My W124 500E #2 - I'm returning to the fold
Saw it on ebay couple of days ago, thought that looks good and was a good price. 
I would get amber front indicators, but would consider leaving facelift rear lights. I think they look cleaner.
Looks like 199 from the photos not 040
I would get amber front indicators, but would consider leaving facelift rear lights. I think they look cleaner.
Looks like 199 from the photos not 040
Well done mate, looks lovely. Had spotted that, looks nice clean.
500E
MB Enthusiast
Thanks for the comments all.
Picking the car up on the afternoon of the 26th. Forgot to add I will also be changing the speakers for the Rainbow units and putting a sub in the boot. These cars really lack bass. It should be a good 300 or so mile drive back down to London to learn more about the car and any work it might need doing. Mod list has been slightly amended / extended:
- OEM orange indicators and tail lights
- Wood/leather sportline steering wheel
- Full service and refresh of most consumables (oil filter, fuel filter, plugs, dizzy caps, arms, ignition cables, etc etc) - will use OEM MB parts from the main dealer this time, they are expensive but they are always right, correct and make the car run properly.
- ITG airbox filters
- Flush of all the fluids (oil, brake, coolant, SLS, gearbox and diff oil)
- AMG OZ 17" alloys with 1 nib spring pads - already wrapped in new Goodyear Eagle F1's - set has already been bought, just needs refurbing
- H&R suspension lowering spring kit - think its 25mm all around
- Uprated brake discs, pads and steel brake lines fitted (SL R129 silver arrow kit if I can get one - would also mean new LCA's)
- Replacement of the entire exhaust system including fitment of front sport cats and bypass rear resonator
- install the ASR defeat kit (kit has been bought - coming in Jan - will need to plumb it in and mount the switch in the centre console)
- Fit my Lorinser boot spoiler with brake light
- Fit my fire extinguisher to the drivers seat
- Fit new head unit / speakers / sub / new wiring
- Replace wood centre console box due to leather peel
TBH thats all I can think of at the moment, will know more once I collect the car and find out more about its mechanical state. Hope it checks out well - fingers crossed!
Bill
Picking the car up on the afternoon of the 26th. Forgot to add I will also be changing the speakers for the Rainbow units and putting a sub in the boot. These cars really lack bass. It should be a good 300 or so mile drive back down to London to learn more about the car and any work it might need doing. Mod list has been slightly amended / extended:
- OEM orange indicators and tail lights
- Wood/leather sportline steering wheel
- Full service and refresh of most consumables (oil filter, fuel filter, plugs, dizzy caps, arms, ignition cables, etc etc) - will use OEM MB parts from the main dealer this time, they are expensive but they are always right, correct and make the car run properly.
- ITG airbox filters
- Flush of all the fluids (oil, brake, coolant, SLS, gearbox and diff oil)
- AMG OZ 17" alloys with 1 nib spring pads - already wrapped in new Goodyear Eagle F1's - set has already been bought, just needs refurbing
- H&R suspension lowering spring kit - think its 25mm all around
- Uprated brake discs, pads and steel brake lines fitted (SL R129 silver arrow kit if I can get one - would also mean new LCA's)
- Replacement of the entire exhaust system including fitment of front sport cats and bypass rear resonator
- install the ASR defeat kit (kit has been bought - coming in Jan - will need to plumb it in and mount the switch in the centre console)
- Fit my Lorinser boot spoiler with brake light
- Fit my fire extinguisher to the drivers seat
- Fit new head unit / speakers / sub / new wiring
- Replace wood centre console box due to leather peel
TBH thats all I can think of at the moment, will know more once I collect the car and find out more about its mechanical state. Hope it checks out well - fingers crossed!
