I am currently in the process of restoring my 1983 300 sd. I am running into problems with my local mb dealership. Everytime I need something they act as if I am ordering parts for a Boeing 747. I need the gasket for my Sliding roof. They claim that no W126 had sliding roofs. Can you believe that? They told me that it must have been put on after market. The other part I am having a hard time finding is the female 5 hole plug for my lights. I have euro lights on a 500sel and they are not 4 hole like mine. It looks pretty easy to re-wire, I just need the plugs. Any suggestions on how to find these 2 items?

 

I have been getting my dealer parts from Hoy-Fox Mercedes in El Paso, Tx. Ask for Ron in parts. I live in Tucson and I avoid MB of Tucson like the plague. I have found Hoy fox to have good prices and they have access to all parts if they are still available, some are not. My car is an an '85 380se. They will price match or at least try to give you the best they can considering some after market parts are Chinese junk and their parts are the real deal there is only so much they can do in many cases.

Good luck with your project. I have found mine to be expensive beyond reasonable value and would not do it again but will finish it up as I am coming down the home stretch. My saga is documented under tips about a 1985 380se.

E

 

Thank you so much for replying to my post and thanks for the info on Hoy-Fox. I have been doing some more research on my 300SD and I am almost convinced that this is either a gray model, or the dealership is really full of morons when it comes to buying parts. It doesn't help when they have to use the VIN to order something as small as a rear view mirror. Good thing I don't need one of those; they would probably tell me my car didn't come with one. I am also finding your comment about "costly" to be true as well. It is kind of odd that these cars are cheap to maintain, but when it comes to cosmetic or something small it gets ridiculously over-priced. This will be my daily driver so to me it is kind of worth the money. Anyway, thanks again and I will be posting more pics when it is done.

Mark

 

Mark,

Here is a link you can go to, enter your vin, and see what country your car was built for and with what options. http://old.mbclub.ru/mb/vin/?lng=eng

 

Thank you so much for that link 83126. That really helped and the first option it showed for my car was indeed the sliding roof. It really didn't tell me what country it was built in, but it did tell me that it is a california/usa/canada edition. Which is pretty odd because it doesn't have, and shows no signs of ever having that trap oxidizer on it. I knew it was from california because the guy I bought it from never removed the plastic from the passenger side carpet and the plastice stated the name of the dealership in LA, but I have since lost it. Anyway, thanks again for that link.

Mark

 

You are welcome.

 

is this the type of plug you're looking for?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Merce...spagenameZWDVW

 

Thanks for the ebay link. I will have to look at the euro lights again. I took them to the body shop for installation. I know for a fact that they are 5 plug, but, there might be a dummy stub and a 6 female plug will work. Not sure. I have my MB mechanic getting me a list of body, gaskets, and electrical parts together because the closest Mercedes dealership would rather sell me Chevy parts, if you know what I mean. I should have an answer by Monday. He told me yesterday that he would be able to get the plugs, but we will see. Thanks again for the reply and link.

Mark

 

I am beginning a restoration of my 1989 420 SEL. Curious - what do you expect the cost to be for paint and replacement of various trim items and seals. All projects are different, but just wondering.

 

You guys can also try PM'ing RBrenton (moderator here) when you're looking for parts.

 

Good to see you on here brother in law! Can't wait to see the fresh paint on your Benz!

 

Sorry Gerry G it has taken me so long to reply. I have been on vacation. The cost of paint and body hasn’t been too bad, but then again the guy doing my car has been a friend of mine for years. He specializes in restoring classic cars such as mustangs, camaros, chevells, etc. He told me that my car was originally silver and I didn’t believe him, but thanks to member 83126 I found out he was right. And if you were close to the Washington area I would suggest him for any paint and body work to your Benz or any other vehicle. He just does really good work and is an awesome body guy. In my case, there had to be some body work done; but paint and body has cost me about $3,500. He is a friend, but he would give anybody a deal I send his way. As far as parts, they have been somewhat minimal. It just depends on how far you want to go. I replaced the necessary chrome and salvaged what I could. Thank God my car was in good shape. I would not recommend going to any mb dealerships unless you trust them and they have been able to get parts for you in the past at reasonable prices. I have found that the closest dealership to me can’t get you the parts you need and when they can they mark up the price considerably. I think it has something to do with their computer system. Anyway, I wouldn’t buy a mb from them let alone anything else. I use my mb mechanic now for all parts. He marks up a little, but to me it is worth it because all I have to do is call him and tell me what I need and he finds it and it is cheaper than the local dealership. He gets the parts from Portland, Seattle, and various other places. Member 1985 suggested a place that I have never heard of but is probably good I’m sure. Most parts can be found online fairly easy; it’s when you get into chrome, interior, and special gaskets that you run into a problem. All in all, it hasn’t been too costly; about 4,500 on all exterior paint, body, chrome, wheels, gaskets, and lights. But then again, I am fortunate that most of the panels and chrome were salvageable. Not to mention, my brother in law got me original euro lights off a 500SEL that was shipped to the US when it was practically brand new which are awesome. The exterior is almost done and I have tons of pics that I would like to get on the site when I get the time. Next is the interior which is in decent shape other than the fabric around the doors, both front door panels, vinyl on the posts, and door seals. Other than that it is pretty good. Like I said, I was fortunate to get a good deal on a car in relatively good shape and you are right, every project is different. To me this will be a daily driver and I am going for the most classy, stock look I can get to preserve my W126. Good luck with yours and I will offer any assistance I can.
Thank you,
Mark

 

More pictures please!

 

Another parts source for you might be the "MB Parts Guy" Randy Steele. He has a website autopartsguru that you can find some of the basics by yourself. If you don't see it, just ask and he will find it for you as long as it's still made. My local dealer sounds a lot like yours, not much help at the parts counter. I hope your project goes well!

Nathan