Here we go again… Some say it’s the V power running through my veins, some say stress causes irrational behaviour… My wife says I have an irreparable genetic condition.
Whatever it is, I get an idea and I cannot rest until its done with.
After the completion of the W123 manual 560 project, there was a gap in the “ongoing build” department of my left cortex.
I love my 500E and I love my 3.4 AMG Estate.
We spend most of our miles in the wagon as its practical, comfortable and a lovely motorway cruiser.
For me though, I always miss the 500E grunt when I drive the 3.4..
The straight six is a lovely “sewing machine smooth” engine, but it’s never going to have that V8 character…
So of course, I started looking around on the internet in search of fellow escapees of the cuckoo’s nest and found a few… mostly Japanese or American.
I even found one such member, whom we shall call “Nor” (real name heavily disguised for privacy) who considered selling his converted V8 wagon. I sent this mysterious “Nor” a message on Facebook. I got no reply.
I started looking into what it may take to create such a car. Well I need a M119 drivetrain and a suitable estate of course.
Well it just so happens that we have a lovely E220 in stock at Mercland. It’s a lovely car that our own team have breathed upon over the years.
To convert a right-hand drive car, my best chances are a M119 from an early R129 I would think? The early R129’s used KE Jetronic which is relatively simple to wire up and get going... RHD steering box may be an issue here, but we can solve that surely?
A few weeks go by, busy with work, until I googled once more. I see that fellow inmates talk of chopping backs off cars and welding them to a 500E saloon… hmm sure I saw something like that on crimewatch once… didn’t end well. Not a big fan of this method.
Then I see how “Nor’s” car was built. To do this conversion well, you really need as many 400E or 500E parts as possible. Essential are things like the engine support, modified firewall, 500E engine Transmission, Diff etc etc.. Then there are the body panels to think of. If we are doing a 500TE then lets do it properly.. We need flared arches, we need suspension, we need brakes….
The items become quite an excel spreadsheet.
So I slowly steer away from the E220 we have.. don’t think that would work.
I realised to do an authentic 500TE, it has to be a left hand drive with as many genuine 500E components as possible.
I post on the book and of course instantly I get people offering me parts… awesome!
Within a couple of days, I seem to have secured most of the body panels I need, but hardly any of the mechanical bits… Why aren’t people storing 500E engines complete with body shell in their sheds?
Whilst my new buddy from Germany, “Roland,” is figuring out how best to bend side skirts to fit into an envelope, I start looking into where to get the drive train parts.
Surely I wont have to try another search engine? Bing? Yahoo?? Are there any more?
Just then “Nor” from the USA replies to me… “Ill call you tomorrow, still have the car.”
Awesome, that’s that then…
The next day I speak to “Nor”… A lovely gent, but clearly one of “us” crazies from the asylum.
“Nor’s” price is a little high for the car, but by now I’ve started to total things up on that spreadsheet I began earlier… The numbers are starting to look like those I used to see during my days at an investment bank, and that’s without some of the essential parts required.
We tentatively agree on a figure for the car subject to “Nor” looking into shipping logistics and prices.
A few days go by and I didn’t hear from Nor.. I poked him on the book but no response.
I figure he has changed his mind.. I don’t like to chase… I know when I’ve been dumped…. Just got to man up, listen to a bit of Whitney and accept it.
Another enthusiast contacts me.. He knows of a nice 500E that been stood for a few years that runs great and has just had a load of $ spent to make it lovely.
Unfortunately car is in Guiness-land.. and not the right side either… all the way on the other end, probably nearer Nor than me.
I have to do this by phone… I speak to the Irishman… he describes the car as “sound” and that’s as much information as I have… Not entirely sure of his blood-guiness content at this point, but he seems pretty honest for an Irishman…
I buy the car based on one or two passport sized pictures and the word of a fellow nutter. This car is not cheap, but a little cheaper than what 500E’s are fetching now. Its a whole 500E that I can use all the bits from and transplant into a wagon…
Then casually surfing the bay and a high mileage USA import 500E pops up.. Ok this is interesting… the body is described as rust free… The engine/box are described as running perfectly.. The pictures show the seats and interior are worn but who cares? A quick note to code name “Eddie” reveals that his asking price is in the land of the fairies, even more that the price I have committed to for the Irishmans car…
So we sit patiently twiddling our thumbs waiting for a transport company to collect unseen, untested and quite expensive 24 year old E500… A few days go by before Shane calls to say he will be on the way. So I send my childrens lunch money off to unknown Irishman and pray to all gods of all religions that he is of fixed abode and good moral stature. Will this be an Emerald or a Leprechaun?
