W124 Wald body kits

[janner]

Wald V4 kits. Complete kit is £840 on their website. It looks like they want to clear out old stock so there could even be room for a haggle? I think this is one of the best looking kits for the W124, possibly only second to the AMG Gen2 kit. I have been considering buying one for a few days now but I've decided that my coupe should remain a sleeper.

Oh, and I don't want anyone telling me you can buy an AMG Gen2 kit for the same price without posting a link to an actual advert for one

 

[Dee-124CAB]

How well known/respected are Wald in the world of MB tuners?.... Basically what i am asking is, is a kit like this going de-value the car more than say an AMG varient?

Lets face it the right AMG kit on the right car can actually increase a car's value & desirability....

 

[talbir]

Wald kits are good and nice and well known in the MB world.

But they are not going to increase value like a Brabus, AMG, Carat or Lorinser kit will.

They are very much a third tier bodykit, with the likes of the above in tier 1, then likes of Zender, BBS etc in tier 2.

As for increasing value, the real gain will be seen when a car is modified in exactly the same way the tuner would have done it, keeping all things period. Collectors search for cars that are the real deal and the whole nine yards.


talbir

 

[Howard]

Talbir , i notice the only 'special' w124 missing from your collection is the E60 ...

Any plans to get one ?

 

[janner]

How well known/respected are Wald in the world of MB tuners?.... Basically what i am asking is, is a kit like this going de-value the car more than say an AMG varient?

Who cares what it's worth in the end? All that matters is that you love the thing while you own it. I, personally, would much rather have that Wald V4 than anything by Lorinser, Zender or BBS. I'm not even sure that Brabus ever made a W124 kit?

The only slight issue with Wald is that they use fibreglass rather than ABS plastic (AMG). It's good quality fibreglass but fibreglass nonetheless.

 

[Mudster]

Quite like Wald, they manage to update the cars without being Barry.

Quite frankly unless your Mercedes is a genuine AMG car, a correct period bodykit won't add a whole lot of value it's just a Mercedes with AMG bits added to it. So if you're doing this purely for yourself then go for it, if it's for investment buy a genuine AMG car.

 

[jaymanek]

I like wald too... considered it for the W126... for a wald kit to look right you have to have the right wheels, suspension etc...

 

[aka$h]

I know a chap that has the kit on his car. He lives in london so the car is parked roadside, everytime someone backs into the bumper the paint cracks all along it. He has decided to take it off and fit a genII kit.

 

[talbir]

Who cares what it's worth in the end? All that matters is that you love the thing while you own it. I, personally, would much rather have that Wald V4 than anything by Lorinser, Zender or BBS. I'm not even sure that Brabus ever made a W124 kit?

The only slight issue with Wald is that they use fibreglass rather than ABS plastic (AMG). It's good quality fibreglass but fibreglass nonetheless.

Sure, Brabus did bodykits for w123, w201, w124, w126....here's a linke to a press article on ebay for a Brabus w124. I have plenty of Brabus literature at home on the w124.

http://cgi.ebay.de/Brabus-Lorinser-...oryZ9912QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Not all AMG items were non-fibreglass, i.e. w126 series 1 kits were all fibreglass. Pain in the **** when fibreglass cracks/breaks.

cheers
talbir

 

[Dee-124CAB]

I have been after a gen2 kit for a couple of years now but to no avail, for the right price the Wald could be a viable option....

The wald front spoiler on the black car above is kind of similar to a gen2 front spoiler in a weird kind of way imo...

So what would be the right wheels for this kit, I just love period AMG's on a W124....

 

[talbir]

Quite like Wald, they manage to update the cars without being Barry.

Quite frankly unless your Mercedes is a genuine AMG car, a correct period bodykit won't add a whole lot of value it's just a Mercedes with AMG bits added to it. So if you're doing this purely for yourself then go for it, if it's for investment buy a genuine AMG car.

Respectfully, I disagree.

AMG back in the 80s was an independant tuner. In many cases, cars modified by AMG outlets did not even come with AMG paperwork, certainly Stratton cars in the UK didn't. All you usually see is the Stratton service sticker in the glovebox or on the headliner. In other words, there is little one can do to verify authenticity of AMG work. AMG today are not interested in their life prior to marriage with MB.

Some AMg cars from the 80s did come with paperwork or chassis plates like my Hammer....but that is an exception. I have seen plenty of genuine AMG cars with no paperwork.

AMG in the 80s did as little or as much as the owner requested, could be as much as wheels and a badge or the whole DOHC engine with Widebody kit.

All said, if one obtains GENUINE and original AMG parts and can have them added to the vehicle to the same high standard of workmanship that AMG did, then the car is effectively what AMG would have built back in the time.

My Widebody DOHC engined SEC was a standard SEC previously. I obtained all 9 pieces of the Widebody kit, the wheels, suspension, recaros, 190mph cluster, and the DOHC M117 engine....put it all together to create what the house of AMG would have created back then.

