Sad news for AAB007

[AAB]

Last Monday night, as I was backing my good ole 450SEL into the driveway, there was an almighty clunk, & a lot of noise from the front.

Managed to get it down the driveway, & decided to look under the bonnet to see what the hell was wrong !!

It was 11.30 PM, after a conviviel night out with friends, & I got covered in oil.

Next day I found that the front cross member,( RHS ), had broken & that the engine had dropped a bit & managed to cut an oil line...hence the oil.

According to a man who knows Benzes said he had never heard of a front cross member failure in a 450SEL.

Anyway, I am looking for another Benz, preferably a 450SEL with about 150,000 on the clock...( no harm in dreaming )

If I cannot get a 450, I will have a 450SEL plus heaps of spares to get rid of.
Not much money involved, but whoever is interested, must take the lot, or it all goes to the tip... ( Toorak, Melbourne Ph 9822-5889)

I can get a 300SEL for $13,000, with 125,000 on the clock, but I would prefer at least a 420 or 380.

Any comments on 300SEL, good, or more importantly bad ?

Regards,

Alex

 

[Styria]

I have heard of a very good one being for sale in SZydney. It is owned by one of the Club members, and he is about to fit a new dash top to it. If you don't mind, I can pass on your phone numer to him. I understand it is dark blue in colour, with a mileage of less than 120K.s

Getting back to your mishap, I have to admit of never having heard, or think it feasible, that 116 subframe could collapse. I guess there is always a fiirst time. The alternative cars you mention are obviously later Ch. 126 models, and all good cars in their own right. You need to make sure that you buy a well maintained car, with preferably a documented service history. Early 380s can have chain guide problems that can result in considerable engine damage, and I believe that a complete re-design occurred with that engine in the year of 1985. Worth looking into. Nothing wrong with the 300 series engine, although oil leaks from the back of the head is not uncommon, and needs to be attended to if evident. 420s are a lot of car for the money, and as a rule a trouble free model. Just a tad more expensive to maintain, and purchase of an ignition module is one item you would wish to avoid. New very expensive, second hand almost impossible to find. Let us know how you get on. BTW, $13k. for the 300 is a bit steep - you can normally obtain lower priced examples. The market for 'latish' Benzes is very tight and crowded. Regards Styria

 

[Oversize]

I wonder if your sub-frame problem was caused by previous accident damage? I wish I was in a position to purchase your whole car, but sadly I have no room left! If I was looking for a W126, I wouldn't consider anything less than a 420SE. Not that there's much wrong with a 300SE/L, but I'd prefer the sound & torque of a V8....

 

[WGB]

I owned a 1987 126 300SE for five years having purchased it in the late 80's when it was less than 2 years old and sold it 5 years later with about 105,000km on the clock.

I had a number of niggly problems with the cooling system that settled when it was found the fan hub wasn't operating and they are known to repeatedly shear their exhaust manifold studs for some reason.

I would prefer a 300SE over a 380 as it should have a very free revving motor that puts up a reasonable performance and I remember looking at a 1 year old 420 and walking away unimpressed with both the performance and price differences. It took the 560 to make a real dent in the performance difference.

I finally sold it for a 124 E280 which I purchased new in 1994 and although the E280 was quicker it was not as stately.

All I am saying is don't discount the 300 motor over the smaller V8's as a good one will probably beat them under about 120Km/Hr.

Bill

 

[AAB]

Many thanks for the input,..particularly the moderator for getting this post into the right area.

I will try to post a photo, & if succesful, you will see that the cross member has dropped, & it looks as though 5 or so rivets (or spot welds) held the cross member to the main frame & failed.

I have decided that she has to go, so there is a whole 450SEL with a lot of spares that have to be taken away.

I am going to " coc key up " the cross member ( meaning that I have welded
it up myself !! ), & I will drive it to a location in Melbourne or close by.

From the 450SEL, I will keep the battery, the radio ( CD ),the antenna, (good country reception) & seat covers.

For the car ( unregestered ) plus spares, I want $500 the lot, plus a ride home.

Otherwise, it all goes to the tip ( sadly !! ).

Regards,

Alex

 

[AAB]

I am now the proud owner of a 300SEL, 122,880 on the clock & it is in " showroom " condition.

My 74 model 450SEL & many extras are to go, so here is what you get for $500 delivered in Melbourne,..until 26 Mar 11, when the plates will be coming off & going onto the 300.

The car itself is driveable ( by me ) because I have repaired the cross member, but it is not likely to ever get a roadworthy cert without major surgery.

Parts not included are, battery, radio & antenna, seat covers.

In the car are, new water pump, radiator core, recond aircon compressor & have done about 20,000 k since installation.

