New Owner of a W126 1989 300SEL
03-23-2015, 12:11 PM
#1
Newbie
Thread Starter
New Owner of a W126 1989 300SEL
Hi all,
I just purchased my first Mercedes- 1989 300SEL . I'm quite excited about the car! My good friend and I are graduating college this May, and are planning to do a roadtrip around the country with it.
My first impressions of the w126 are of surprise and delight. The solidity of the car after so many years and 191k miles is truly incredible. It's a dream to drive, and seems to be in good condition overall, especially considering the purchase price.
After a few days of driving we've seen the following issues:
-transmission clunks slightly into gear when shifting at a standstill
-idle wavering slightly- sometimes not at all, sometimes more so.
-power steering line underneath the radiator is leaking. Dripping visibly on the ground so we have to fix that one up sooner rather than later- level in the tank looks fine though so this drip is not terrible yet- I will post a picture of the line in question to see if you all can help me identify the correct part that I need.
-minor exhaust leak from the midsection of the car
-outside temperature gauge pixels are out- it appears to read -38F, though the temps certainly weren't in the negatives today..
-seems to run warm- up near 90c even on only warm days like today- only when stopped. When on the highway, it's running down at 80c- any advice on this? It appears that the fan may not be functioning at all- so I'll have to look into why that is so.
-alignment slightly off, but tracks shockingly well on the highway
-vibration in steering wheel at certain speeds- probably wheel balance?
-inspect brakes- some screeching noises occasionally during braking lead me to believe we'll at least need some new pads- fluid and lines look good
-blower fan for the heat/air is working but it sounds like it has a bad bearing and gets off at times, so we're looking for a replacement.
-windshield wipers are old and we need new ones. Any recommendations on what works best?
-squeaking power steering when turning at a standstill- maybe it needs a new belt or tensioner- or this could have to do with the leak- though, the tank looked relatively full when I opened it up today. How can I verify what level of fluid should be in there?
-some vibration when braking from highway speeds.
What are some general issues that I should be going over on the car?
Thanks in advance for any feedback/advice.
I just purchased my first Mercedes- 1989 300SEL . I'm quite excited about the car! My good friend and I are graduating college this May, and are planning to do a roadtrip around the country with it.
My first impressions of the w126 are of surprise and delight. The solidity of the car after so many years and 191k miles is truly incredible. It's a dream to drive, and seems to be in good condition overall, especially considering the purchase price.
After a few days of driving we've seen the following issues:
-transmission clunks slightly into gear when shifting at a standstill
-idle wavering slightly- sometimes not at all, sometimes more so.
-power steering line underneath the radiator is leaking. Dripping visibly on the ground so we have to fix that one up sooner rather than later- level in the tank looks fine though so this drip is not terrible yet- I will post a picture of the line in question to see if you all can help me identify the correct part that I need.
-minor exhaust leak from the midsection of the car
-outside temperature gauge pixels are out- it appears to read -38F, though the temps certainly weren't in the negatives today..
-seems to run warm- up near 90c even on only warm days like today- only when stopped. When on the highway, it's running down at 80c- any advice on this? It appears that the fan may not be functioning at all- so I'll have to look into why that is so.
-alignment slightly off, but tracks shockingly well on the highway
-vibration in steering wheel at certain speeds- probably wheel balance?
-inspect brakes- some screeching noises occasionally during braking lead me to believe we'll at least need some new pads- fluid and lines look good
-blower fan for the heat/air is working but it sounds like it has a bad bearing and gets off at times, so we're looking for a replacement.
-windshield wipers are old and we need new ones. Any recommendations on what works best?
-squeaking power steering when turning at a standstill- maybe it needs a new belt or tensioner- or this could have to do with the leak- though, the tank looked relatively full when I opened it up today. How can I verify what level of fluid should be in there?
-some vibration when braking from highway speeds.
What are some general issues that I should be going over on the car?
Thanks in advance for any feedback/advice.
04-16-2015, 12:04 AM
#2
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Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Lake Elsinore,CA
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1987 420SEL, 1972 220
Hey, man. Welcome. Unfortunately, this forum seems to have died down the last couple of years. Try Benzworld. That has alot of the same people as here that just have seem to have forgotten about this. Great forum there.
