Project is a little strong, but this super rare 1995 has seen better days. In a few weeks it’s getting dropped off at the body shop for a proper down to metal repaint (excluding jams which are all in perfect condition including the VIN stickers). The shop specializes in Mercedes and uses all the right materials. There is a healthy list of parts I’d like to replace or refurbish back to new so this 119k mile beauty can shine. Here is a starting list of things to address along with a few “is it possible” questions. Feel free to comment or provide links if available. Please don’t interpret this as a laundry list of things I expect the forum to answer for me, lol. I’m perfectly capable of searching. Consider this a roadmap we can enjoy.

Parts to address:
rear antenna was broken off. Need new antenna
rear 6 disc changer plastic cover is broken
refurbish center console (shifter) burl wood
replace cabin and engine filters
sky bag is ripped, how do I replace that thing?
missing the shift knob C36 topper. If I get a replacement, should I replace the whole thing or just get one with the nicest topper and replace just the top? Rest of knob is in great shape.
tint windows, won’t go overkill, but noticeable. Anyone have pics and level?
black powder coat a set of e55 18” wheels
replace aftermarket muffler and resonator delete. Cats are there, that’s good. Going back to 100% stock.
passenger front headrest is drooping. I presume a gear is striped. What is the common cause of that?
headliner is a mess. Based on the pealing clear coat and history it spent time outside in dry heat and the glue gave way at the front and back edges. Have a good shop which can replace it but I’m not going original. It’s waaaay to expensive and I’m thinking a grey, dark grey, and red plaid. The headliner is not visible from outside the car and could be a fun way to add some customization. Thoughts?
i have a 3 button garage door visor from another car, how/where does the required power come from on the harness? Is this possible on cars not originally optioned?
My last c36 (1996) had keyless entry to the mirror. I really want keyless entry. What do I need and is it possible on cars not originally optioned? Mirror and keys obviously. How to pair? Gotchas?
Drivers seat is a bit firm. How hard is it to rebuild and what is typically involved?

im leaving suspension and those giant brakes stock. Having driven my last one for 6 years and 50k I love the ride as is for my cruising purposes. I’m interested in a chip or other reversible bolt on mods, the more hidden and secret the better.

comments thoughts on the project and my direction? No promises to listen to anyone, but I love lots of ideas to choose from!

 

Post some pics ,you said your last one had keyless entry ? Did you mod this yourself

 

See below for some pics.

The keyless was the IR/alarm system built into the mirror. It was an official option on the 1996.

One of these mirrors: Note the red/green lights

 

Hey thanks for sharing this, I am looking forward to your progress and please post many pictures.

I like that you are keeping it stock.

I might have a stock mirror but its from a 98 c43 so not sure if its the same.

Also seat head rest should be easy to fix. The back cover from the seat comes off which exposes the mechanism. I believe it was pretty simple thing.

The visor with buttons has a wire that tucks up behind the headliner in the front but some review mirrors also have the buttons.

Where are you located?

 

Thanks! Will definitely post lots of pictures! If all goes well, should be cruising in style by April/May. I hope most of the wiring will be easy to access when the headliner comes out!

Im in the Chicago area.

 

I believe there are several parts specific to the keyless entry besides just the mirror and keys. For example, the drivers door lock mechanism/actuator. I would imagine, though I can't confirm, that the immobilizer coding is also option specific.

 

I added keyless entry to a 1995 Porsche via this kit found on Amazon for under $20. There was no factory keyless entry offered in that year of 911. The remote is small and looks roughly period correct vs. some of the other options that were too flashy, a black square, or too large. It was easy to figure out the wiring - at least on the Porsche.

 

Looks like a control module, receiver (rear view mirror), and a key. Im not sure what it sends over can tho. at least the signal for unlock is spliced right to your unlock switch. it shouldnt be too hard to find a set of key+rcl module+rear view mirror for cheap, give it 12v and jump that to your lock/unlock switches to see if it will work

 

Perfect! Thanks. The locks themselves are already powered (using key on driver/passenger side opens rest) and I know there are procedures for pairing keys. Now to find a nice mirror and keys.

 

Big update time!

Dropped the car off at the painter late January and the last few weeks have been disassembly. So far no surprises! Even better than that? No rust! Like Zero! Look at those rocker panels! (ignore the little bit on the front bumper support, lol that will get taken care of properly.) The painter is a mercedes expert and will be putting everything back together just like the factory!

PS: im trying to upload more photos but the uploader is brutal. What is a better solution?

 

Keep the pics coming

Im glad this car is being saved. Cant wait to see it done.

 

Wow...you really stripped it down including interior. Finished project will be nice!

