RDM3

What body kit is on this 190e?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...&category=6328

MTI

All 16 valve W201's have that stock from the factory. For the 2.3-16, it was only avaliable in two colors, blue-black and smoke silver, because making the other colors of paint match the lower panels was not possible at the time. By the time the 2.5-16 was released, Mercedes offered it in more colors.

RDM3

oh ok, sorry I am not up on all the Mercedes variations yet, I just have a 1985 190e and I am looking to just fix up some small things, I love the new styles but there is something about the 190e I like

MTI

Nothing to apologize for, we all have our oddball affections for the W201, which has quite a bit to be proud of. I also have an '85.

In case you didn't know, the W201 was the car that:

1) Introduced the "5 link" computer designed rear suspension;
2) Was the lightest sedan that MB built since the 1930's
3) Sold over 1.8 million units from 1983 - 1993 worldwide
4) Introduced the monowiper
5) Was the platform that Mercedes chose for their return to circuit racing
6) Despite it's price (over $20K in the early '80s) was called "The biggest bargin from Germany since Werner Von Braun." by Car & Driver magazine
7) Had an aerodynamic design with a coeffcient of drag rivaling a Corvette

RDM3

Thanks for the info. Couple more questions,

What is the HP for the 2.3?

You mentioned selling price over $20k, in retrospect what was the avg price of other cars back then? In 1985 I was 11 so I really did not care about cars that much.

Where can I find a window sticker for this model, I am really curious to check it out.

MTI

You can get a free, xerox copy of the original window sticker for your car by contacting MBUSA and sending them a copy of your VIN and proof of ownership, usually the car's registration and the registered owner's drivers license that will have the verifying information.

Roughly 122-130 HP for the 2.3L

BTW, don't bother searching for the fabled R/16 resistor in an '85 . . . it wasn't installed (so that it could be removed) until there was a modification to the fuel injection system in 1987.

RDM3

I think roght now I am going to do the R134 AC swap, my AC is not working, so theres $250, then it needs a paint job so I will go to Maaco, there is a vaccum leak and the locks are not working right, so I will fix that too, and then I think I will get some tint on the windows, Euro headlights and clear corners.

Oh yeah I forgot some new wheels, either one of these I think:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...category=43956

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...&category=6755

My mom thinks I am nuts putting all that money into a car worth $1500, oh well.

claygate

Both of those sets of wheels seem to be replicas. While that is not bad, I don't think that they would be made to the same quality as the originals. That said, the replicas are made at the same prices as other wheel manufacturers. But I like the style of both of them, especially the CLK wheels.

MTI

As with everything, you'll have to do your homework on big purchases. Mercedes outsources the manufacture of their wheels to other companies, so depending on who made the replicas, it could be from the same maker, just without the MB Star stamped on the back. Mercedes wheels have been known to fail as well, so there's no particular magic to having OEM wheels.

If you ever disassembled a Mercedes, you'd see how much of the car was subcontracted. Bosch and VDO took care of the electronics/electrical, Recaro built the seats, in some cars Momo did the special steering wheels.

RDM3

I am sorry for asking a stupid question but my 85 190e is fuel injected right?

MTI

for the W201 Mercedes models

E = einspritzer (fuel injection)
D = diesel
TD = turbo diesel

without an alpha, it is carburated, the 2.0

RDM3

Thanks!!! I appreciate your help

I am also looking to change the wheels up, other than ebay, thewheelexchange.com and bekkers.com are there any other places you know of to get wheels fairly priced?

claygate

I have some coming in from http://www.wheelcollision.com in the next few days. Hopefully sooner rather than later. I expect for them to be quite good from others' experience.

RDM3

Ok can you let me know what comes in that will fit my car and how much per wheel.

I looked on your site and saw the stock wheels, but I am looking to get away from those.

If you have link to others that will fit please post them

Rob

claygate

It isn't my site, whoops. Maybe I worded that wrong. What I mean is that I have a set coming in from that site this week. Our wheels have an offset of 49mm if I remember correctly from the factory. The new wheels I order are an inch wider and have an offset of 37mm so they will sit with half an inch further inside the wheel well and half an inch further outside. 1 inch ~ 2.54 cm ~ 25.4 mm. I think that is right. This is another thing to look at when considering wheel/tire upgrades http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html and then you can figure out what size tire works. Stick with 16 or 17 inch wheels to get the closest original match in size and anything bigger than 8 inches wide will rub. 7.5 will probably be perfectly fine in most circumstances barring lowering the car by more than 2 inches.