Quote:
Originally Posted by jjeffries
I may have a hard time getting you to be as enthusiastic about this W116 Mercedes-Benz S-class as I was. Just another 70's Benz barge? Hardly ... it's a 350SE, and:
- Italian spec, so the bumpers it was built for, not the mondo structures required for the U.S. market.; clear turn signal lenses.
- 3.5 liter version of the SOHC V8.
- Short wheelbase (SE, not SEL)
- Manual 5-speed
- Green velour upholstery ... nicer and more luxurious than leather, let alone MB-Tex.
John
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And the
hubcaps, John. The hubcaps! How cool are those!
I just read through your 924
S thread, being referred there from here, and interested because I've always liked the idea of it. Funky 70s interior (why no tach pictures yet?), elegant, non-hyperadrenal-gland shapes (looking at you, 944), and all the goodness and go of the 944 hidden inside. In fact, I look at this view every day when I leave my house, and I think about what might be.
However, for the previous ten years I looked to the same neighbor's house (under the carport) and saw
this parked.
It's a California car that came to him 15 years ago with a ventilated block and shrapnel in the oil pan. He installed a replacement 2.5, but beyond his obsessively collecting parts, the project stalled there. Immediately pre-pandemic I bought and brought Beverly
(swimmin' pools, movie stars) across the street and have gotten the motor running well, but need the transmission to hold oil before I can drive the frustrating thing. Your experience is my experience: If it's not one thing, it's another.
What can Jonny042's thread lead to? This...
Oh, and we (the neighbor and I) are building a proper 2.8 MFI motor, ever so slowly.
Next stop will likely be to get in touch with Len Cummins about coolant lines and oil lines and fuel lines and power steering lines and transmission cooler lines. Yikes! Mercedes are complex cars- it's no surprise they were so stinkin' expensive.
So thank you so much for taking us along on your adventure! There are a lot of connections being made.
Once Beverly goes, I will have Alfa questions (talk to me about a 1750 Berlina. It may be the only one left I can afford)
