W124 500E - put a deposit down.

[Newera]

Something Strange Here ! Nearly all Japanese Cars are R/h Drive !!!

Two reasons:

(1). W124 500's were only ever built in LHD.

(2). LHD is actually a status symbol in Japan. The only other cars typically sold in Japan in LHD are high end Benz, BMW, Porsche, Ferrari and other exotica, as it was considered a status symbol after the 2nd WW, when Japan didn’t yet make quality cars to have cars with steering on the left. There are also very few places in Japan where it's legal to overtake on the other side of the road, hence why LHD is not considered a problem in Japan.

 

[500E]

Hey all, been silly busy at work and out the country recently so not much going on here. Gave the car an oil change 2 weeks ago with Shell Helix 10w40 and changed the oil filter.

Yesterday I finally fixed the headlight washer system which had a broken connector in the pipework. Had to remove the passenger headlight to get it sorted. Also replaced the old valve cover screws as they had been damaged with age so thats another job ticked off the ever growing list.

Engine bay has been cleaned - degreaser, agitate with various brushes and wash off (briefly) with the jet wash, dried with the leaf blower and dressed. Came out really well - massive difference!

I have a bunch of parts waiting to be fitted, 2x shock mounts, 2x engine mounts, 1x gearbox mount, bits and pieces for the engine mounts, 4x stainless steel brake hoses, brake fluid replacement, coolant pipe and coolant replacement, fan belt (one in there is ok though), pollen filter, prop donut and bolts. Wiper mechanism and motor have been replaced with RHD parts as it decided to give up ghost in the pouring rain on the a406 (wiper now settles on the passenger side which I prefer, out the way).






Just turned 175,000 yesterday





My friend has been in Tokyo for the last few days, spotted two 500's while out there





This is why the headlight washer didn't work - worth checking if you are having similar issues - got the new part for practically nothing with a tonne of other bits at the scrappy:





Hoping to get these parts fitted soon so will update. The list of jobs is getting shorter, so once that lot is done I will be doing:

- new tyres - I currently run Bridgestone Potenza 245/45/17 front and 265/40/17 rear. I will be going 1 profile width smaller as I think it'll help the ride out, so 235/45/17 front and 255/40/17 rear. I will be going for Michelin PS3 front and PS2 rear, I hate Bridgestone personally as they tramline and are noisy but got these cheaply for fitment purposes.
- laser wheel alignment - never done it on this car and think it'll probably need it.
- SLS suspension adjustment - I would also like to drop the rear suspension slightly to bring it more in line with the front. Does anyone have experience with this / know how to do it?

After that I'll just be enjoying the car really and fixing anything else that comes up. Once I'm totally happy on the mechanical side of things then I'll look at getting it painted and the rims refurbed

Cheers

B

 

[Terry_]

I love.......
Your love for that car B!!!!!

 

[500E]

I love.......
Your love for that car B!!!!!

Cheers bruv

 

[500E]

Right not much to update apart from the fan tensioner being dead. Saw seepage from the pass side rocker so whipped off the rocker cover and cleaned up the gasket with some sealant. I'll be replacing both gaskets when I get the time. Glad to report it's nice and clean with no sludge or build-up. Decent time to give the rocker cover a good clean too.

I've decided to ditch the Lorinser alloys in favour of the original 16" 8 holes. Think the car loses its wolf in sheeps clothing looks with bigger and wider rims and I'm seeking out a better ride (20mm spacers on each wheel do not help currently!). Will get a set of 500e/w129 8 holes fully refurbed in MB silver with new centre caps and Michelin tyres

Car was running abit lumpy with the belt very loose so hopefully once the tensioner is replaced, belt back on tight it'll be running smooth again. Belt was so loose your fingers could take it off. I think the tentioner actually broke when I parked it at home then jumped in to start it. Greeted by tonnes of screeching and the lumpy running!!!

Pics to come later

Cheers

B

 

[500E]

Here are a few photos of the internals with the rocker off. The bolt at the top left near the firewall was a right pain to remove (mainly down to the lack of correct tools) but I got there in the end. First car I've ever taken the rocker cover off so please do shout if anything looks very wrong!

To me it looked pretty clean and I couldn't see any sludge buildup anywhere in the engine. There is some oil staining on the inside as you can tell it's pretty brown and not white however I'd imagine this is normal at this age/miles.














Cheers

Bill

 

[stwat]

Ooooo that's quite varnished. An engine flush or two might clean it up.

