Author Topic: Bringing a 1970 280 back to life? (Read 17549 times)

ncsurfer · « **on:** January 13, 2012, 03:20:04 »

Hi Guys,
I am new to the site and look forward to learning more about my 280. The car has not been started in 10 years, so the first thing I did was to remove the radiator in order to turn the crankshaft. It turned with no problem and no internal noises. I poured some Marvel Mystery Oil in the cylinders and letting it sit for a few days. The next step is to drain and drop the gas tank and clean out the whole fuel system. My question is, how should I do this? I am not a skilled/trained mechanic, but I can find my way around a car with a shop manual and someone helping me. I appreciate any help you guys can give me. Also, I am in Raleigh, NC and was wondering if anyone knows of a MB mechanic I can take it to if I get into a situation that is beyond me? My wife and I have always wanted to own a 280SL and we are excited about bringing this one back to life! Thanks, ncsurfer

badali · « **Reply #1 on:** January 13, 2012, 04:10:29 »

You may be able to clean the tank without taking it off the car. There is a plug in the bottom and the sending unit can be taken out through the top to see inside. Lift the mat out of the trunk to see the sending unit. If the gas doesn't smell really bad and look gummy a good rince with fresh fuel may work.

Dash808 · « **Reply #2 on:** January 13, 2012, 06:05:54 »

My 250sl was in storage for about 10 years as well. All I did was drop the gas tank and had it boiled at a radiator shop for good measure, drained the fuel lines, MMO in the cylinders, turned it over by hand, drained and filled all fluids, replaced plugs & filters, oiled distributor, inspect linkage, greased nipples, and she fired right up!

You'll find they are very well engineered automobiles

Jonny B · « **Reply #3 on:** January 13, 2012, 13:05:58 »

There is a lot of information on the forum about bringing a car back after setting for a long while. Experiment with the search, and you will find it very useful.

I will add one word of caution up front - be very careful when draining or working around the gas tank, have a fire extinguisher handy and keep the electrical stuff away. Gas is very flammable.

ncsurfer · « **Reply #4 on:** January 13, 2012, 15:45:30 »

Thanks everyone. Is there a special tool to take the drain plug out?

49er · « **Reply #5 on:** January 13, 2012, 16:17:45 »

My 280SL sat for over 20 years and I only recently (Sept '10) got it back on the road. Right before I parked it, I had filled the tank to the brim (no ethanol back then) and the by doing so, according to my mechanic, the tank was is in remarkably great shape. It was taken out a cleaned but hardly any sediment or "gunk" was in it. I had a few other things done to it (http://www.sl113.org/forums/index.php?topic=529.450) and I have driven 2K trouble free miles since she was "reborn". Good luck in getting yours back on the road.

John

Iconic · « **Reply #6 on:** January 13, 2012, 18:34:12 »

Quote from: ncsurfer on January 13, 2012, 15:45:30

Thanks everyone. Is there a special tool to take the drain plug out?

I assume you mean the tank drain.
You can use the head of a large hex head bolt.
I grabbed the threads with a vice grips and it worked great without difficulty.
You can search on the site or in the technical manual for the size, or just measure it and buy a big bolt with the correct size head.

twistedtree · « **Reply #7 on:** January 13, 2012, 21:49:49 »

Take a spark plug socket and turn it around. The hex head on the socket perfectly matches the drain plug - at least mine did. I think others have done this too. You can just run a 3/8" extension in the wrong end of the socket and use a ratchet wrench on it. It looks funny but works great.

lurtch · « **Reply #8 on:** January 14, 2012, 19:51:15 »

Without a doubt start with the fuel tank. Mine looked like this after the car came out of a 5 yr storage period.

Larry in CA

There is really surfing in North Carolina?

ncsurfer · « **Reply #9 on:** January 15, 2012, 02:31:02 »

UGHHHH! That looks ugly....and expensive! I made a tool today and will drain and drop the tank tomorrow. Thanks to all for the info.
BTW, we not only have surf in NC, but the water is warm(in the summer) too!

Dash808 · « **Reply #10 on:** January 15, 2012, 21:59:14 »

Did somebody say surf? North Shore of Hawaii has been getting nice waves lately

How is the general condition of the car? Does it look like it was stored properly?

ncsurfer · « **Reply #11 on:** January 15, 2012, 22:51:09 »

I am so jealous! I would love to be there and surfing!
I bought the car from a friend of mine. It was not "stored" properly because he wasn't planning on not starting it in 10 years. It just crept up on him. It was in a dry garage with the hard top on, so the interior and soft top are in very good condition. The body and paint are excellent. It was repainted in 94 and never wet sanded and buffed. So, I know I can bring the paint back. Chrome is very good but I am going to re-chrome the bumpers. Today I drained the gas tank. The gas did not smell bad, just old. There is some sludge at the bottom and some tar. Tomorrow I will drop the tank and get it boiled out and sealed. The next step will be to pull the fuel pump and inspect it and continue to work my way to the the injector pump. wish me luck..... Aloha!

ncsurfer · « **Reply #12 on:** January 16, 2012, 04:54:25 »

Here is the tool I made to unscrew the drain plug out of the gas tank. We took a bolt with a 3/4 head and welded a 22mm hex nut to it. I have attached a pic. I hope this helps the next guy.