Usable spares include distributor, MAP sensor, & a new set of plug leads (still in the box), & a half tank of premium fuel. ( too hard to get it out of the tank )

Spares that must be recond, include, starter motor, steering pump, aircond comp.

So after Saturday, the plates come off & the lot goes to the tip.

Please feel free to call me at 03-9822-5889


Regards,

Alex

 

[Styria]

Hi AAB, pity you're in Melbourne - you're just a tad too far away. As you'd know, I am in Sydney. Yoiur 300SEL sounds interesting. Showroom condition. photos ? You've probably already told us, but what engine ? 280? 300? 3.5? or, dare I say it, 6.3 ? It'd be great if you could let us know a bit more about it. Regards Styria

 

[WGB]

I assume it is a 126 with 3 litre motor.

Just make sure you let it rev a bit or they can go tight slow and a bit uninteresting.

Lovely car - still have very fond memories of my five years with a nauticblau one.

Bill

 

[Styria]

I assume it is a 126 with 3 litre motor.

Just make sure you let it rev a bit or they can go tight slow and a bit uninteresting.

Lovely car - still have very fond memories of my five years with a nauticblau one.

Bill

Well Bill, I hadn't even considered the Ch. 126 model. Did Mercedes in fact manufacture an SEL model in that range, i.e with the 300 engine ? I just don't know. Regards Styria

 

[WGB]

As far as I know they did a 300SEL.

I personally had a 300SE which was quite big enough for me and the family with indestructible parchment coloured M-B Tex seats.

Bill

 

[Tony66_au]

I owned an 89 300SEL in Anthracite (? a stunning charcoal metallic) for a while and worked it as a VHA car out of the Como hotel for a few years and it was a great car and my first Benz.

I bought it with 89'000 k on it and when I disposed of her she had near enough to 450,000 km and still ran well.

Apart from Auto trans servicing, a fan motor, Sunroof cable and the usual maintenance she never missed a beat and wasnt all that sluggish even for a 6 cylinder.

Damned shame I've had a moratorium placed on buying Benzes BTW or id be chugging down Toorak road with come cash in my pocket about now and returning with a 450.

Be a shame to see her go to the scrappies.

Tony

 

[Tony66_au]

Well it seems I may have the moratorium lifted later today.

I've booked a meeting with the Boss for 8pm after the kids have buggered off down the other end of the house and im going the gentle sell lol

Once again it would be a crying shame to see a 450 scrapped.

 

[Oversize]

I agree & I wish I could help.... Go Tony!!!!!

 

[Tony66_au]

Sadly this after noon I received a call from the guy who bought a car from me a few weeks ago informing me that he couldn't pick up or pay for the car till early April.

The Boss also tells me that she cant release funds to buy the 450 so im afraid im passing on this old girl.

Jen is usually fairly lenient with car purchases but has had to draw the line.

So Folks, Snap this car up and save it from the wreckers!

Tony

BTW I let Alex know via email a while ago as his phone was busy when I tried to call.

 

[Tony66_au]

Forget I said a thing!

Now if only my trusty car transporter mate would answer his phone!

 

[Oversize]

Unfortunately this problem isn't as unique as we all thought. Evidence of a previous repair:

 

[Tony66_au]

True, I had a mate who does VIV inspections have a look at it a while ago and we xrayed the member (He also did work sussing out rebodied/restamped classic cars) and he gave it a clean bill of health.

The speculation was that it was very old accident damage that has been very meticulously repaired (Possibly import or dealer damage?).

I asked if he had seen this before and he said he had heard of 107's with cracks and the speculation (Educated) was that it possibly came down to the way the cars were secured on their sea voyage which then led to a conversation on BMW's and suspension chocks etc which he had had experience of in the form of pre delivery checks and "off the boat" prep.

But the comments were positive in nature from someone who is usually reserved and slightly cynical in nature as well as not being quick to comment.

I meant to ask at the time but does anyone have any articles on how these cars physically came to be in Australia? As I doubt they were CKD and would have been shipped complete.

 

[AAB]

Tony, are you there ?

When I removed the car radio & passed the car over you, I forgot to remove the power line to the radio. It hung out of the gap in the console where the radio should be, & has a rectangular hollow plastic terminal on the end.

When I came to install it in my 300SEL recently ( clocked up 165,000 k now ) the car radio man advised me that I need the original wire, hence my question is, do you still have the wire, & if you are not using it, could you return it to me please ?

I have not been on the site for a few months, so seasons greetings to all.

I am still able to have the occasional G & T.

Regards,

Alex

 

[abl567]

Tony doesn't frequent these pages anymore, pity that...

 

[abl567]

said no man ever