European cars of the era, as there are still a couple of manufacturers who offer speakers like these.

I went with the Crunch DSX120, in a kit for the […]

300TE speaker upgrade – Part 1 – rears

I wasn’t very happy with the sound from my 300TE. The front passengers speaker rattled badly and the sound wasn’t the best. As I’m taking the car on a road trip in January, I wanted better sound. I’ve already put the Becker 1402 back in, so all I needed was some decent speakers.

In researching what was possible, options were not extensive for the S124. The front speakers are both an unusual size (12cm) and an unusual mounting system. The rears are are a more common 10cm size, but mounted in the door handles. I personally don’t think much of […]

W126 rear speakers

I had previously replaced the front speakers in my 1987 560SEC. Now it was time to look at the rears. As I outlined in the article about the front speakers, I am replacing the W126 rear speakers with Crunch 16.5cm speakers. These speakers should fit into the factory brackets and underneath the factory grilles.

Changing the rears in the second generation W126 is a bit more of a fiddly job. For starters the factory grilles are now very brittle. Not only are they over 35 years old, but the Australian sun is not kind to plastics. It is quite common […]

W126 front speakers

I’m taking my 560SEC on a long road trip in a couple of weeks. I’ve never really been especially happy with the sound from the speakers, particularly from midrange tones. Before I took the car on a long trip, I wanted to upgrade the speakers.

I am also doing a similar project on my 300TE. On that car, one of the front speakers is damaged and makes a rattling sound. The W124 speakers are harder to find than for the W126. The front speakers on a W124 use an odd mounting system, and the rears have minimal clearance. There […]

Guest Post: Installing an aftermarket audio unit in a 2008 Ford Futura

Fitting aftermarket head units to most vehicles made from 2000 onwards can often be problematic due to manufacturers integrating audio and HVAC controls into the one assembly. Many of us choose the path of least resistance, with the primary means of connecting a smartphone is via Aux and a $15 FM transmitter purchased from K-Mart. I must admit the ICC unit (Ford speak for their Audio/HVAC unit) is excellent, simple and functional. We had been using the Aux port in the Futura, with $100 Bluetooth accessory to provide audio streaming and calls. The performance of calls was disappointing, so much […]

W111 poor running issues and becker update

My 250SE has been suffering from poor running issues for almost two years now. It started not long after I got the car back from being repaired from the impact with the Kangaroo. Despite a lot of work to try and rectify these issues, they are still plaguing the car.

The challenge is that these are intermittent problems, and so hard to diagnose. I started by checking the basics – the fuel filter, tank and so on. I also changed the plugs. This had no impact. My mechanic thought it was ignition related, so we’ve changed most of the wear […]

450SLC Becker Mexico Cassette install part 4 – Final installation

I am currently in the process of installing a Becker Mexico Cassette in my 1977 Mercedes 450SLC. In part one, I covered buying and testing the radio. In part two, I covered upgrading the speakers, and in part three I covered the wiring. This part will be all about actually installing everything.

My first task was setting up the control button and microphone for the Tranzit BLU. The control button makes this a truly hands free system. It is used to control the functions of the Tranzit BLU such as accepting calls, hanging up, skipping a track and so on. […]

450SLC Becker Mexico Cassette install part 3 – Wiring up the Becker

I am currently in the process of installing a Becker Mexico Cassette in 1977 Mercedes 450SLC. In the first part, I covered buying and testing the radio. In the second part, I replaced all the speakers in the car. In this part I am covering the removal of the old Pioneer CD player and cleaning up the wiring in the car.

The challenge is that in the first 10-20 years these cars were around, they had all sorts of radios, phone kits, alarms and so on. Most of the time the wiring for these systems is incredibly shoddy. In many […]

450SLC Becker Mexico Cassette install part 2 – Upgrading the speakers

I am currently upgrading the radio in my 1977 Mercedes 450SLC. It currently has a Pioneer MP3/CD Player I had installed not long after I purchased the car in 2003. The Pioneer came out of my old 300E and was installed in early 2002. As well as the Pioneer CD player, the car also had Pioneer speakers. These pre-dated my ownership of the car. Looking them up online, they appeared to be late 90s vintage, and were sold as drop in speakers for Chrysler models. They had connectors I had not seen before, which must be the Chrysler connectors.

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450SLC Becker Mexico Cassette install part 1 – Preparing the radio

Over the last 12 months or so, I have been focused on getting period correct Becker radios installed in my Classic Mercedes cars. I had never experienced these radios until I purchased my one owner 560SEL back in 2020. It was owning this car that made me realize how well they work in the car. I’ve started to view them as part of the overall experience of owning these cars rather than just a way of getting sound.

Last year I started to source the right radios for the cars I owned. I originally planned to start with my 450SLC, […]