300CE 6.0 Hammer widebody project

[maestro84]

Hello, to you all.

I'm a member of a car restoring company and I'm gathering information about this interesting project.

My idea is to get a coupe in good condition for cheap and try to make it as close as possible to a Hammer keeping in mind that money is a factor.
What i need above the donor car:
-Engine. The real Hammer was a v8, based on the m117. Last year i saw a car in auction with an m119. Was it fully authentic?
I rule out the 6 cylinder engines even the AMG ones. The E60 engine is expensive and hard to get. So the engine options would be limited to the 560sec and 500sl or 500e Are the last two differ only in the ancillaries? Cost of making them to 6.0? I lean towards the m119 because of the hp advantage.
-Gearbox. I would choose one from the cars above but which?
-Rear differential. Same as the gearbox.
-Wiring. Maybe the 500e would be the way.
-Front and rear subframes, running gears. 500e only i think.
-Interior. Recaro seats and the AMG steering wheel are available in the market.
-Exterior. AMG aero wheels. 500e front fenders, custom made sheet metal rear fenders. The bigger problem would be the bumpers and sill covers. On the widebody they should be wider / different than the regular AMG ones so impossible to get even in aftermarket.

How much could it worth if it's done? Projects in general are not rewarding but this would be so unique.
As you can see my idea has a few blind spots so i'm expecting your thoughts.

 

[Alex]

Here’s my thoughts:

Building a one off project on a shoestring (even with hopes of selling it to another madman for a fortune one day) is almost always an impossible task.

Here’s why:

You either run out of funds and have to cut corners or even scrap it. Or you continue to piece it all together until it’s done which takes forever.

If you’ve not done something like this before, I strongly recommend you do it just for experience alone. I’m still at it so the more suckers stuck in the same mud as me, the merrier ;-)

PS. I’m nearly done. Another month. Or two. I promise. Ha.

 

[maestro84]

If you’ve not done something like this before, I strongly recommend you do it just for experience alone. I’m still at it so the more suckers stuck in the same mud as me, the merrier ;-)

PS. I’m nearly done. Another month. Or two. I promise. Ha.

Thanks for your reply. The tools are here and i'm just sharing my thoughts and based on the replys i make my decision.
Are you in the exact same project? I would love to see behind the scenes.

 

[Doodle]

I've pondered the idea of making a 6.0 for my SL for many years. The basics of making a 6.0 M119 are quite simple - an M117 560 crank, and some suitable 100mm pistons from one of the many piston manufacturers. Earlier M119s are closed deck - these are potentially better for boring out. Gearbox wise it would be easiest to take whatever 722.3 unit is attached to the back of your donor engine. The later 722.6 5 speed will need considerably more work as the electronics are integrated with the engine management - more on that later.

It's the details that are the difficult bit. You'd need a set of suitable cams to complete the motor, there are people out there that can do regrinds but that's not necessarily going to work. The kicker is the engine management - realistically you're looking at standalone as getting the CIS/L-Jetro/Motronic system to properly and accurately fuel the bigger motor is a step in the dark. This is all going to be expensive.

 

[Alex]

Thanks for your reply. The tools are here and i'm just sharing my thoughts and based on the replys i make my decision.
Are you in the exact same project? I would love to see behind the scenes.

No, mine is a different car. @jaymanek did a wide body conversion to a C126. You may want to search on here as he posted progress pictures.