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- All the rust on the C240 is fixed.
- Side skirts from the C32 are fitted already.
- Front and Rear bumper painted, waiting to install.
- Door handles swapped (black plastic ones to painted one)
- Swapped aluminum brake pedal. (Haven't done the accelerator yet. Not exactly sure how to do it yet)
I have actually run into a bit of a problem. I am planning on switching over the brakes and wheels, but that would make the C32 a giant paper weight. I'm thinking of putting my C240 brakes / wheels on the C32 and hopefully it will work.
Another more major problem is.. retrofitting the interior is a lot more troublesome than I had thought. Can't do the front seats until I get STAR working with my car, which should figure out with in the next few weeks. Rear seats, the C32 has folding seats while my C240 does not. I have no idea how to swap this over.. If anybody has a DIY on how to retrofit folding rear seats, please point me in the right direction!
Furthermore, Bose Speakers. are all the speakers in the C32 from BOSE? and are they plug and play for the C240? Same as the HVAC digital control and the CD changer.
If anybody has had any experience with these retrofits, I would greatly appreciate it if I can get some tips / DIY instructions!
For accelerator pedal cover, easier just to swap out the entire accelerator assembly. The more tedious method it to take out both accelerator pedal and disassemble them to swap out just the pedal cover. My ghetto method would be to cut part of the rubber on the bottom of the aluminum-rubber studded accelerator pedal at the back (so it's not visible!) and your C240 pedal so they'll slide out of the fixed pedal then reattach the aluminum-rubber studded accelerator pedal to your car and zip-tie it at the bottom! Ghetto a lot easier!
If C32 have Bose speaker - speaker grille will say Bose! Most folks really don't want Bose since they're a pain to work with and upgrade. CD Player is fibre optic wire - I'm not sure about Bose speaker wire. Amp-sub should be hidden in rear right corner of trunk behind cover - bunch of funky wires in there too!
HVAC Digital Climate controller,... you'll just have to swap out, do HVAC reset and try it,... sometimes it'll work, sometimes it won't - no real logic to which ones will work and which ones won't.
PatrickKC, in a couple of weeks after tax time, I'll have more time and if you like I could swing by with my tools and give you a hand for a day. In exchange I'd like some simple STAR coding done on my car (already have all the directions). Cool?
Unfortunately, I am not the person that has STAR. The coder used to help people code on PureMB when it still existed many years ago. I can help you ask him though.
I will look more into it and play around with the car and keep you guys updated!
Yeah, I remember PureMB,... great bunch of guys. I miss the PureMB BBQs.
I'm pretty sure I know who you're talking about,... he used to have a modded white CL203 and now drives a silver E55. Basically, most of the star coding he did for his CL203 is what I want on mine. He'll do star coding for beer! Let me know when he swings by in a couple weeks.
From all those PureMB BBQs I have a lifetime supply of Mercedes baseball caps - that's the only thing I kept on winning at the draw! The only PureMB BBQ I missed was the first one. The last one at the dealership was the best - still wondering how they managed to get an entire Mercedes-Benz dealership full of Mercedes for an entire Sunday afternoon!
I'm still amazed a the stuff the CL203-to-CLC guy did. Not only did he acquired all the CLC front and back end parts from UK and assembled to his CL203; but also parts of the interior - cluster, steering wheels, seats, etc,... His CL203 was the pre-facelift CAN-bus system; converting that to post-facelift CAN2-bus system wasn't supposed to be possible,... but then he managed to STAR code in a CLC cluster with KeyLess GO and steering wheel paddle shifter!
We're lucky Toronto has a relatively large Mercedes scene,... Toronto area has 7 Mercedes dealerships,... many cities only have one or two,...
I actually liked the ones at Sunnybrook more..it felt more like a outdoor BBQ, but the one at the dealership was nice. Just had enough space to cram all of our cars in.
Yea, the CLC guy kinda disappeared after those few months he was active. I think he got married or something. Haven't even seen his car around, so not sure if he ever got around to finishing up his car.
Anyways, I should be picking my car up sometime this week, with all the C32 exterior parts mounted. Then I'll retry the STAR coding. If it works, then I'll think about retrofitting the interior seats. (just the front seats.. Haven't figured out how to take out the whole folding seats thing yet.)
I think you're right, Chris likely did get married. He had his own business. Chris was active here about 5 years ago but last Christmas on his CL203 to CLC thread, he posted a few teaser photos of his CL203/CLC going wide body with front and rear fender work; that photo certainly wasn't taken around Christmas time in Canada, eh! Years ago, Chris mentioned he was planning on getting the CL203/CLC painted and put in an AMG engine like on C63 or C55.
I still remember when Batman from PureMB saw the CL203 to CLC conversion, his eyes nearly popped out of his head! You know how Batman likes modding his SLKs and now C63 AMG coupe,... but his first car was a paprika red metallic CL203 like mine.
I have the MB STAR Service DVD W203/CL203. It has the instructions on how to take out and install the rear seats. Problem is I don't know how to copy and paste out of that DVD to post here?
yep, I saw him upload photos of his wedding on Facebook, then he disappeared. I think he went back to his home country or something like that.. not sure if he ever came back lol. I remember him telling me he wanted to swap in the 55 engine too haha.