 

[jaymanek]

Did you consider changing the oilers whilst you have the rockers off?

I would go for 18" AMG Staggered Monoblocks.. I think they are the best wheel for a 500E..
I would have them on mine but they dont go with the Brabus theme...

 

[500E]

Did you consider changing the oilers whilst you have the rockers off?

I would go for 18" AMG Staggered Monoblocks.. I think they are the best wheel for a 500E..
I would have them on mine but they dont go with the Brabus theme...

Open to suggestions Jay as can easily whip them off again. What do you think would be worth changing? Timing chain guides look plastic so id like to replace those too. I'll probably ask Terry if he can help with all this as he's an expert! Cheers Bill

 

[gurpz]

Ooooo that's quite varnished. An engine flush or two might clean it up.

More frequent oil changes using a fully synthetic 5W40 would over time reduce that too.

 

[jaymanek]

Yes the cam oilers need changing for sure, they cause a tappety noise when they fail.

A1191800266 x 16

The chain guides dont normally fail unless they get disturbed.

 

[500E]

Yes the cam oilers need changing for sure, they cause a tappety noise when they fail.

A1191800266 x 16

The chain guides dont normally fail unless they get disturbed.

DIY job then? - i.e. old oilers out and new oilers (inc new seals x32) in? Any other adjustment or fine tuning that needs to be done?

I will be tackling both the valve cover gaskets (x2), new grommets where the plugs go in (x2) and these cam oilers (my 500E has the metal ones, not the plastic ones as per E500 so might be diff p/n to the above). I'll order from MB so they should be able to find the exact ones.

If you have the plastic ones I think a good mod is swapping them out for the 500E metal ones.

 

[mcos864]

a stunning example of A w124 500e you must be very proud bill. Many thanks for taking the time to share your story of the servicing & inspection A very intriguing read.

 

[jaymanek]

If they are metal oilers then no need to change... You can just change the seals on them, but id probably leave them alone...

AFAIK they dont sell the metal oilers anymore.

 

[500E]

Right not much to update - good meeting some of the guys off the forum and talking cars

As mentioned in my last post the car was running slighty lumpy, not being able to work it out I drove it to Terry's and he got it plugged in. It turned out to be a loose injector cable Must have clipped it when taking the rocker cover off. Anyways plugged back in and running perfectly again. Terry also changed the gearbox mount, the old part showed wear.





So now the engine mounts have been replaced and the shock mounts replaced, the car is much more "drivable" at higher speeds. Unfortunately I still get a vibration at 140kmh + which is rather annoying. I also get this vibration on hard acceleration from standstill or from speed.

Please note the wheels have not been changed, tyres are part worn and the car has not had alignment but I guess it feels "mechanical" if I get it on hard acceleration.

Any ideas guys? - The prop donuts look good (on the car) and diff carrier bushes look ok, what else is worth checking?

Cheers

B

 

[WDB124066]

Sounds really weird but how are the rear brakes - worn with pistons out the outer limits often = a vibration that you would sware would be driveshaft related...

 

[John Jones Jr]

I'd get the wheels and tyres sorted anyway as you have them on the agenda. After that I'd be eyeing up the prop bearing & carrier or diff mounts as possible culprits? Anyway, tyres first as a simple process of elimination.

 

[500E]

Sounds really weird but how are the rear brakes - worn with pistons out the outer limits often = a vibration that you would sware would be driveshaft related...

Discs and pads are brand new MB items however I have not checked the caliper itself. Just had braided hoses fitted. No visible unusual scoring on the discs though.

 

[500E]

I'd get the wheels and tyres sorted anyway as you have them on the agenda. After that I'd be eyeing up the prop bearing & carrier or diff mounts as possible culprits? Anyway, tyres first as a simple process of elimination.

Good shout mate. I'm confused on the wheel situ if I'm honest. I have the 17" Lorinser RSK's on there at the moment which I would like to change, I have a set of Brabus Monoblocks in the garage, 8J/17 (freshly refurbed) and I have a set of W124 500E 8-hole alloys coming in the post. I think the ride would be best on the 8-holes but they don't really do the 500E justice imo. What does everyone think?! I don't really want a set of AMG split rims as they've been done to death on these types of cars.

 

[WDB124066]

Is it a wobble or a hum type vibration? There is a known vibration problem with 124's in the diff area, there is a weight that can be bolted to the subframe to reduce the feeling, it carries the MB part number 124 350 03 72 for the six cylinder cars at least.

Cause could be splines on prop shaft if everything else is fine...??