Pure .036 insanity

[gsxr]

Got this link from Roger on the other forum:

http://www.benzclub.ru/forum/showthread.php?t=178363

I went through all 90+ pages. It boggles the mind. Although it appears to be a 1994 E500, it's actually a 1992 500E. Some random comments:

1) I can't figure out why anyone would do the equivalent of a frame-off restoration ($$$$$$) on a plain 500E with that much corrosion (first 10-20 pages or so). My car's undercarriage looks concours compared to that. Well, at least the neon yellow interior got tossed (whew!).

2) The car already had the SLS removed. They installed new H&R springs, I sure hope those weren't SLS rear springs - that'd be bad. (Page 57)

3) They installed a new, late-style timing cover... but still retained the nasty manual belt tensioner. D'oh! (Page 52, 53)

4) The stereo system is pretty impressive. I like the multi-level amp rack in the spare tire well. Page 49 has some pics, there are lots more but I can't find the right page at the moment.

5) The exhaust system is also impressive (page 86). But I cracked up when they had to hammer a channel on the driver's side of the tranny tunnel to make room... um, that should have been done BEFORE all the painting & undercoating, no? Oooops. (Page 82-83, 88-89)

6) All kinds of things were replaced that probably didn't need to be, yet some items still look nasty dirty (like the tranny rear crossmember, on page 83 - I got mine looking like new, so maybe I'm biased).

7) The Alcantra and carbon fiber is pretty sweet (pages 84-86).

8) Shame they chopped up the rear bumper to poke the exhaust tips through (page 87)


I'd love to know the total cost of this. I would have put the dough into a 6.0L engine instead!

 

[Glen]

While I agree that it doesn't make monetary sense to restore a 500E like this, people have spent more on lesser cars. At least when it's done, the owner will have a very nice example of a great car.

 

[gsxr]

While I agree that it doesn't make monetary sense to restore a 500E like this, people have spent more on lesser cars. At least when it's done, the owner will have a very nice example of a great car.

I agree 100%. It also could be that this particular car had some sentimental value to the owner. I would have re-installed the SLS (particularly with the ICE in the back end), and converted to the automatic belt tensioner, but otherwise it looks like some pretty nice work. I'd love to hear the exhaust note, and see a dyno graph. I assume the motor is all stock, but I can't read Russian, lol. After all that work, I'd almost be afraid to drive it, lest some dimit busy texting run a stop sign & squish it!

 

[500ESpain]

The one who made that yellow interior deserves a horrible death and should be buried in a coffin upholstered with the same leather so he can regret for what he has done until the end of time...IMO

 

[Alpina]

Really impressive ,,

but something is so much over a realistic ,, and some ,,,,,,,, could have been better thought ,,

 

[2phast]

I agree with Dave's comments, to further add;

Why start with such a rust bucket?

Why paint the diff and leave the axels on and paint over all the bolts, cheesy way to restore a car

Why sandblast the frame with the doors, hood and turnk still on the car? There is bound to be rust hiding in the hidden areas as well.

He replaced items that well, just don't need to be replaced, wasting a shitload of money in the process. I am all for having new parts, but at the prices Mercedes charges for this small bits, you might as well saved all that money, bought a pristine 500e and had it shipped to Russia, you would of had money left over!

 

[Allgonquin]

I'm up to page 51 for now. I have a question or two on the underbody painting. It looked like at one point, before paint, they used something like undercoating, semi-transparent waxy stuff. What was that, and how could that go under paint?

And then that grey stuff which appears to be almost fibrous, what was that stuff? And how could it go under paint as well?

Looking at the way they sandblasted, I would expect the interior space to be just loaded with grit, as for sure they did not seal every possible opening. You will never, ever, get that stuff out, IMHO.

And although as I said I'm only up to page 51, I hate those wheels. Were they trying them out on the gray car, or did that car just happen to have the same wheels and they were checking offsets, etc.