Given that there are no records of what cars are AMG and what aren't, if one was devious they could pass this car on as original AMG car, nobody would know. Plenty of folk actually stoop this low with cars that have nothing more than an AMG bodykit and wheels.




talbir

 

[Mudster]

It's still a recreation though, which is what I was getting at, although re created with original or new original parts. (I include Stratton modified under licence vehicles as originals - however, I'd want a lot of provenance if I was to buy one at a premium).

That's actually what I'm doing, although I'm taking it to the extreme as I've bought a new factory turnkey 560 engine, new bodyshell, new (original) AMG kit from AMG in Germany.

Although effectively authentic, they are still not original. So if it isn't a question of investment and just aesthetics, fit the Wald kit.

These are the shells I bought being delivered (I wasn't happy that they'd just been plonked on the truck but what can you do). The white is still in primer and had the factory paperwork still stuck to it. (Now sold)

The Black shell was an aborted project, it had been sprayed black (not very well) and had front suspension and steering box added (and that's as far as it ever got), but is again a new shell.

Then there's the current state of my car, which will become the donor in terms of parts and identity. Everything about my car will be original and correct, sourced from Belgium, Germany, Japan, eBay or wherever I can find it, but I still consider it a recreation and not original. Ironically it's likely to cost me more than an original, but I'm building it for myself as I've always wanted one. I just couldn't pass up the opportunity of an SEC which is effectively New.

 

[talbir]

Stratton were the sole concessionnaire of AMG equipment in the UK in the 80's, until Ron sold up. So the only AMG vehicles RHD in the UK will have all been done by Stratton.

A recreation of a stock MB car as you are doing is an easier discussion - since all MB vehicles are registered with an MB chassis number and history can be traced.

AMG w126/w124/w201/w107's have no such records, no such numbers, no such database. So it comes down to whether the buyer is fussy about whether or not the original AMG parts were fitted by someone working at the licensed AMG dealer in the 80s, or whether they were fitted an enthusiast who had the work carried out to the highest standard.

cheers
talbir

 

[Ian B Walker]

Very interesting and informative post, thank you.

 

[talbir]

That's actually what I'm doing, although I'm taking it to the extreme as I've bought a new factory turnkey 560 engine, new bodyshell, new (original) AMG kit from AMG in Germany.

Then there's the current state of my car, which will become the donor in terms of parts and identity.

I'm sure you are aware, but do swap over your front wings...560's have arches that are more flared than the early 500's, and from pics it looks like those bodyshells are early type.

cheers
talbir

 

[A210AMG]

Mudster


Swapping all your good buts with new bits to the shell you have will the car not end up on a 'Q' plate?


I guess you have looked into this? as that would be a real shame.

 

[Mudster]

I'm sure you are aware, but do swap over your front wings...560's have arches that are more flared than the early 500's, and from pics it looks like those bodyshells are early type.

cheers
talbir

Yup I have a pair of 560 arches, these are both Gen II shells manufactured in the early 90's - they came with the original receipts amounting to over £25,000 for the pair.

The white shell is a 420/500 non ASR (this still had the build sheets attached to it from the factory).

The Black shell is a 500 with ASR, so I need to swap the wings only and everything else is identical.

 

[Mudster]

Mudster


Swapping all your good buts with new bits to the shell you have will the car not end up on a 'Q' plate?


I guess you have looked into this? as that would be a real shame.

Yeah I've had a good read on what I'm obliged to use, it works on a points system, and the total value of the items used has to surpass a set number of points.

i.e rear axle = 2 pts, original engine = 2 pts, original gearbox 2 pts etc etc.

As long as I'm careful I'll keep the identity, this might mean fitting the original engine, then putting a new one in at an appropriate later date and declaring the engine swap.

You're right though, it would be completely demoralising getting a Q plate!

 

[talbir]

The Black shell is a 500 with ASR, so I need to swap the wings only and everything else is identical.

Almost, but not fully. There are minor details which differ between a 560 and a 420/500.

An example is that the 560 came with rear self levelling as standard....this means the 560 floor has welded plates that the self-levelling accumulators bolt onto.

There will be a few more such variances as you work through the transfer but nothing that's a major hurdle.

talbir

 

[maggot]

Wald V4 kits. Complete kit is £840 on their website. It looks like they want to clear out old stock so there could even be room for a haggle? I think this is one of the best looking kits for the W124, possibly only second to the AMG Gen2 kit. I have been considering buying one for a few days now but I've decided that my coupe should remain a sleeper.

Oh, and I don't want anyone telling me you can buy an AMG Gen2 kit for the same price without posting a link to an actual advert for one

Chap on one of the US forums fitted a V4 kit on a w124 saloon and said he was "grounding out" continually and would not recommend it. Also the seller has taken a regular shoeing on this site, so some caution may be advised if you were thinking of changing your mind.