Bill
c955
Active Member
My dream machine
500E
MB Enthusiast
Hey all,
Finally got the car on the 26th. I wasn't in the best of moods when the seller rang saying the car is not running right and can't really be driven. I had however learnt lessons off the old car and suggested the fuel pressure regulator was replaced. As he had a 500SL next to it he swapped over the part and voila most the problems went away. She was still misfiring quite badly when hot but removing the distributor caps revealed lots of moisture. Also swapped these over and the car now runs great.
On the plus side the car comes with a full service history and full set of keys along with all the manuals and service receipts! Can't believe it, history from 900km in 1992 to 240,000km now. The car now has approx 245,000km on the clock. This is very rare for Japan and service stamps at the same place show it could have been a 1 owner car. I even have the original bags and accessories from Yanese who supplied the car in Japan along with the Becker radio booklets and codes. Fantastic history !
So after checking chassis and engine numbers and confirming the car really was a 500e with the 'right stuff' under the good, the deal was done and I began my trip down South. Always nerve wrecking in a new car but I have breakdown cover worst comes to worst (not that I want to use it). Luckily she ran beautifully the whole 300 miles back to London. I did have an issue with the throttle towards the end of my journey but it seems to have sorted itself out now (for the time being). Love this car more than the last one, can't beat an old school Merc in black and she is in fantastic condition, I think the whole car has been painted in the past as I cannot fault it. Anyway, I’ve given it an oil change along with air filters and plugs when I got it home. I am back off to Dubai shortly so will leave it parked up for a few months until I get back. I took the alloys off as they were clearly too big and wrong for the car and fitted a set of period AMG/OZ 17" rims from Pupsi as he sold his E500. Also picked up a MB OEM fridge and some LED rears, no plans to use the LED rears though so give me a shout if you're interested in them for your w124.
After driving the car around a fair bit I’ve noticed a few issues which need sorting. The steering is creaky (any ideas?), alloys are bent on the lips so vibrate on the motorway, exhaust pipe needs tidying (I have bypassed the back box and fitted a fabricated pipe - sounds fantastic!), rear boot light doesn't work, drivers sun visor light doesn't work, car needs full laser wheel alignment and it certainly needs a tune up from a service point of view. The iconic SLS has been deleted (doh
) in favour of a brand new set of Bilstein high performance shocks all around. I'm considering refitting the SLS shocks and getting new ones from MB as all the pipework exists so it shouldn't be too difficult to put back to stock. I like keeping cars original.
In way of modifications the car has uprated suspension, set of bi-xenon / HID headlights, aftermarket flip out Panasonic TV/DVD stereo, retrofitted air conditioner in the rear parcel shelf, aftermarket LCD sun visor and a few other camera detectors etc. which are content in speaking Japanese while I’m driving. I think mostly all of this will come out but that is a job for summer when the weather is nice in exchange for a simple and period-looking Bluetooth stereo, Rainbow speakers and a nice subwoofer. Apart from this, the car is remarkably original.
Once I’m back the first thing to do will be to have the car booked into a specialist who can look over the entire car, bushes etc. and come up with a plan to have it mechanically sound and strong. I aim to replace anything looking tired.
At the moment, the plans for the car are as follows:
Service parts - all genuine MB parts
Fuel filter
Distributor caps
Rotor arms
Distributor insulator caps
Engine intake hoses
Distributor cap covers
Ignition lead set
SLS fluid tank and accessories
Coil leads
Gearbox mount
Wiper blade
Rear boot trim plastic (current cracked)
Airbox rear bolts
Airbox front clips
Rear backbox bolts and gasket
Dipstick
Brake discs
Brake pads
Brake sensors
Headlight wiper blades
Set of nib 1 spring pads
Other parts (non MB genuine)
Deerfield metal brake hoses
ITG airbox filters
Work to do
Replace coolant
Repace brake fluid and full bleed of the system
Replace differential oil
Repace gearbox oil and filter
Repair front and rear console wood trims due to cracks
Repair leather peel on centre console box and driver’s door panel
Repair drivers side mirror handle (snapped off)
Replace gearknob
Replace steering wheel with leather/wood wheel
Replace fuses with brass ones
Fit orange indicators, side repeaters and rear lenses
Fit rear LED number plate bulbs
Fit short number plate for rear
Fit ASR defeat kit - mount switch in centre console
Fit H&R lowering springs
Fit metal brake hoses
Fix boot light (does not work)
Fix drivers sun visor light (does not work)
Fix wheel alignment
Investigate steering issue
As I will be getting the wheels completely split and refurbished (black centres with polished lips and black bolts), I will also be getting a few other bits done and few areas of the car painted in the body colour at the same time while the car is in the body shop:
Bodyshop work
Paint headlight wipers
Paint grill insert
Fit, paint and wire in rear spoiler (Lorinser item, has brake light)
Fit and paint rear plastic boot trim
Refurbish split AMG OZ alloys - colour coded centes and polished outers with black bolts.
