rees8448

Hello again everyone! I am getting ready to tackle the seat swap on my E320 this weekend so I got to thinking about tailoring the wood trim for the additional buttons and such. I looked around and found a quite a few posts on this subject already, and my father agreed to help me with this project as he has years of experience in wood working. So I should be good to go on that front.

I do have a couple specific questions however about repairing imperfections in the wood. First, I have a horizontal crack in the lacquer just below where the headlight washer would be. Its right where the trim slants outwards. The crack is only really noticeable in direct sunlight and doesn't seem to be a crack in the actual wood. I have looked around various forums and it appears this is basically irreparable short of sanding and refinishing. Has anyone found a relatively quick fix for this problem? Second, the trim around the gear shifter and window switch is severely bent upwards. It looks like the previous owner tried to pry it up from the cup holder and just kept prying until it bent. There appears to be no damage to the wood on top, but I don't want to damage the wood by flattening it back out. I am thinking Ill place some clamps along the sides and flatten it out while applying some light heat to the top to prevent any wood or lacquer cracks.

Oh, and I have the 2002 "anniversary edition" e320 with the black birdseye maple trim if that makes any difference. I tried looking at birdseye trim panels on ebay to replace mine, but most of them look more damaged than the ones I already have. I am also trying to keep the costs down as much as possible if I can.

I'd be happy to hear about anyone else's previous experiences on these matters, and any suggestions you may have. Thanks ahead of time!

*Edit* Added some pictures of what I am talking about. Door trim pic was is just there because it looked so pretty in the sunlight. Please excuse my battered chuck taylors

kajtek1

I don't think anybody attempt to manufacture matching MB wood.
Post a picture of what you have. I plan to go to junk yard on Monday and see if I can find replacement.

rees8448

Sure thing, I should be able to post pictures here in a couple hours. I don't want to make new trim, I am just hoping to fix mine if possible. I'm thinking the bend at least should be fixable.

Junkyards are the best though, managed to find a really good condition e420 last weekend with orthopedic seats and the old style corded phone. I was debating pulling the PSE just in case I mess mine up when I attempt my seat swap tomorrow.