Yah, all those great people, too bad they all moved on now. Batman isn't even in Canada anymore.
On the bright side, PureMB is making a comeback.
Ah, so you have all those service diagrams? I wouldn't even know where to start. My mechanic said he won't help me, and I'd have to DIY the interior swap my self. Are you able to take screen shots? I have no idea how they take pictures of those diagrams.
Those photos with the CL203 to CLC going widebody were probably taken in his home country. It certainly doesn't look like a typical Canadian garage - there isn't any recognizable logo or brands anywhere; except what could be an orange Black&Decker drill and Stanley yellow and black measuring tape.
About a year ago, I saw a blue AMG front bumper posted for sale in Toronto and I messaged the seller thinking it was Chris but it wasn't; it was just a shop. But I'm pretty sure that was Chris's old AMG front bumper for his coupe because it was missing the headlight washer caps and AMG bumper for coupe are extremely rare in North America.
Huh? Batman isn't even in Canada anymore???? I guess he got married, have kid(s) and went back to HongKong. About a year ago, I saw a red C63 AMG coupe posted for sale and thought that car looks like Batman's,... I guess it was his,... but it didn't really surprise me, I mean, Batman would get a new Mercedes every 2-3 years, mod it,... get bored of it and then get a new Mercedes,... and the cycle continues,...
Yeah,... PureMB is coming back!!! Will Richie be back to admin/mod PureMB,... but more importantly - will Eddie be back to man the grill at the PureMB annual BBQ? ;p
I have the MB STAR Service DVD W203/CL203,... it's full of service diagrams and instructions on how to repair, dis&re-assemble parts on the car,... the problem is I can't figure out how to pdf parts of it,... it can print easily,... but each instructions are in nodes and links,... The DVD is designed to be used as a reference from a laptop where you can easily navigate through the DVD and all it's nodes and links,... I'm in the Yonge-Sheppard-401 area of North York which is close to RichmondHill so when you get to that stage of switching interior or whatever, I'll just swing on by with my laptop and DVD.
Yeah, look at some of the pictures, they were definitely taken from his home. I've gone to his house for coding, and he has many tools and even showed me various spray guns he wanted to use to spray his car.
Yea, Batman moved to Hong Kong. I think he's working with Tesla now or something. Changing cars every 2-3 years, perks of leasing haha
I don't have much information on the new PureMB, but it should be pretty exciting. There is another group now which is MB True North.
Ah, that would be amazing! The exterior stuff on my car should be done soon. I'm just telling my mechanic to take his time and not rush anything.
The main thing that I don't really know what to do is that after I take out the brakes and wheels from the C32, I don't know where to put the car while I do the interior changes. hahah
Lately, whenever I see street scenes on HongKong news, I scan the background for highly modified Mercedes or Tesla with Lorinser turbine rims and of course,... the Batman logo!!! ;p
Hopefully, PureMB will be up and running just in time for Summer BBQ season!!!
You mentioned you only want to change the seats,... but with the DVD you can figure out how to change the entire interior - it should depend on condition of the interior of C32 vs your C240,... which one is in better shape?
haha, he is back for vacation. I his brother on highway 7 a few days ago.
Just to give an update,
I removed the center console, so I have the HVAC out, but have not installed it onto the C240 yet.
Took out the rear seats today. Basically I will be retrofitting folding seats in my C240. Just need to figure out how to take out the clamps that is below the rear deck for the last piece. I will probably figure this out and do this tomorrow.
Will also see if I can remove the rear deck tomorrow. It has the BOSE sub, so I will need to see if I can transfer it over. The CD changer uses optical cable, so I need to see how I can transfer everything over.
Exterior is complete for now. Haven't done brakes / wheels yet, because haven't found a place to put the C32 once the wheels are off. That will probably be the last thing that will be transferred then I will scrap the C32.
Huh, Batman is back in town already,.... I'll have to look for a rental car with a batman logo on it! ;p
Since you have the HVAC out anyways, make sure the footwell lever are updated to newer stronger version.
From MB Star Service DVD do the following subgroups:
To remove rear seats
- remove rear seat bottom cushion - mainly 4 nuts (under cover caps) along bottom of front of rear seat cushion
- remove rear seat back cushion - unscrew centre seat belt (top) - unscrew scews and bolts along bottom of seat back
- remove rear seat head rest - release head rest at catch (either behind rear seat back cushion or from trunk - at base of rear seat head rest is horizontal steel beam with oval indentations - within these indentations are little metal plates with holes, you need to poke a screwdriver in the hole to release the head rest locking mechanism) *** Is This the "clamps that is below the rear deck" that you're stuck on? If not, provide photo *** and then disconnect pneumatic connection
To remove rear shelf
- unhook locking control
- remove paneling on C-pillar
- remove side cushion on rear seat backrest
- remove clips (located at front of rear deck near side - are these the clamps you're refering to?) - use non-maring plastic lever/molding tools
- remove spreading clip located quarter way from side towards middle
The MB Star Service DVD is more detailed but I still can't figure out how to make a pdf of it to post.
