Hello friends, I have fixed some pretty significant things on my car and would like to address all the leaks now for good. I have a new oil cap, power steering hose(aggressive leaks)and will be ordering a new transmission cooler hose and pan gasket soon.

When I first got the car it was recommended to leave the transmission alone but after recently having my car in the air and looking at it all the pan is too sweaty for comfort and the lines are pretty greasy and caked up. I feel bad to have neglected these. My radiator is original but after driving all year seems fine; fresh flush was done and no coolant light or discoloration so far so I think I will keep it in.

I’m curious though What transmission fluid do you recommend? My local friends say do not use the dealer stuff because it is synthetic and may cause harm to my car. What do you have in your car?

And what is the method to replace the power steering hose? I’ve don’t want to just take it off and have the pump destroyed because it went dry or something…

unrelated but happy to share that I will be restoring these 16 inch lorinsers for my car, still sitting on the fender spacers and need to get one of the wheels unbent. I think I want to paint them the body color of my car or should I leave them alone?

 

For what car? You have two in your profile.

 

W201

 

On your PS hose, should we assume it is the return hoses (2 of them)? If so, I would recommend to flush the fluid in the process.
Suck as much of the old fluid as you can from the reservoir as possible (take out the filter)
Disconnect the upper hose from the top return clamp
Place the hose in a gallon milk jug
Purchase 3 liters of PS fluid from the dealership
Stick the newly purchased hose in the inlet so as to stop the spilling of the flushing fluid from the reservoir. You will have the open end of the hose higher than the reservoir so it is there just to block the spilling of the fluid.
Fill the reservoir midway (you may choose to replace the old filter in at this point but it is ok to leave it out)
Have a second person at the steering wheel so that they can turn the wheel side to side to get the dirty fluid out of the steering rack
Start the car (it helps to have the car jacked up and tires off the ground)
The fluid pumps fast so you will only have 20-30 seconds or so to maybe flush 1-2 quarts of fluid as the helper turns the wheel and you are replenishing the fluid in the reservoir.
Once the fluid going into the milk jug is looking clear, you are done with flushing.
Next is to clean up and replace the 2 hoses and refill with fresh fluid and don't forget to place a new filter in the reservoir.

As for the wheels, that is a personal taste. I have something similar (but MB ones from a 1997 E420) and they look very good on my impala brown in original silver.
It actually adds to the look. I am not a fan of black rims but tastes differ. I will post a picture when I return from my trip if you like.

 

Helllll no, leave those Lorinsers alone, scratches and all. I like the original paint job.

 

Thanks dolucasi for the summary on how to do that safest. and yes please share! I will fit the wheels on the car and see how they are before anything it will take a while to get the bent wheel back from the shop.

what is the best transmission fluid to buy? Everything seems to be synthetic and I was told to avoid it on the old autos. My car drives fine and don’t want to disturb that

 

For the transmission fluid, see what your owner's manual recommends and then check with your local MB dealer to see if that recommendation has been superseded. You can monitor the condition of your transmission fluid by pulling the transmission dipstick in the engine bay and making sure that the transmission fluid is pink in color. It can be a PITA to pull the transmission dipstick but it needs to be done. If it's not pink, it needs to be changed. Certainly any leaks need to be fixed. Running your transmission out of fluid will be catastrophic for your transmission and your finances. You should never not change your transmission fluid. Typically, it's about every 30,000 miles.
As for coolant, make sure you are only using MB coolant. Non MB coolants are well known to damage that plastic interior of W201 radiators. Coolant should also be typically changed every 30,000 miles. I also use MB power steering fluid as well. Again check your owners manual for a fluid recommendation and then check with your local MB deal to see if that recommendation has been superseded.
Given the age of your car, I'm not surprised that you're having to replace rubber hoses. I went through that several years ago with my W201. As for the Lorinser wheels, it's personal preference. You have the rest of your car looking pretty nice so I would recommend refurbishing your wheels too.
You should also check your differential fluid to see what condition it's in. It's probably a good idea to change that as well since you're changing all of the other fluids. Again, check your owners manual for a fluid recommendation and then check with your local MB dealer to see if it's been superseded. Do the same for your brake fluid as over time, brake fluid can take on water which results in your brakes being less effective.

 

Differential fluid is replaced every 90k miles. Yours is probably due. The viscosity is printed on the manual, I think it is 75/80, but please check. I used valvoline on both cars.

I prefer DOT3 on the brake fluid because my cars do not get used enough and DOT3 retains less water and lasts longer chronologically. DOT4 is really not needed by these cars unless you are on a track.

As for auto transmission fluid I'm of not help, both mine are manual, I could only give manual transmission fluid advice. Sorry...

 

My W201 2.6L auto uses Dexron III automatic transmission fluid. Thinking back now, I think they even wrote it on the transmission fluid dipstick.

