triggerman

Guys

Just bought a 1995 E320 Wagon and joined this forum and need some advice. The driver door tensioner(? holds door open) makes a very loud popping sound. Previous owner got a new one but never installed it. I have the new part but cannot for the life of me get the door panel off. There are NO visible screws, so does it pop straight out, or pull up and then out?

Also, eventhough they look and feel great, how does MB get away with putting vinly seats in these cars! Guess I shouldnt complain, these are in perfect shape and after 11 years leather would have probably cracked.

Lastly, how important is running only Premium fuel in these cars. Found out after I took delivery, that the previous owner has ran only regular in it for over a year (length he owned it). What will this effect exactly?

first of many questions
thank you
Triggerman

neanderthal

ive forgotten the exact procedure for removing the door panels but its not as complicated as it seems. you pry off the cover near the upright door pull to expose some screws. also the C shaped plastci thingy near the lock mechanism on the door post.

do a search


i much prefer the MB tex to leather. it holds up better. youll find it has many fans.

i run regular in my car, but they run better on premium.

triggerman

Thanks for the reply. Yes I forgot about doing a search, there are Many past posts on door panel removal.

So its called MB Tex? Do all MBs come with this? Cant argue with how it holds up, mine looks brand new after 11 years.

Running regular will not actually hurt anything huh? Just wanted to be sure.

thanks
Triggerman

lkchris

http://mb.braingears.com/124_DISC2/P...sis/72-100.pdf

lkchris

Your M104 engine may feature a knock sensor that retards timing when using nonpremium fuel. This will protect it but reduce power.

It is totally nonsensical to expect a little bitty 200 cu in engine that produces over 1 horsepower per cubic inch to do that running anything but premium fuel.

Mercedes has not produced a regular-gas car in recent memory.

shadowgriffen

MB tex is nearly indestructible, I've seen junked 300E's with 300K miles and the MB tex inside looks brand spankin new!

My wagon has the same problem, I solve it with some WD40!

bamberger_1

the noisy door tensioner is a known issue for the E-Classes. The final fix is to replace it. WD40 will help for some time, but not for long. Very important is to also replace the foil seperating the "wet space" in the door panel and the (hopefully) "dry space" behind the panel itself.