Hey all,
I was at Cars and Coffee last weekend and started talking to a guy with a 1990 300TE with a 5.6 M117 swapped in from a 560SEL. He told me he was considering selling it and it immediately peaked my interest. Color is white (believe repainted) on MB-tex blue interior.
The swap was done several years ago, at 150K miles, the car has 175K on it now, but the engine and transmission (both were swapped in at the same time) lag the body by about 25K miles, so they would have roughly 150K on them. Differential should have less than 100K and is from an '88 300D.
The owner had spend upwards of 38,000 dollars originally to have the swap done by a shop, and has the job documented with a receipt that supposedly lists all parts used, with the explanation that he needed something interesting to tow his speedboat. He did say there was some valve work done when they did the swap, which I know is a potential concern on these 560 engines - So that inspires confidence that they had likely replaced the valve guides that supposedly wear and cause oil burning. He also said they had ported the heads or something, not clear exactly what they did but I thought that's what he said. Owner is older and seems trustworthy. Reason he is selling is because he recently bought a new car that supersedes this in his application (not a Benz so not sure how it can supersede this car) and he no longer drives it.
Parts that are on it that I know are:
- M117 from 89 560SEL
-Trans from same car
-Radiator from same car
-Diff from 88 300D
-Slotted and drilled rotors
-Lorinser wheels (not sure what model, they're the 5 spokes that look like thicker AMG Monoblocks sort of)
-Euro style headlights
-Custom exhaust (That comes out the passenger side for some reason? But damn is it meaty and got a good rumble!)
-Progressive rate springs in front (kept SLS in rear)
-Tow bar/hitch
-Aftermarket head unit and updated speakers (Probably going to replace head unit with a Continental if I buy this car, so it matches the interior better)
-Speedometer was re calibrated to account for the new driveline.
-Wiring harness I believe he said was from the same S class that donated the engine, and appears to be well-done and in good shape from initial glances.
I'm going out to look closer at it today, I have a list of items to check from SLS to rust areas to (proper) operation of the original Hirschmann antenna. The interior is absolutely perfect, and the paint is not bad. He claims everything works, with the only outstanding problems being what he believes is a power steering leak near the pump, and the 134-converted A/C system needs to be recharged every year, so it's leaking off somewhere. He also claims it has never seen salt or snow and was always garaged. It was his company car and daily for several years, he is the second titled owner, the first being a Mercedes shop in Georgia I believe it was, as a service vehicle.
He wants 8K for it and is pretty firm on that, he doesn't need to sell it but I am really into this car. I know it won't be a lightning bolt compared to a 500E, and will make roughly the power of a 320E, but the sound is unbelievable. I looked up some power/weight specs and it should be just a bit slower than a C4 Corvette, whilst being able to seat 7 or haul plywood or tow a boat or camper. The application would NOT be a daily driver, it would be a fun (third) car used for taking to meets and shows, hanging with friends, weekend driver, or if I need to huff a bike or other cargo around. I'm not going to depend on it for a daily driver or really even a backup car (my other 124 300CE is my backup)
What do you guys think? I've had experience with 124 chassis but not the Benz V8s, I'm going to grab a ton of pictures so I can review them later, as you always tend to notice things looking at pictures, rather than when you're in the "heat of the moment" so to speak.
Are there any problems with the parts that would have been swapped in reliability-wise? I believe most Benzes and parts from this era are pretty damn reliable, but not sure if there's any gotchas beyond what I listed above. I looked up some vids from Kent and did some digging on the SLS system and after it's been demystified, it really isn't that intimidating.
Also, is the 300D differential gearing appropriate for this application? What is the gearing in it? Is it ASR equipped?
Thanks for the time, I'll see if I can post some pictures of interesting bits. I'm going to try and document everything I can on it. He's holding off listing it until I make a decision so I'm definitely excited. Talk me down if I need to be talked down!
I was at Cars and Coffee last weekend and started talking to a guy with a 1990 300TE with a 5.6 M117 swapped in from a 560SEL. He told me he was considering selling it and it immediately peaked my interest. Color is white (believe repainted) on MB-tex blue interior.
The swap was done several years ago, at 150K miles, the car has 175K on it now, but the engine and transmission (both were swapped in at the same time) lag the body by about 25K miles, so they would have roughly 150K on them. Differential should have less than 100K and is from an '88 300D.
The owner had spend upwards of 38,000 dollars originally to have the swap done by a shop, and has the job documented with a receipt that supposedly lists all parts used, with the explanation that he needed something interesting to tow his speedboat. He did say there was some valve work done when they did the swap, which I know is a potential concern on these 560 engines - So that inspires confidence that they had likely replaced the valve guides that supposedly wear and cause oil burning. He also said they had ported the heads or something, not clear exactly what they did but I thought that's what he said. Owner is older and seems trustworthy. Reason he is selling is because he recently bought a new car that supersedes this in his application (not a Benz so not sure how it can supersede this car) and he no longer drives it.
Parts that are on it that I know are:
- M117 from 89 560SEL
-Trans from same car
-Radiator from same car
-Diff from 88 300D
-Slotted and drilled rotors
-Lorinser wheels (not sure what model, they're the 5 spokes that look like thicker AMG Monoblocks sort of)
-Euro style headlights
-Custom exhaust (That comes out the passenger side for some reason? But damn is it meaty and got a good rumble!)
-Progressive rate springs in front (kept SLS in rear)
-Tow bar/hitch
-Aftermarket head unit and updated speakers (Probably going to replace head unit with a Continental if I buy this car, so it matches the interior better)
-Speedometer was re calibrated to account for the new driveline.
-Wiring harness I believe he said was from the same S class that donated the engine, and appears to be well-done and in good shape from initial glances.
I'm going out to look closer at it today, I have a list of items to check from SLS to rust areas to (proper) operation of the original Hirschmann antenna. The interior is absolutely perfect, and the paint is not bad. He claims everything works, with the only outstanding problems being what he believes is a power steering leak near the pump, and the 134-converted A/C system needs to be recharged every year, so it's leaking off somewhere. He also claims it has never seen salt or snow and was always garaged. It was his company car and daily for several years, he is the second titled owner, the first being a Mercedes shop in Georgia I believe it was, as a service vehicle.
He wants 8K for it and is pretty firm on that, he doesn't need to sell it but I am really into this car. I know it won't be a lightning bolt compared to a 500E, and will make roughly the power of a 320E, but the sound is unbelievable. I looked up some power/weight specs and it should be just a bit slower than a C4 Corvette, whilst being able to seat 7 or haul plywood or tow a boat or camper. The application would NOT be a daily driver, it would be a fun (third) car used for taking to meets and shows, hanging with friends, weekend driver, or if I need to huff a bike or other cargo around. I'm not going to depend on it for a daily driver or really even a backup car (my other 124 300CE is my backup)
What do you guys think? I've had experience with 124 chassis but not the Benz V8s, I'm going to grab a ton of pictures so I can review them later, as you always tend to notice things looking at pictures, rather than when you're in the "heat of the moment" so to speak.
Are there any problems with the parts that would have been swapped in reliability-wise? I believe most Benzes and parts from this era are pretty damn reliable, but not sure if there's any gotchas beyond what I listed above. I looked up some vids from Kent and did some digging on the SLS system and after it's been demystified, it really isn't that intimidating.
Also, is the 300D differential gearing appropriate for this application? What is the gearing in it? Is it ASR equipped?
Thanks for the time, I'll see if I can post some pictures of interesting bits. I'm going to try and document everything I can on it. He's holding off listing it until I make a decision so I'm definitely excited. Talk me down if I need to be talked down!