Fit new tyres (still figuring out what size to go with)
Fit H&R lowering springs
Fit nib 1 spring pads
Repaint front and rear brake callipers and backing plates black to freshen them up
Once this is all done the car should be looking really good - I aim to have this lot all done over the summer (ambitious I know) but I like to work on my cars quickly and have them ready ASAP. Please post your comments and suggestions, looking forward to hearing them
Not managed to take any decent photos unfortunately. Weather has been horrendous + black car means I've not had a chance. I will do though once the weather improves.
Cheers,
Bill
Finally got the car on the 26th. I wasn't in the best of moods when the seller rang saying the car is not running right and can't really be driven. I had however learnt lessons off the old car and suggested the fuel pressure regulator was replaced. As he had a 500SL next to it he swapped over the part and voila most the problems went away. She was still misfiring quite badly when hot but removing the distributor caps revealed lots of moisture. Also swapped these over and the car now runs great.
On the plus side the car comes with a full service history and full set of keys along with all the manuals and service receipts! Can't believe it, history from 900km in 1992 to 240,000km now. The car now has approx 245,000km on the clock. This is very rare for Japan and service stamps at the same place show it could have been a 1 owner car. I even have the original bags and accessories from Yanese who supplied the car in Japan along with the Becker radio booklets and codes. Fantastic history !
So after checking chassis and engine numbers and confirming the car really was a 500e with the 'right stuff' under the good, the deal was done and I began my trip down South. Always nerve wrecking in a new car but I have breakdown cover worst comes to worst (not that I want to use it). Luckily she ran beautifully the whole 300 miles back to London. I did have an issue with the throttle towards the end of my journey but it seems to have sorted itself out now (for the time being). Love this car more than the last one, can't beat an old school Merc in black and she is in fantastic condition, I think the whole car has been painted in the past as I cannot fault it. Anyway, I’ve given it an oil change along with air filters and plugs when I got it home. I am back off to Dubai shortly so will leave it parked up for a few months until I get back. I took the alloys off as they were clearly too big and wrong for the car and fitted a set of period AMG/OZ 17" rims from Pupsi as he sold his E500. Also picked up a MB OEM fridge and some LED rears, no plans to use the LED rears though so give me a shout if you're interested in them for your w124.
After driving the car around a fair bit I’ve noticed a few issues which need sorting. The steering is creaky (any ideas?), alloys are bent on the lips so vibrate on the motorway, exhaust pipe needs tidying (I have bypassed the back box and fitted a fabricated pipe - sounds fantastic!), rear boot light doesn't work, drivers sun visor light doesn't work, car needs full laser wheel alignment and it certainly needs a tune up from a service point of view. The iconic SLS has been deleted (doh
) in favour of a brand new set of Bilstein high performance shocks all around. I'm considering refitting the SLS shocks and getting new ones from MB as all the pipework exists so it shouldn't be too difficult to put back to stock. I like keeping cars original. In way of modifications the car has uprated suspension, set of bi-xenon / HID headlights, aftermarket flip out Panasonic TV/DVD stereo, retrofitted air conditioner in the rear parcel shelf, aftermarket LCD sun visor and a few other camera detectors etc. which are content in speaking Japanese while I’m driving. I think mostly all of this will come out but that is a job for summer when the weather is nice in exchange for a simple and period-looking Bluetooth stereo, Rainbow speakers and a nice subwoofer. Apart from this, the car is remarkably original.
