An obvious issue on my 560SEL was how the rear seat was mounted. There was an obvious gap between the parcel shelf and the rear seat. The 560SEL came standard with a W126 power rear seat. This either standard or optional on other W126 LWB models. It seemed clear that when the self-leveling rear suspension was removed, the trim was not put back correctly....
The other day I was driving my 560SEL on a fairly hot (30C) day in heavy traffic. The engine temperature got quite warm when sitting in traffic. It was well over 100C in traffic, which would eventually cool down when I got moving. The car didn’t overheat, but I did hear coolant boiling in the radiator hose after I finished the drive. While the...
I have now completed the installation of the Movovalve elimination kit on my 560SEC. So far so good. Most importantly, I don’t have heat when I don’t want it, but it is available when needed. In the last installment, I completed the routing of the cooling hoses. From there I installed the radiator and ensured the cooling system didn’t have any leaks. The...
I’ve used my 450SLC on a few spirited drives lately. With the new injectors its been running really nicely. However, on the way back from the most recent night drive, the pedal became really spongey on the way home. Luckily it was late at night with few cars on the road so I was able to drive it home gently. The next...
Today’s job was installing a W126 radiator into my 1987 560SEC. I had previously sorted out the cooling hoses as part of my monovalve eliminator install. I was just waiting on a few extra parts I had ordered to begin this job. Firstly I decided to replace the coolant reservoir tank. My current one is not leaking, but the plastic was quite discoloured and...
I had previously removed the W126 cowl covers to clean the drains. Now they are clean and I have replaced the ABS module bracket, they were ready to be re-installed. Before I did so, I had some new parts to install. The first were the rubber boots that cover the windscreen wiper shafts. On most W126 cars they are almost non existent. On my...
As part of the installation of the Monovalve elimination kit, I needed to remove the ABS controller bracket. The bracket was in the way of the coolant hoses. I order to remove it, I needed to remove the W126 cowl drains cover. This is great opportunity to inspect this area and clean it. Cars that have parked outside often have debris here that causes...
I have been working on a project to eliminate the monovalve from the climate control system in my 560SEC. In the last part I had almost completed the cooling hoses required for the job. I had mostly worked out hose routing I was looking for – which was combining the dual outputs from the heater core into a single hose where I could place...
The Mercedes Club hold a mid-week drive pretty much every month. I’ve been a member for more than 10 years but never managed to attend one. I had a free day today and the drive looked really good. This months MBCNSW mid-week drive was up to the Hunter valley. The route was via the Putty road, which I’ve done a few times before. Mid-week...
My 560SEC has been leaking from the power steering and self leveling suspension. In both cases, it is obvious that (at least some) of the leakage is coming from the low pressure hydraulic hoses. It is possible there are additional leaks in the steering, but fixing this obvious one is a good place to start. I had looked at doing this job...
As part of the work I have been doing to the 560SEC, I have removed the radiator. The radiator was leaking from the top tank and appeared to be original. It was an IMI unit which was one of the OE suppliers and had a 1987 date code on it. W126 radiator removal is fairly straightforward. Fist step is obviously draining the coolant,...
My 560SEC had been leaking coolant and giving me heat when I didn’t want it. Last week I started the repairs for these problems. As the Bosch and Mercedes W126 Monovalve repair kit was no longer available, I have been installing the Klima Design Works monovalve elimination kit. In the first part I removed the W126 monovalve, auxiliary water pump and other hoses. This...
My 560SEC has been having a couple of problems with its cooling system. Coolant has been weeping out of the top tank of the radiator. In addition, the monovalve has failed, causing unwanted heating at idle. The radiator looks either original or replaced very early in the cars life. As these radiators have plastic tanks, I have purchased a new one to replace it....
The R/C107 models had an extremely long production run – 18 years. There were a variety of different models and specification changes. This included the differential ratios that can have a big impact on the performance and economy of the vehicle. In compiling the table below, I have tried to research the various country specific variants. It is possible I have missed a few. ...
In April 1982 Mercedes-Benz was pretty much king of the hill when it came to mainstream luxury cars. Rolls Royce was in a league of its own, and Jaguar was at its quality nadir. BMW were just releasing the E30 which would propel them to a leadership position in the small, luxury market. They still could not touch Mercedes-Benz in the mid or upper...
I recently came across a price list from Yorkstar Motors, dated December 1969. Yorkstar motors were at that time the main dealer in Sydney and I think they had something to do with the overall importation of the cars. This era Australian delivery cars have a Yorkstar motors tag on them regardless of where they were sold. Unlike in later years, nearly the whole...
Today I joined an event with the MBCNSW for a drive to Bilpin. Bilpin is to the West of Sydney and is half way up the Blue Mountains. It is know for its Apples. The purpose of the drive was to raise money for one of our club members, Sam. Sam is the proprietor of the Bilpin Apple Pie Cottage, our destination. He suffered...
This week I replaced the CIS injectors and the spark plugs in my 450SLC and the car is running much better for it. I’ve been thinking about swapping the fuel injectors in the SLC for a while now. When cold, the car wouldn’t run that well at first and you would need to blip the throttle a few times to get the idle to...
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