Thursday night comes and being a Rock and Roller, I am sat in my office advertising C220’s..
Up pops a little box on the bottom right of my monitor… “high mileage 500E ending soon”… Ok well lets take a look.. I put in a cheeky bid… its somewhere between what I think its worth on terra firma and Eddie thinks its worth sat up high on those clouds…
I close the internet page and advertise more C Classes.
“Congratulations, you have won..” stomach feels a bit funny now…I appear to have purchased two 500E’s, a full 500E bodykit and various smaller parts.
So as I convince myself that “all is well, you are a car dealer, you can just sell the Irish car, assuming it turns up…. ” Is there any lunch money left? I don’t think so… Going to have to sell the kids… Ah well, six years is a good run.
Eddie was on the phone within minutes highlighting his 48-hour collection stipulation on the listing which I had man-read a few days earlier…
I rang my mate TJ… “We are off to Preston very late tomorrow night after work.”
Having known me since childhood, his reply carried a cocktail of unsurprised/disappointed tonal characteristics..
TJ knew I must have spent money on something that ranks lower than the need of my children’s school uniform..
I gather some pennies together and off we go on our adventure up Norf. Praying all the way that my wife didn’t enquire as to my whereabouts.
I wasn’t expecting much from this car… It has done a few trips on those Highways.
I didn’t bother with a test drive at 10pm. We paid Eddie and off we went.
Woah, this thing is quick… It feels quicker than my 500E… maybe the miles really do help to loosen things up… or maybe someone has simply fiddled with the throttle to make it feel quick… I don’t care.. I glance at the oil pressure which reads “3” and the engine sounds sweet enough.
Of course the interior is tired and has been tarted up for sale, probably by Chuck from over the pond...
A thorough thirty second examination was carried out in a dark corner of the wild bean café in Kirkham.
My iPhone torch revealed that he body panels are indeed totally rust free… Cool, so its decided, this will be the donor.
Whatever it is, I get an idea and I cannot rest until its done with.
After the completion of the W123 manual 560 project, there was a gap in the “ongoing build” department of my left cortex.
I love my 500E and I love my 3.4 AMG Estate.
We spend most of our miles in the wagon as its practical, comfortable and a lovely motorway cruiser.
For me though, I always miss the 500E grunt when I drive the 3.4..
The straight six is a lovely “sewing machine smooth” engine, but it’s never going to have that V8 character…
So of course, I started looking around on the internet in search of fellow escapees of the cuckoo’s nest and found a few… mostly Japanese or American.
I even found one such member, whom we shall call “Nor” (real name heavily disguised for privacy) who considered selling his converted V8 wagon. I sent this mysterious “Nor” a message on Facebook. I got no reply.
I started looking into what it may take to create such a car. Well I need a M119 drivetrain and a suitable estate of course.
Well it just so happens that we have a lovely E220 in stock at Mercland. It’s a lovely car that our own team have breathed upon over the years.
To convert a right-hand drive car, my best chances are a M119 from an early R129 I would think? The early R129’s used KE Jetronic which is relatively simple to wire up and get going... RHD steering box may be an issue here, but we can solve that surely?
A few weeks go by, busy with work, until I googled once more. I see that fellow inmates talk of chopping backs off cars and welding them to a 500E saloon… hmm sure I saw something like that on crimewatch once… didn’t end well. Not a big fan of this method.
Then I see how “Nor’s” car was built. To do this conversion well, you really need as many 400E or 500E parts as possible. Essential are things like the engine support, modified firewall, 500E engine Transmission, Diff etc etc.. Then there are the body panels to think of. If we are doing a 500TE then lets do it properly.. We need flared arches, we need suspension, we need brakes….
The items become quite an excel spreadsheet.
So I slowly steer away from the E220 we have.. don’t think that would work.
I realised to do an authentic 500TE, it has to be a left hand drive with as many genuine 500E components as possible.
I post on the book and of course instantly I get people offering me parts… awesome!
