74 450se

[BIGBENZ]

Hey guys,
I am new to the site... And i love the 450SE,I have owned the 74 450SE for three years now sitting and waiting for attention..i plan to restore this beautiful car,tho it will take some time..i dont care.. i need ALL the help i can get!!!!

 

[Styria]

Hi Big Benz, what help do you need ? I am always prepared to offer advice, even to those that don't ask for it ! Seriously though, you're welcome to ask. What sort of condition is yourcar in ? Any rust ? Paintwork and Interior ? How about the mechanicals ? You see you've owned the car for a number of years - I just hope that the task is not going to be too cumbersome and costly. Regards Styria

 

[-bb-]

Hi Bigbenz... fellow novacastrian ?! Welcome to our humble site

Ask as many questions as you need - plenty of knowledgeable people here as well as plenty of information to read. It's also worth asking about any parts you may require because a number of people here can source them very cost effectively.

When you have the time, please feel free to post some photos and a bit of info about your car.

 

[Oversize]

I very warm welcome to you BIGBENZ! If you have some appropriate tools and are willing to give things a try, you should be able to undertake many repairs on these vehicles without resorting to expensive tradespeople, or even worse; Mercedes technicians! Yes they are more complex than other vehicles of the era, but they're pretty basic but todays standards. Parts aren't too bad if you know good suppliers. With the assistance of all the enthusiasts on this site and a common sence approach, you should get even more enjoyment from your ride in the years to come... Photos tell a thousand words as they say & once you register with Photobucket, it's easy to post them. It's also encouraging to have the opportunity to show off all your hard work!

 

[BIGBENZ]

Hey guys,
Thanks for the welcome,i have put some pics up be gentle on her...lol
As i said,owned it three years now,little bit of rust as any 35yr does,and the leather interior was shot,have already sourced replacement i'm going to put a cream one in...?
Engine should be running better..has a miss.. one injector is cactus..brakes...what brakes...lol they don't work...(hard pedal then it sinks slowly..)
drive shaft..big vibration 0-60kmh if accelerating hard.
Power windows..don't work anymore,cog fell out of left front door!
And now no windows work at all..
I think it used to have central locking but if it does it don't work..
Suspension...would like to drop it a touch and firm it up..any help on that matter would be much appreciated.

Anyway thats it for now...
Cheerz...

BIGBENZ

 

[Tony66_au]

Welcome to TK Bigbenz, Mate dont be daunted as the reward is a great road car.

As for your brake issue?

Master cylinder needs a kit based on what you've described, Not a huge job and im sure someone can help with a refurbed or point you in a good direction.

Check out my 450SE thread here if you are feeling a bit glum.

http://www.topklasse.org/forums/showthread.php?t=2474

Tony

 

[John S]

With this problem,
drive shaft..big vibration 0-60kmh if accelerating hard.

check the drive shaft centre bearing support - rubber probably needs replacing.

 

[BIGBENZ]

Power Windows?
Is there a better setup?
OEM replacement?
I remember reading somewhere about a cable pulley system?

 

[Styria]

Hi BigBenz, unfortunately the after-market cable pulley system has become unavailable. The Company that imported them has stopped doing so and it is not prepared to divulge the source of supply. Their reaction ? Go find out yourself. Lovely people.

Right now. and without being "smart" is not the time for me to want to talk about Ch.116 window regulators, but it is not a good situation. You have a bit of work on your hands with your 450, but stay with it. As you say you have time on your side. Thanks for the photos. Regards Styria

 

[BIGBENZ]

Interior is out,now for the task of prepping for insulation i'm going to go that extra mile..just cuz i want to..lol
The floor pans look and feel extremely thin and have a few pin holes..which should be an easy fix..
HOPEFULLY the insulation(doors and all)should deaden the road noise in the car,as mine is quite loud.. anyone done this before?
Any advice welcome!!

 

[Tony66_au]

Having done a few resto's on lesser cars I have but one word for you.

Dynamat

 

[Styria]

Hi BigBenz, whereabouts are you located ? Maybe you have already told us, but I could have missed the information. With the floors of these cars, you have two situations :

1) The front floors - generally they will rust fairly easily nowadays on account of : -

a. The age of the cars, and
b. The sound proofing that's glued to the front floors of the cars.

It is a foam like substance that's glued solid, and if you have had ingress of water, the foam will just pick it up and it just simply never dries. Some years ago, I had a small bar heater trained on one of the floors for three days and it never dried up.

In the rear, there is a very hard covering of some sealer glued/sprayed to the floor, and that stuff can nowadays form cracks. Quite often, if you chip the stuff from the lower corrfugated sections, you can find rust. However, generally the back sections are reasonably trouble free, but it pays to investigate, and treat it/or keep an eye on it.

The best material to glue to the floors for sound proofing purposes is a product called Dynamat. I can supply you with that product at a cost of $285.00, plenty enough to treat the complete interior, and have probably a little left over. Speaking of carpet, although you have not mentioned it - if at all possible, try and salvage the underpadding that's glued to the bottom of the original carpet. That stuff, if you can find it, is worth "GOLD", and you don't really want to get involved in trying to buy it.

I can supply you with carpet - good quality stuff, at approximately $800.00 supply only. If yoiu would want a cheaper alternative, $580.00 will cover it. Again, that's supply only. We can fit it for you - have a look at my "Styria's 450SE thread". There is a picture of carpet we fitted.

I have now been able to sort out window regulators - that could have been an absolute headache, but I am glad to say "no longer".If you ever wish to look for advice, call me on my mobile 0428-50-1800. Regards Styria

BTW - non-functioning windows could also be due to faulty console switches or blown fuses. One fuse for left front/right rear, the other right front/left rear.