Once I’m back the first thing to do will be to have the car booked into a specialist who can look over the entire car, bushes etc. and come up with a plan to have it mechanically sound and strong. I aim to replace anything looking tired.
At the moment, the plans for the car are as follows:
Service parts - all genuine MB parts
Fuel filter
Distributor caps
Rotor arms
Distributor insulator caps
Engine intake hoses
Distributor cap covers
Ignition lead set
SLS fluid tank and accessories
Coil leads
Gearbox mount
Wiper blade
Rear boot trim plastic (current cracked)
Airbox rear bolts
Airbox front clips
Rear backbox bolts and gasket
Dipstick
Brake discs
Brake pads
Brake sensors
Headlight wiper blades
Set of nib 1 spring pads
Other parts (non MB genuine)
Deerfield metal brake hoses
ITG airbox filters
Work to do
Replace coolant
Repace brake fluid and full bleed of the system
Replace differential oil
Repace gearbox oil and filter
Repair front and rear console wood trims due to cracks
Repair leather peel on centre console box and driver’s door panel
Repair drivers side mirror handle (snapped off)
Replace gearknob
Replace steering wheel with leather/wood wheel
Replace fuses with brass ones
Fit orange indicators, side repeaters and rear lenses
Fit rear LED number plate bulbs
Fit short number plate for rear
Fit ASR defeat kit - mount switch in centre console
Fit H&R lowering springs
Fit metal brake hoses
Fix boot light (does not work)
Fix drivers sun visor light (does not work)
Fix wheel alignment
Investigate steering issue
As I will be getting the wheels completely split and refurbished (black centres with polished lips and black bolts), I will also be getting a few other bits done and few areas of the car painted in the body colour at the same time while the car is in the body shop:
Bodyshop work
Paint headlight wipers
Paint grill insert
Fit, paint and wire in rear spoiler (Lorinser item, has brake light)
Fit and paint rear plastic boot trim
Refurbish split AMG OZ alloys - colour coded centes and polished outers with black bolts.
Fit new tyres (still figuring out what size to go with)
Fit H&R lowering springs
Fit nib 1 spring pads
Repaint front and rear brake callipers and backing plates black to freshen them up
Once this is all done the car should be looking really good - I aim to have this lot all done over the summer (ambitious I know) but I like to work on my cars quickly and have them ready ASAP. Please post your comments and suggestions, looking forward to hearing them
Not managed to take any decent photos unfortunately. Weather has been horrendous + black car means I've not had a chance. I will do though once the weather improves.
Cheers,
Bill
500E
MB Enthusiast
Ths is almost the look i'd be aiming for...
Parisien
Active Member
500E, a dream of a car, never mind a dream Mercedes, looking forward to how it all comes together, well done, a true enthusiast!!!!
P
P
Terry_
Auhorised Forum Sponsor
Creaky steering is probably front ball joints Bill.
Look forward to some good pics
Look forward to some good pics
500E
MB Enthusiast
Cheers Terry. Could that mean replacement lower control arms?
Terry_
Auhorised Forum Sponsor
Yeah
Ball joints aren't separate on the 500
Ball joints aren't separate on the 500
500E
MB Enthusiast
Cheers, thought so, I can feel a wallet bashing coming on with this one
Didn't expect any less with a 500e though lol!
Doodle
MB Enthusiast
I presume they're similar to/the same as the arms on the 129? Mercedes are asking silly money for them now, in excess of £300 per arm. Given that the non-replaceable ball joints get a very hard time from the poor state of the roads, it's simply ridiculous.
Febi Bilstein are circa £100.