 

Much appreciated! My diff fluid was one of the first things I did when I got the car and I have driven only maybe 25k miles since I got it.

brake fluid I have been turkey basting as much old fluid out and refilling with each oil change or brake job.

yes it should be simple haha manual says use MB trans fluid but nowadays MB uses synthetic fluid which I don’t think it was when the cars were in production.

 

I approve of the turkey basting method and use it for stuff like power steering fluid, but I draw the line at brake fluid.

For brake fluid, I think it’s important to ensure that the fluid has been fully flushed - it’s too critical a fluid to do otherwise. I like to use a pressure bleeder to bleed my brakes, mainly because I work solo.

Here’s a link to a tutorial for pressure bleeding your 190e.
https://www.pelicanparts.com/techart...hxLL7jEm-gxDdI

When I want to ensure that my brake fluid is fully flushed, for example when I get a car of unknown history, I will pressure bleed a full liter of brake fluid through the system. Only then will I be satisfied that all the old fluid has been removed.

Afterwards, I’d also do some hard stops to trigger the ABS (if the car has it) to work any air out of the ABS pump. Then I’ll re-bleed another 0.5L of fluid to complete the job.

If you’re going to use the pressure bleeder, I recommend you use it “dry”. That is - instead of filling up the pressure container with brake fluid - you would fill your car’s fluid reservoir to the brim, attach the pressure bleeder and pressurize the reservoir. You won’t have to clean your pressure bleeder, making it easier to work on different cars with different fluids (no cross-contamination). You just need to remember to keep your brake fluid reservoir full! Once you’ve done it a few times, you’ll find a rhythm and it really becomes a pleasant task.

 

Or, just dye the fluid and you don't have to waste liters upon liters. Most brake systems don't have a lot of fluid volume in the lines.

There shouldn't be any air in the ABS pump if the brake fluid flush was done properly... unless of course, you happen to introduce air into the system with your method of filling the reservoir to the top and using just air out of the power bleeder.

 

Yes I’m aware but my brake bleeders are one of those bolts that happens to be seized on my car and to prevent damage I use the baster method for brake fluid. Certainly not the best or easiest way….it wastes a lot of fluid and you have to remember to do it multiple times and then my indie can check the water %. I’ve done this method every oil change but takes maybe 3-5 intervals and it’s new(ish).

Leaving it alone until I can upgrade to bigger calipers

 

Your turkey basting method for removing brake fluid is greatly increasing the chance for air to get into your brake system along wit not fully removing all of the old brake fluid which poses an additional safety risk because of too much water in the brake fluid. That brake bleeder bolt needs to be unseized so that you can properly bleed your brakes. check with your local MB dealer or the MB Classic Center to see what transmission fluid they now recommend fr your car.

 

Are all your bleeders seized. even if you have 1-2 working (particularly in the rears, that is better than he turkey baster method.
Also I would make another attempt at un-seixing them with plenty of WD-40 etc.

I even worry about not being able to bleed the fluid in the ABS on these cars.

 

I have never heard of that being done. I’ve know of ATE Super Blue, but is there a certain dye that ought to be used? The last thing I want is for the dye to negatively affect braking or corrode the system.

And you won’t introduce air by using the power bleeder “dry” as long as you're sensible and keep an eye on the reservoir’s fluid level. I can bleed two calipers and the fluid level will be approaching, and not below, the ”low” mark. If it’s your first time trying it dry, you could refill after each caliper and you won’t have a problem.

 

Don't blame you for being cautious. Chances are, there are a lot of things being done you've never heard of.
Methylene blue (C₁₆H₁₈ClN₃S) powder, have been using it for years, even before the feds realized ATE was selling blue brake fluid and put the kibosh on that. It doesn't take much, 1/4 of a teaspoon per qt will give you a nice blue color fluid. I don't recommend the liquid version of methylene blue, because then you are introducing potentially harmful ingredients, like... you know, water.




Agreed, you wouldn't normally be introducing air via a "dry" power bleeder. That's not how fluid dynamics work. But as you said, you can potentially introduce air into the system if you bleed too much fluid and the level goes too low. I have two identical brake bleeders, one for brake fluid and one for other fluids like differential oils. Brake bleeders are relatively inexpensive nowadays.

 

Will the methylene blue powder stain the interior of the fluid reservoir?

 

Never noticed staining of the reservoir. But to be fair, I never looked, either.

 

Just a reminder to double check your car for corrosion!! I cannot drive my car right now because the negative terminal for the battery snapped off where it bolts to the frame. Thank God I wasn’t driving while this happened, but I couldn’t start the car late a night leaving the store and got stranded.

This is an easy fix I can just get a used terminal from a junk yard but wanted to warn my ppl