 

Happy to report more progress despite all this chaos. Note everything is removed and the care taken to ensure as close to factory final product as possible. The good news is im working with a small shop and the owner is healthy and will keep his business open in the immediate future. Should be two more weeks until its in color and back together!

Here are some shots of primer + guide coat, hence the trippy T1000 look lol.

 

In PICTURE two, not sure if that jeep front facial will fit?

 

lol I said some “minor changes”

 

... wow. Nice work! How hard was it to remove the headliner?

 

It was super easy. I opened my wallet and handed my credit card to an expert. Lol I’m having a pro repaint it. He’s a old timer who knows exactly how to paint this car and make it look factory. The headliner is a pain to get out though. Need to pull all the pillar pieces.

 

Getting closer! Main body is now Imperial Red and sanding/buffing is in process. Bumpers just got paint and all the little bits are lined up and ready for color!

Sneak peak of passenger front door and selfie lol....

 

Lookin very nice man.

Were there any dents that needed addressing? How did they o about that?

 

very very few dents. He either pulled the “larger” ones and sprayed the entire car with a 2K primer which is designed to be sanded but thick enough to fill small imperfections and low spots. If you want detailed paint help I can dig up old pictures and steps along with materials. Start with posting some pictures of the worst spots you are most worried about and I can get you going on the right path.

 

Well thats ok Im not gonna be doing it my self.

I have wuite a few small dings on doors l. Type of stuff youll get from a mild door ding and also 3-5 bigger dents maybe one to three inches across.

Are you getting the door jambs painted and the edges of the doors? Did panels come off the car or were they painted on the car?

 

If you can fix it without painting that’s the way to go. So if it’s a ding and the paint is fine, someone skilled can fix it. If you do paint, minimize it, black is easy to match. What panels are the worst offenders?

In my case, jams are not getting painted, they along with the factory VIN stickers will be intact. Only the outside is getting redone and the painter fills the jams with a mask so the edges of the door get a factory correct application no masking lines!

Hood, truck, doors all stayed in place, everything else came off and I mean everything. If it’s seen on the exterior and is red, it’s getting painted the right way. Red, black and other simpler colors don’t care as much about the angle the paint is sprayed. Metallics, pearls and complex stuff needs to be properly laid out so when the light hits multiple panels it all looks continuous.

 

My car is red too not black.

Theres some clear coat peel and car had been painted once in certain areas so i want a good over all fresh respray.

I dont want a lot of bondo or filler so I wanna take out the bigger dings. I guess smaller ones can be filled with filler like you said.

My door jambs are imaculate so not sure if I wanna do those. So you are doing a three stage paint then? My understanding is that from factory these dont come with three stage. Im not sure Inunderstand exactly what the difference is.

 

Pj, your a pretty handy guy. You should watch YouTube videos on how to fix small dents. You can fix them and get it to primer. Than take it to a paint shop to have the primer paint matched to the rest of the panels. Than they can clear coat the whole car. Than you can wet sand the car and than buff it. You will save so much money. But if you don't have the time than it's a different story.

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I got confused and thought you were talking about your black one. I didn’t realize the red was pealing. I went back through your thread and it appears the front/rear bumpers, trunk lid, roof(?) all need paint work. The doors are cleaning up really well. The color doesn’t appear to have faded at all either, that’s very good. I was not so lucky with mine.

Keep the jams as is, it’s actually less work and will help preserve the value of the car. A good body guy will remove the dings to minimize the amount of body filler (Bondo is to body filler as Kleenex is to facial tissue). It’s perfectly fine to use it in thin layers post metal work were appropriate. It gets a bad rep from lazy *** people using it to simply fill dents, rust holes, etc.

Mercedes and all manufactures have used three stage paint for decades. The three stages are primer, color, and clear. Two stage combines the color and clear into one and its total crap. It was done years ago when lacquer paint was used (it could be buffed like crazy to bring back the shine) and today when people are cheap. In the mid/late 90’s the manufacturers where transitioning to water based paints which act differently than their solvent based predecessors. The red cars have a tendency to peal because they sprayed the color, then waited 24 hours before clear due to the process in place, while the rest of the cars went straight from color to clear resulting in a better chemical bond between the layers.

If you look closely at the photos of my car there are small dings in the before pics. Then the body shop fixed those, sprayed the car with something called high build primer or 2K primer followed by a thin layer of black (hence the striped look). The primer is then sanded carefully using the black as a “guide coat” to ensure it’s perfectly flat. Low spots will remain a little black while the high spots turn gray immediately. They then apply another primer, color, clear all in a single painting session so it chemically bonds.