Hi
Last week, I was given (yes, given) a non running 1986 300SL. The donor even paid for it to be towed to my place. Here are some images of the car as it was delivered to me. Please read down further.
The vehicle has about 98000 miles on it. The cloth top, windshield, tires were replaced about 2 years ago when it got a new paint job. The interior looks about as nice as the outside. The hard top (he delivered it in his pickup) is on a dolly and matches the car. This being said, it was a very generous gift and I feel it deserves a mechanical renewing.
Whilst driving back from the beach, traveling about 75mph, he experienced a sudden gush of steam from the hood (bonnet) and he pulled over as soon as he could. The car stalled on the side of the road. Opening the hood, he found the fitting on the upper right of the radiator had broken loose. See picture of what I found and note how the line can be freely moved in and out. The "nut" was found, by the PO, on the ground where the car came to rest.
It appears the radiator had a catastrophic failure and vented all coolant in just a few seconds. I would think I would have to replace the radiator. Is there a recommended source?
Surveying the rest of the engine compartment, I found the cover for the distributor was loose. Removing it, I found that parts of it were melted - the guides for attaching it for example. Interior molding were also warped by (I suppose) heat. Look at the pictures to see the damaged cover AND the melting of part of the distributor cap. It was very hot in the engine compartment. Could the venting nearby steam have done this, OR, was this most likely the engine itself heating up?
The oil smells burnt. The engine compartment has what I can only describe as a "cooked" smell.
I attempted to start the car. Battery was good, all lights on the dash seemed to be in order but the car did not start. Only the sound of what I presume to be the starter trying to turn things. Please look and listen to the video. This is the one and only time I attempted to start the car.
http://www.replications.com/r107/uhoh.mp4
So, what does the collective think about the engine??
If it is just electrical, do I even think of trusting the engine, now?
If it is the engine, do I rebuild this engine? Can I trust it?
If it is the engine, do I swap in a known good engine? If so, what type? I noted (from looking at some web sites) it uses a m 103.982 Are the other potential 3.0 inline 6 engines going to go right in? Has anyone done this to a 300L?
I live near Gettysburg, PA, USA. As most of you probably already know, the 300L was not officially imported here and I'm not finding many resources (yet) for this primarily European model. Ex. I will not find a donor 300SL the next town over . . .
I am totally new to Mercedes - never owned or worked on one. I would welcome any and all advice on how I might proceed in an economical but thorough manner.
Thank you for your time and kind attention,
Regards,
John+
Last week, I was given (yes, given) a non running 1986 300SL. The donor even paid for it to be towed to my place. Here are some images of the car as it was delivered to me. Please read down further.
The vehicle has about 98000 miles on it. The cloth top, windshield, tires were replaced about 2 years ago when it got a new paint job. The interior looks about as nice as the outside. The hard top (he delivered it in his pickup) is on a dolly and matches the car. This being said, it was a very generous gift and I feel it deserves a mechanical renewing.
Whilst driving back from the beach, traveling about 75mph, he experienced a sudden gush of steam from the hood (bonnet) and he pulled over as soon as he could. The car stalled on the side of the road. Opening the hood, he found the fitting on the upper right of the radiator had broken loose. See picture of what I found and note how the line can be freely moved in and out. The "nut" was found, by the PO, on the ground where the car came to rest.
It appears the radiator had a catastrophic failure and vented all coolant in just a few seconds. I would think I would have to replace the radiator. Is there a recommended source?
Surveying the rest of the engine compartment, I found the cover for the distributor was loose. Removing it, I found that parts of it were melted - the guides for attaching it for example. Interior molding were also warped by (I suppose) heat. Look at the pictures to see the damaged cover AND the melting of part of the distributor cap. It was very hot in the engine compartment. Could the venting nearby steam have done this, OR, was this most likely the engine itself heating up?
The oil smells burnt. The engine compartment has what I can only describe as a "cooked" smell.
I attempted to start the car. Battery was good, all lights on the dash seemed to be in order but the car did not start. Only the sound of what I presume to be the starter trying to turn things. Please look and listen to the video. This is the one and only time I attempted to start the car.
http://www.replications.com/r107/uhoh.mp4
So, what does the collective think about the engine??
If it is just electrical, do I even think of trusting the engine, now?
If it is the engine, do I rebuild this engine? Can I trust it?
If it is the engine, do I swap in a known good engine? If so, what type? I noted (from looking at some web sites) it uses a m 103.982 Are the other potential 3.0 inline 6 engines going to go right in? Has anyone done this to a 300L?
I live near Gettysburg, PA, USA. As most of you probably already know, the 300L was not officially imported here and I'm not finding many resources (yet) for this primarily European model. Ex. I will not find a donor 300SL the next town over . . .
I am totally new to Mercedes - never owned or worked on one. I would welcome any and all advice on how I might proceed in an economical but thorough manner.
Thank you for your time and kind attention,
Regards,
John+