Iconic · « **Reply #13 on:** January 16, 2012, 06:42:32 »

Quote from: ncsurfer on January 15, 2012, 22:51:09

Tomorrow I will drop the tank and get it boiled out and sealed...... Aloha!

ncsurfer,
You made a nice tool, so .... should I assume you've read all the information on this site about sealing, or not sealing a gas tank?

ncsurfer · « **Reply #14 on:** January 16, 2012, 15:02:44 »

I am not sure that I read all the post on here. There seems to be mixed opinions on it. My tank had about 6-7 gallons of gas in it. The gas didn't really smell bad, just old. There was some tar residue draining out and judging from the amount, it appears to maybe cover the bottom 1/16 to 1/32 of an inch. I didn't see any rust come out, but I may see some today when I drop the tank.
What do you guys think I should do, boil and seal or not?
Thanks, ncsurfer

badali · « **Reply #15 on:** January 16, 2012, 15:20:43 »

I know it is after the fact about making a tool for the plug but here is how I drain the tank...

ncsurfer · « **Reply #16 on:** January 16, 2012, 15:28:18 »

Even better!

twistedtree · « **Reply #17 on:** January 16, 2012, 15:37:19 »

All the places I used to know that did tank work don't anymore, and the few places I've found that will take on the project send them to Canada. It appears nobody does this work in the US anymore. If anyone knows otherwise, we'd all benefit from hearing about it. Maybe there are a few survivors.

The issue with coating an SL tank is the risk of plugging up the many small fittings, damage to the plastic "flower pot" inside the tank, and obstruction of the internal passages in and out of the flower pot. Add to that the whole question about the long-term impact of ethanol on the coating material, and you suddenly have a fair amount of risk that accompanies the cost of coating a tank.

Getting a tank clean is actually pretty easy. I'd do that first, then inspect the inside as best you can. A flashlight and mirror will help, but visibility is pretty poor either way. If it's not rusted, I'd put it back in the car and drive away. If it's rusted, I'd bite the bullet and get a new tank. Check with the Classic Center. Pricing on new tanks is not as bad as you might think.

The first of my cars that I got running was a 280 and it had a very crapped up tank. I removed it as described, flushed it over and over again with water pouring out tons of crap. Eventually it came clean, but visual inspection showed it to be badly rusted inside. Because I had no idea what kind of shape the rest of the car was in, I didn't want to drop $800 on a gas tank just yet. So I did the chain cleaning procedure that I think I learned from this site. Drop a 6" to 12" length of chain (1/4" works well) into the tank, and slosh that around for a while, flush with water, repeat, repeat. The chain dragging around knocks all the loose stuff free, and if nothing else buys you time before you need to replace the tank, which is exactly what I was looking for.

Now that car is running, and confident that I didn't have some other black-hole of a problem. I ordered up a new tank which is now awaiting installation.

I did a similar thing with another one of my cars, except on that one I could see that the tank had been previously coated and was in OK shape. Once I had it running and could assess it's overall condition, I ordered up a new tank for that one too.

twistedtree · « **Reply #18 on:** January 16, 2012, 15:38:45 »

Yes, that "tool" is what I was attempting to describe earlier. Pictures are wonderful, aren't they?

ncsurfer · « **Reply #19 on:** January 16, 2012, 15:55:27 »

Thanks! I think I will clean it out and use the "chain" method. I really do not think that the tank is going to be a problem.... I know. "wishful thinking"......

ncsurfer · « **Reply #20 on:** January 16, 2012, 19:44:36 »

OK, I have another question. I have all the bolts, fuel lines, sending unit plug, filler neck rubber, etc removed. I have a floor jack under the the front of the fuel tank and have lowered it while trying to push the filler neck through the body, but it is binding and will not push through. Anyone have any tricks to get it out? I am trying not to use too much force to free it.
Thanks, ncsurfer

twistedtree · « **Reply #21 on:** January 16, 2012, 20:39:11 »

I don't recall the exact maneuver, but I do recall mine took a little gymnastics to remove.

By the way, I wouldn't use the chain unless there is rust or scale that needs to be removed and won't rinse out. Most of the crud in mine was silt and rinsed out with no mechanical coaxing. I'd worry that use of a chain on a sound tank might wear through any remaining plating and actually encourage rust where it otherwise would be discouraged.

Bonnyboy · « **Reply #22 on:** January 16, 2012, 21:39:17 »

I just removed the tank and on my 280sl (late). The fuel pump and bracket had to be moved 1/2" to give room on the passenger side where the tank was hanging up on the exhaust pipe. I just manhandled the tank out because the bolts holding the fuel pump cover and brackets were rusted solid. With the fuel pump removed the tank would come out very easily. I sprayed oil around the rubber gasket around the filler, lowered the front of the tank and wiggled the back off the two bolts, lowered the front a bit more and voila it came out.

I took my tank in to get cleaned out and coated. I had one plugged line but the base string from my guitar on a drill cleaned it out in a hurry.

I'm gonna reinstall the tank this week.

I took apart the fuel pump and unstuck the vanes and will clean up the bracketry and cover as well.

Ian in North Vancouver

ja17 · « **Reply #23 on:** January 16, 2012, 22:46:56 »

You will also need to remove the sheetmetal cover over the fuel filler tube in the trunk. About 9 phillips head screws hold it in place

ncsurfer · « **Reply #24 on:** January 16, 2012, 23:29:13 »

Thanks everyone. I took the fuel pump cover off. the cover to the fuel filler and lowered the exhaust. It didn't take too much to get it out. I can't believe how clean this car it underneath. It has 72K miles and has been garaged most of it's life. Every bolt and nut has been fairly easy to take off.
I took the fuel pump off today as well. I will read some post on how to clean the pump.
I am starting to feel pretty good about starting this project. This is a great site. I need to become a paying member.
Thanks again, ncsurfer

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Author Topic: Bringing a 1970 280 back to life? (Read 17549 times)