Another pagoda bites the dust

[rmmchl]

My friend in Williamsburg Va. blew the engine of  his 69 280Sl yesterday. He has had it for over 20 years.  The mechanic thinks he spun a bearing and broke a connecting rod. He will probably sell the car now. There aren't any mechanics there, to his knowledge, that know much about our cars. It would cost a fortune to haul it hundreds of miles away to get it fixed,  He just doesn't want to put the money into it. He would have too much in it, to get it fixed.  It would be my worst nightmare, but I'm lucky that here in Charleston WV. we have a good shop that works on these cars on a daily basis. It still costs lot of money as we all know. For a lot of folks, including myself,  it could be a financial disaster.  The car will have to be sold for a fraction of it's worth on the open market. I'm just really sad for him

[Rolf-Dieter ✝︎]

Michael, that is sad news,  I wonder  ...

A - was he at Williamsburg last month?

And

B - perhaps there is a member that knows someone with a trailer to bring it to Joe Up to Ohio for a true repair estimate?

It be a shame to sell it below it's true value.

[rmmchl]

His sister was dying in Atlanta, so he had to travel there the weekend of the Williamsburg show

[Rolf-Dieter ✝︎]

If the car is in Atlanta now it's only 1/2 hour drive to Bud's in Douglasville, GA. Can he not have the insurance co. tow it there? Or did it break down further away from there?

Sorry to hear about his sister.

[rmmchl]

no, it's in Willamsburg Virginia  He will get it towed to his home on Monday. The mechanic at the shop, doesn't work on Mercedes engines, but they put it on the rack, and turned the crank and heard a rod dropping loose in there.  When you hear dollar amounts of $ 10- $15,000 for an engine rebuild, it is just not feasible. You or I  could get one fixed for a third of that, but he's stuck there in Williamsburg. It doesn't have to be total rebuild of everything, though that would be the appropriate choice. To you and I--------remove engine, tear it down, find out what's wrong-fix the problems-new bearings, rods, pistons, rings, regrind crank, etc.  He is a retired lawyer, who really doesn't know much about his car. He has owned it for over 20 years. He told me he will probably  just sell it. He doesn't want to put the money in it. I thought about offering to buy it at a good price,  then I would haul it  up to Joe Alexander's  in Blacklick. Fix it, and then sell it for a profit. Just too much of a hassle, and tying up too much money.

[Jack Jones]

I have a friend looking for a project 280SL if the car does come up for sale.

[rmmchl]

I will keep that in mind jack, thanks

[Rolf-Dieter ✝︎]

Michael, I have my best friend on the west coast up in Vancouver, BC he has a closed trailer if he was closer to me on the east coast I would volunteer and pick up the car to tow it to Joe. Such a tragedy for your friend the matter with his sister and his car all at the same time.

I hope some good samaritan will step forward and help out.

[Benz Dr.]

I had a car at my place last year that also came from Virginia. It was at the car show on Sunday near Willamsburg and arrived later in the day. Almost the exact same thing happened to his car. His son was driving and ran the engine out of oil. This caused two rod bearings to spin inside of their connecting rods which also bent and destroyed the crank.
When an engine lets go like that all kinds of little shards go through the engine and it requires a very careful cleaning to remove all traces of metal particles. Oddly, this guy was also a laywer and said he couldn't afford to fix his car either. I did more than the engine rebuild but that was his choice at the time. He did tell me that MB wanted something like 18K to replace his engine so I can understand why he didn't want to fix it. The car was othewise very sound with no rust problems. A bit tired but a very decent car.

Your friends best bet would be to get a good used engine. It's a decent sized job but not impossible to do. 

[Cees Klumper]

Replacing an engine should be a couple of days' work and as Dan suggests, a good used engine may be the way to go. Trick is to find one you know is ok, but they should still be available for one or two thousand. Then the swap work, maybe another fifteen hundred to two thousand  if you have it done. All in all should be much less than the discount on the price if the car has to be sold with a broken engine.

[ctaylor738]

I have a used engine.  PM me if you want to discuss.

CT

[rmmchl]

Rolf-you have a big heart my friend. I am so glad I met you with Joe. The members might get into hard discussions at times on this site, but it is evident, that when one Pagoda owner is in trouble-all come to try to help like brothers do.  Rolf, it shows your character.  I will talk with my friend this coming week ,  to help him through  some hard decisions.

[W113SL]

If the body is rust free and the trim including the interior is all there in good condition, this would be a good candidate to have the engine rebuilt.

Does anyone have pictures and an asking price?

It the rest of the car is good, I might be interested.

I expect to be in Willimasburg around thanksgiving time

Pete Lesler
W113SL

[Benz Dr.]

If you buy the engine without ancillaries it should be less. I usually want the IP pump with the engine so I know I have the correct pump for that unit.

 Manifolds, starter, alternator, water pump etc. should be available from the old engine.

[rmmchl]

He says it's all original, and all there. I'm going to call him in a few days, and have him go around the car with a flashlight , while he is on the phone with me. I'm going to have him check for fender welds. headlight alignment marks on fender, rust, etc.

[Mike Hughes]

My recollection from P-50 is that a couple of cars at the event arrived with some mechanical issues that were attended to by Auto Haus Classics in nearby Yorktown, VA.  Perhaps they might be able to consult with your friend regarding rebuilding, replacing the engine. 

From their full page ad on the back cover of the P-50 event guide:  Address:  104 Greene Drive, Yorktown, VA  23692  Phone # 757 898-1200  www.autohausclassics.com

[ja17]

The sedan engines (280SE) are more common and are basically the same except for some minor "bolt-on" changes and the engine number. He can save his original broken engine for a rainy day or the new owner, and he can  be cruising around with a good 280SE engine for now. His original engine must have had issues or it would not have broke.

In any case let us know if the car goes up for sale, there are a lot of interested pagoda people out here looking for projects.