W124 woes

[BorisRusafov]

I am a new member, but have had numerous 'young timers' over the years, including a pair of W123 diesels, a W201 2.6, and a pair of W124 E320s. So, to my point here:

Just bought a mint 93 320E saloon in an absolute time-warp condition. Been SORNed for the last 13 years I was told, 93K mi, Sportline, black Recaros, the works! And absolutely original, not a spot of rust! Long story short, I took it for a spin last weekend, and it overheated, developed a very rough and lumpy idle, and I had to get home with the heater on full blast just to take some hot air out of the engine bay.

Took it to Steve Shali at Klasse of Fulham, who diagnosed a whole raft of unpleasantries - leaking head gasket, leaking radiator, seized front ball joint which requires swapping the whole wishbone as the whole thing is very rusty (I decided to swap both of them while he was at it), hardened and cracked (mind you, not worn) rubber belts, bushes, gaskets, etc. I commissioned changing of all fluids and filters too, including transmission, rear diff, brake fluid, etc. Looking at a bill of around £2,5K to bring it back to a roadworthy condition.

Very happy with the car, just reconfirming the old adage that a car is best driven, not stored.

Will post updates as work progresses.

 

[d w124]

Hi and welcome to the forum.If he is removing the HG,I hope the loom doesn't need replacing straight after

 

[BorisRusafov]

Steve said that the loom looked OK and he was very gentle in putting it aside. He did say though that the coils had blue stickers on them which meant they were the old type coils and were best replaced with a new and improved part.

 

[d w124]

Looking forward to the pictures

 

[grober]

With W124s body/trim/interior condition is paramount everything else can be sorted-- at a cost. These are long lived cars and worth bringing back to spec.

 

[jst_at_home]

Very happy with the car, just reconfirming the old adage that a car is best driven, not stored.

So right. I have a 300E-24.

I have had it for over a year, it followed a C Class and a 190E. I had intended it to be a weekend car but other than when there is salt on the road, it is my daily driver and my Skoda Superb Estate lives in the garage under a cover!

Good luck.

John

 

[jamesfuller]

Hi and welcome. Interesting car, certainly a shame it has sat around so long but sounds like its now back in good hands.

I know I speak for many others when I say

 

[John Jones Jr]

Just bought a mint 93 320E saloon in an absolute time-warp condition. Been SORNed for the last 13 years I was told, 93K mi, Sportline, black Recaros, the works! And absolutely original, not a spot of rust!

Lovely car & worth the expenditure.

 

[BorisRusafov]

Cheers, everyone! Hopefully the car will give me years of trouble-free service after this major refresh. And like Grober is saying, the car having good bones is the most important thing; the mechanicals will get sorted, no problem.

 

[kingdave]

I am sure the £2.5 spend will be well worth it, I've 'invested' (more than that!) in my 124 so you have my sympathy and deserve a friendly nod

My thinking was that, whilst I could have bought a newer car for the money, the work done should help keep it going for many years and these cars shouldn't depreciate.

As the years roll by you will not be seeing money fall out of your account on lease payments etc. you can write off that spend pretty quickly!

 

[RKC-benz]

Hi OP

I would join with all of those above in saying it's a good investment in its way.

This model has done its depreciation really, and as these cars get rarer, like many cars that end up classics, they are ultimately worth what you spend on them (or what it costs to put a wrong'un right). I have an improving W124 estate and just love it; I'm planning for a decade at least of regular use. Once I'm over the big first hurdle of sorting it I expect to settle out at about £500-700 as an annual maintenance budget. Perhaps the odd lumpy spend here and there, but in those years it will get rarer and become an ever better road presence.

Spend what you have to - within your means of course. And enjoy.

 

[SilverSaloon]

I echo all of the above.

If it really is rust free, ensure you protect it now in all the right places to keep it that way. Pay special attention to the usual rot spots on W124s.

Mine was in very good condition when I got it, not 100% mind, but if you leave it, it will rust.

I'll never sell mine. However I do feel that one day, rust will kill it, but I'm determined to sort out my recent horror findings this year. Neglect it for a couple of years and you will regret it!

 

[GP801]

I would support all of the above. We bought what seemed like a well maintained S124 about 4 years ago. It is rust free having been dinitrolled. However it has clearly been maintained in the past on a shoe string and only absolutely essential work done on it. I long ago gave up counting what it has cost - several times what its worth. However it now runs and handles like a new car. Covers the run to Italy effortlessly and you can easily cover 1000 miles in a day and arrive ache free. They are great cars. if you can afford it just get it done and enjoy. You wont regret it.

 

[horatio]

All the problems I've had with the 190 (and other old MB's) seemed to happen when the car had been left parked for a while. In daily use it runs like a swiss watch.

...gone and jinxed myself now!

 

[BorisRusafov]

Thanks a lot for the good advice, guys! One final question - does it make sense to get it waxoyled, and if yes, then how do I ensure that I am not spraying wax over rust or dirt and just covering a hidden sore that will eat the car from within? And what about jack points, windshield frame, etc.? Because, mine is indeed rust free, but how do I ensure it will stay that way? And lastly, van you recommend a reputable undercarriage specialist in London (I live in Paddington) who could do the job well and not break the bank?

 

[horatio]

You would definitely need to clean off all the crud and have it totally dry otherwise you would seal in moisture so it can't escape = rot.

Some swear by the stuff, some hate it.

Keeping the usual rust areas clean - i.e under the cladding, front wheel arch covers, jacking points, around the rear subframe mounts (the underseal peels away) should do the job on the 124. Perhaps paint those areas with something like POR15 after cleaning. That would be my tactic anyway.

 

[llewe]

I got my S124 done by Rustbuster in Spalding only last week-a long drive for me but I am very pleased with the job-No way could I have done it to the standard they did. I spent a lot of time researching before choosing them. link below.

WE CAN RUST PROOF YOUR CAR FROM £250

Warning- they found (and fixed) a few holes that I and 2 mot testers missed when they did the cleaning process-It is very thorough. I thought mine was rust free too. the welding was extra.

 

[BlackC55]

We do Waxoyling. Its a long winded job but very much worth it.

Ive done my own cars with much success.

 

[BorisRusafov]

Car all done - picked up last night

Bank account £4,791 lighter, but the car goes like stink! Full list of 'refresh' as follows:
1. Full head job - head sent to a machine shop for chemical and pressure cleaning, skimming, new head gasket, etc.
2. Cylinder block drained and all water passages pressure cleaned
3. Cooling system - new radiator, water pump, thermostat, and all cooling hoses
4. Electrical - new wiring loom, spark plugs, wires, plug caps, etc.
5. Suspension - two new front wishbones, anti-roll bar bushes replaced
6. Lubricants, fluids, and filters - engine, rear diff, brake, transmission, power steering, fuel filter, etc.
7. New serpentine belt and pulley
8. New injector seals
9. Refurbed 16x8 8-hole wheels from a W124 E500 and 4 brand new Falken Ziex 914 tyres 225/50/W16 size
10. And last but not least - all rubber gaskets, seals, rusty nuts, bolts, bulbs, wipers, etc. changed.

As they say, that's all, folks. Now time to enjoy the beast.

 

[d w124]