preferbimmers

Hello All,

Im new to the world of Mercedes-Benz. My aunt who has always been a Mercedes driver Just pick up what she said is a 1992 W140 S320? (hard to tell because it's totally debadged, might be a 300SE or a 300SEL). Pretty much the only reason why she bought the car is because it has bullet proof windows (not that she'll ever need them). After having the car for about two weeks these are things that she is aksing me to figure out for her.

1. After driving for a while exhaust starts to back up inside the car, especially in the backseat and does not make for a pleasant ride. The guy she bought the car from tried to tell her that this was caused by the trunk latch being broken and the trunk not closing all the way, and somehow sucking in exhaust from the tail of the car. I told her this made no sense but it was fixed anyway to prove it to her.

2. The car gets very bad gas mileage. I had her take it to my local mechanic that works on my bimmers for me he said the air mass sender was disconnected for some reason. He connected it for her and said it should solve the problem. The improvement was almost unoticeable.

3. If the car has below 1/4 of a tank we've noticed that the gauge never accurately depicts how much gas is actualle left. I have yet to test the fuel sending unit and the actual gauge on the cluster, has anyone had similar problems to this?

4. This is the one that worries me the most. Upon acceleration the is almost alway a big cloud of blue smoke that billows out of the tailpipe choking the driver of the car behind her. I am sure that this is because somehow oil is getting into the cylinder area. What gaskets or seals should I look at this being for the cause of this problem.

5. The shift lever always restes in the '4' position not the 'D'. Not that big of a deal but it just bothers me.

Other than that the car 172 miles on it Drives as a smooth as a cruise boat and has quite a nice sound system.

Paint is fairly nice just needs a wax and a buff. And It'll be primo. Im gonna try to find her some nice 19" AMG Monoblocks and then shell be rollin pretty.

Any guidance to where to start with those issues is greatly appreciated.

Thanks in Advance

FraKctured

This is the vaunted (and highly secretive) so-called "Machiavelli" feature which is useful in eliminating political foes under the cover of giving them a ride to the grocery store.

Since you "preferbimmers" I'd suggest you return to the non-lethal cousins of the MB before someone gets hurt.

napaAl

I recall hearing about the "head gasket problem" with the 320's that may be causing the smoke and poor performance. Apparently there is a thin area somewhere near the rear of the engine head prone to gasket failure.

preferbimmers

I knew I was going to catch some hell about this (preferbimmers). But like I said it's not my car it's Aunts. I think it will be an awesome car once she gets all of these little issues worked out. But seriously any idea on why you would be smelling exhaust fumes on the inside of the car. Besides the occasional political assassination. LOL

preferbimmers

If it were a head gasket wouldn't that cause white smoke due to coolant getting somewhere it's not supposed to be. Or am I wrong?...Maybe I'll do a search of the forum for that one. Thanks

benica

Before starting the car up in the morning, I'd remove the coolant cap and check the level...if it's full...obviously, no leak. I'd also remove the oil dip stick and see if it has any signs of white/milky on it....a sign on a blown head gasket.

If both are looking ok...then something else is causing the problem....exhaust leak...??
But white smoke is a sign of coolant/oil mixing together...
the gas gauge or sending until in the tank will cause the other problem you have...

shifter linkage needs adjusting.....and that would be the least of that particular problem.

preferbimmers

The mechanic checked the oil dipstick and didnt mention anything to her about the oil being milky. I think thats something any mechanic would catch right away. I have not checked myself but I will later today. But that wouldnt be the cause od BLUE smoke to be coming out of her exhaust, it's somehow burning oil I think. I just dont know were to start looking.

EdzBenz

I realize i'm making an assumption here, but your aunt may be mistaken that the windows are bullet proof. The W140's came with double pane windows which are significantly heavier and thicker than normal car windows. Some shady car dealers will advertise as bullet proof when they don't have a clue about the car's specifications. Post some photos of the windows and some of the members can offer suggestions if they really are bullet proof or not. She also may have the documentation of the security package that was installed which would make my assumption void.

napaAl

I would agree on the bulletproof issue. That extra gear would likely be installed with a V-8 or 600 only.

preferbimmers

hmmm. That makes since about the bullet proof. And the guy she bought it from is definitely shady to say the least. If we don't have another freak storm this weekend I'll try to get some pictures taken.