Bose subwoofer uses fiber optic wires. On coupe there's bunch of weird wires (fiber optics, telephone network, RF cables, etc,.. ) located inside rear corner of trunk on passenger side behind covers - I assume ditto for sedan. Since you're grabbing the subwoofer from C32, it probably also have centre speaker at front dash - check if you're C240 has centre speaker - if not, it does now!
Likely too busy this holiday weekend but should be able to swing by and give you a hand the following weekend,... then afterwards, we could go cruising along Highway 7 looking for a nice mercedes/tesla rental car with a batman logo on it!!! ;p
haha, his brother said they're just back for a little bit. I'm sure you'll see the red batman c63 coupe around town.
What are the footwell lever? I don't have the HVAC out on the C240 yet. Basically, I have just been dismantling stuff on the C32.
I will take some pictures tomorrow if I still cannot get it out. It is the latches that hold the folding seat's seat back.
thanks for the instructions, I will tackle the rear shelf tomorrow.
Sure thing, I am hoping I can finish up the rear portion of the retrofit before the long weekend. (rear deck + bose sub, folding seats, and the AMG rear seats).
Yes, I noticed that the CD changer using fiber optic wire. The cable is orange and has a red and white light on the connector. I am going to assume that I can trace this orange wire all the way to the rear deck.
What's the middle speaker? I basically took out the radio, HVAC, center air vents and the row of buttons for the heated seats and headrest but don't see any speakers behind it?
The HVAC stuff can be found in the sticky at the top of the w203 page. I would so look into that as fixing them now would be much easier.
The fiber cable runs from the HU to the cd changer, rear amp, teleaid and voice control if your car has it.
The middle speaker is in that grill in the center of the dash and if you want to transfer over the Bose stereo you will want all the speakers and then the wiring harness out of the c32 to swap over.
Huh?,.... Batman still has the red C63 coupe,.... wow, that's considered old by his standards! I mean, he had a prefacelift paprika red metallic C230 coupe like mine,... then got blue C230 coupe facelift when it came out,... then got blue SLK280 a couple years later,... then changed to blue SLK 350,... then red C63 coupe,... basically a brand new Mercedes every 2-3 years! Meanwhile I'm still on my prefacelift paprika red metallic C230 coupe,... well,... at least I'm loyal! ;p
On your dash, above centre row of buttons for heated seats, alarm, esp, etc,... is centre air vents,... above that on dash is triangular grille,... centre speaker is in there - if present. See post #2 https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...er-grille.html
Yep, he still has it. I believe his cars are leased so they come and go every few years.
Dumb question time.
Are the speaker wires also fiber optic? Any chance that the BOSE speakers / tweeters will plug right into my C240 and work?
I will take a look at the footwell lever and go from there. I need to get this swapped out soon, as my mechanic doesn't want both my cars there for almost a month taking up space.. ahha
Dumb answer: Speaker wire are good old fashion regular copper wire.
To enjoy Bose system you need Bose enabled HU, connected via fiber optics to CD changer, Amps and subwoofer. Output of amp to Bose speaker is via copper wire.
If what you're stuck on is that "latch that holds folding seat's seat back" are those 2 black latches about a 1/3 apart from side along front edge of rear deck. Then, you need to:
- unlock seat from those two buttons at top of rear deck behind head rest
- unhook locking mechanism - directly behind those 2 black latches (via trunk side) are access holes along steel support (rear deck) - unhook the cable from above mention two buttons at top of rear deck. Within the oval access hole, at the opposite end where cables attaches is a circular connector, just unattach it by pushing it upward and voila the locking mechanism is unhooked
BTW, thanks for showing me photo of that black radio cage so late at night,... I still have nightmares of trying to get that black radio cage out to access the HVAC system and plastic foot lever behind it,.... I guess I should expect to wake up screaming and crying in the middle of the night! ;p
What's Bose enabled HU? is that something that needs to be coded with STAR? fiberoptics to CD Changer / AMP and Subwoofer, I am going to assume that all the fiber optic cable can be pulled out of the C32? Just need to be very careful not to break any.
The latches, are were the cable is connected to when you pull the handles through the trunk. There is a screw under the hatch that I unscrewed with the seats out, but still not able to move the latch at all. I will attempt to take out the rear deck tomorrow and I should be able to see some more screws.
I'm not very good mechanic, pulling out the HVAC was a pain in the ***. I'm guessing I gotta get back in there with my C240 to replace the foot lever? haha
MB factory HeadUnits should be Bose enabled already to send out Bose EQ curve signal. STAR coding shouldn't be required.
Aftermarket HU are generally NOT Bose enabled. That's why those with Bose system changing to aftermarket HU, need to get rid of factory CD changer, amp and subwoofer. Not just due to fiber optic.
The C240 should be pre-wired for fiber optic and already have centre speaker - but double check.
Huh? The C32 had parktronic on rear but not front? Make sure to grab rear parktronic module under rear bumper cover and signal on rear dome light.
04-17-2015, 07:21 PM