Febi Bilstein are circa £100.
500E
MB Enthusiast
Cheers. I have not had an official quote from MB on the LCAs (but i'd imagine them to be pricey) but I have been advised that the Febi items are not up to scratch and have led to almost immediate failure on the ball joints on the E500 - source is from the US E500E forum who have tried to run the Febi items to save money.
I think I will go OEM on this part. I suppose I will go with the later LCA's for the 1993-95 E500, these will allow bigger brake setups in the future. First off, need to determine whether the ball joint is actually at fault but after reading online it seems to be the culprit.
WDB124066
MB Enthusiast
- Joined
- Apr 17, 2009
- Messages
- 6,170
- Car
- 1996 E320 Sportline Cabriolet x 2
They are also known to install the shock absorbing rubber the wrong way around.
Doodle
MB Enthusiast
That's rather inconvenient, £300 a pop is rather a harsh bill given how badly they suffer with the poor state of our roads.
500E
MB Enthusiast
Right no real updates on the 500E itself as i'm still out in Dubai but I've bought a few bits in preparation:
- Swapping my AMG's with a set of 18" 8.5J/9.5J alloys from an E500 Limited (to clear the larger brakes below)
- Brembo GT brake kit front and rear with vented big brake discs - will probably have to make new mounts for the calipers as they're off a W210 and have the discs skimmed before fitting
- Goodridge braided brake hoses with stainless steel fittings
- Wood/leather sportline steering wheel with leather grip - original one is horrendous and too big
- Brass fuses to replace the corroding ceramic ones
- LED number plate lights - fits in with the front HIDs and overall mood
- Burl/leather gearknob with V8 emblem
The 500E suffers from poor brakes and although you can fit larger brakes from the SL500 silver arrow as a bolt on (but with larger LCA's) I think its worth paying more and getting the Brembo GT kit. This way it'll stop properly and hopefully have a proper pedal feel once the stainless lines
I plan to have this lot fitted when the car goes in for work when I return. I am hoping to use the car for at least one or two track days a year so once the ASR defeat kit is fitted I will begin planning for it. I'll need another set of alloys (17" I think) and track tyres for this so it'll probably be something for next year now.
Cheers,
Bill
- Swapping my AMG's with a set of 18" 8.5J/9.5J alloys from an E500 Limited (to clear the larger brakes below)
- Brembo GT brake kit front and rear with vented big brake discs - will probably have to make new mounts for the calipers as they're off a W210 and have the discs skimmed before fitting
- Goodridge braided brake hoses with stainless steel fittings
- Wood/leather sportline steering wheel with leather grip - original one is horrendous and too big
- Brass fuses to replace the corroding ceramic ones
- LED number plate lights - fits in with the front HIDs and overall mood
- Burl/leather gearknob with V8 emblem
The 500E suffers from poor brakes and although you can fit larger brakes from the SL500 silver arrow as a bolt on (but with larger LCA's) I think its worth paying more and getting the Brembo GT kit. This way it'll stop properly and hopefully have a proper pedal feel once the stainless lines
I plan to have this lot fitted when the car goes in for work when I return. I am hoping to use the car for at least one or two track days a year so once the ASR defeat kit is fitted I will begin planning for it. I'll need another set of alloys (17" I think) and track tyres for this so it'll probably be something for next year now.
Cheers,
Bill
Doodle
MB Enthusiast
Sounds like a bit of a steal there, that kit is serious money new.
Calcifer
Active Member
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2016
- Messages
- 190
- Location
- UK, Hong Kong, Japan
- Car
- R107 500SL, W124 E500 LTD, W124 AMG, W211 E55, E30 M3, CSL, Z3M, 355, 550, 360 CS, 964, NSX, RX-7
Beautiful! Is someone aware of just how many E500's are in UK? 
adile220
Active Member
Calcifer,
Your car collection looks interesting!
Links to any images of them?
Your car collection looks interesting!
Links to any images of them?