Within a couple of days, I seem to have secured most of the body panels I need, but hardly any of the mechanical bits… Why aren’t people storing 500E engines complete with body shell in their sheds?
Whilst my new buddy from Germany, “Roland,” is figuring out how best to bend side skirts to fit into an envelope, I start looking into where to get the drive train parts.
Surely I wont have to try another search engine? Bing? Yahoo?? Are there any more?
Just then “Nor” from the USA replies to me… “Ill call you tomorrow, still have the car.”
Awesome, that’s that then…
The next day I speak to “Nor”… A lovely gent, but clearly one of “us” crazies from the asylum.
“Nor’s” price is a little high for the car, but by now I’ve started to total things up on that spreadsheet I began earlier… The numbers are starting to look like those I used to see during my days at an investment bank, and that’s without some of the essential parts required.
We tentatively agree on a figure for the car subject to “Nor” looking into shipping logistics and prices.
A few days go by and I didn’t hear from Nor.. I poked him on the book but no response.
I figure he has changed his mind.. I don’t like to chase… I know when I’ve been dumped…. Just got to man up, listen to a bit of Whitney and accept it.
Another enthusiast contacts me.. He knows of a nice 500E that been stood for a few years that runs great and has just had a load of $ spent to make it lovely.
Unfortunately car is in Guiness-land.. and not the right side either… all the way on the other end, probably nearer Nor than me.
I have to do this by phone… I speak to the Irishman… he describes the car as “sound” and that’s as much information as I have… Not entirely sure of his blood-guiness content at this point, but he seems pretty honest for an Irishman…
I buy the car based on one or two passport sized pictures and the word of a fellow nutter. This car is not cheap, but a little cheaper than what 500E’s are fetching now. Its a whole 500E that I can use all the bits from and transplant into a wagon…
Then casually surfing the bay and a high mileage USA import 500E pops up.. Ok this is interesting… the body is described as rust free… The engine/box are described as running perfectly.. The pictures show the seats and interior are worn but who cares? A quick note to code name “Eddie” reveals that his asking price is in the land of the fairies, even more that the price I have committed to for the Irishmans car…
So we sit patiently twiddling our thumbs waiting for a transport company to collect unseen, untested and quite expensive 24 year old E500… A few days go by before Shane calls to say he will be on the way. So I send my childrens lunch money off to unknown Irishman and pray to all gods of all religions that he is of fixed abode and good moral stature. Will this be an Emerald or a Leprechaun?
Thursday night comes and being a Rock and Roller, I am sat in my office advertising C220’s..
Up pops a little box on the bottom right of my monitor… “high mileage 500E ending soon”… Ok well lets take a look.. I put in a cheeky bid… its somewhere between what I think its worth on terra firma and Eddie thinks its worth sat up high on those clouds…
I close the internet page and advertise more C Classes.
“Congratulations, you have won..” stomach feels a bit funny now…I appear to have purchased two 500E’s, a full 500E bodykit and various smaller parts.
So as I convince myself that “all is well, you are a car dealer, you can just sell the Irish car, assuming it turns up…. ” Is there any lunch money left? I don’t think so… Going to have to sell the kids… Ah well, six years is a good run.
Eddie was on the phone within minutes highlighting his 48-hour collection stipulation on the listing which I had man-read a few days earlier…
I rang my mate TJ… “We are off to Preston very late tomorrow night after work.”
Having known me since childhood, his reply carried a cocktail of unsurprised/disappointed tonal characteristics..
TJ knew I must have spent money on something that ranks lower than the need of my children’s school uniform..
I gather some pennies together and off we go on our adventure up Norf. Praying all the way that my wife didn’t enquire as to my whereabouts.
I wasn’t expecting much from this car… It has done a few trips on those Highways.
I didn’t bother with a test drive at 10pm. We paid Eddie and off we went.
Woah, this thing is quick… It feels quicker than my 500E… maybe the miles really do help to loosen things up… or maybe someone has simply fiddled with the throttle to make it feel quick… I don’t care.. I glance at the oil pressure which reads “3” and the engine sounds sweet enough.
Of course the interior is tired and has been tarted up for sale, probably by Chuck from over the pond...
A thorough thirty second examination was carried out in a dark corner of the wild bean café in Kirkham.
My iPhone torch revealed that he body panels are indeed totally rust free… Cool, so its decided, this will be the donor.




