Project Chronicle

I was recently viewing the latest edition of Spike's Car Radio where Jerry Seinfeld made an appearance, and he and regular guest Zuckerman captured a sentiment I've experienced with the 1992 500E I bought a few months ago. It's the roller coaster of emotions that come with a new acquisition, and how oftentimes, once you get behind the wheel for the first time, there can be some disappointment. Not over any one glaring flaw, perhaps, but just the realization, It's here. It's your problem now. 

Seinfeld notes, "You open the door, you get in, and immediately, emotionally crash. Hopefully, it changes when you start the car and drive it, but usually when you first get in it, there's almost always seems to be a moment of, 'What the hell did I do?'" Truly, I felt this with the 500E not only because it was immediately evident the transmission was in a state of decline but also because the 500E is not one of those cars that immediately registers as special. 

Obviously, there's a ton of, "If you know, you know" factor with the widebody W124 that was built by Porsche, but you have to be OK with that being the reason you like it. Right now, I haven't driven the car more than 5 miles, and it wasn't all that enjoyable. It's almost worse that every review on YouTube talks about how amazing it is, yet I have a 2002 E55 sitting outside. However, the M113 in the E55 is SOHC, and the M119 in the 500E is DOHC, which is a totally different experience. 

Here's the hope: once the transmission is replaced, and once proper tires are installed, and the suspension is appropriately refreshed (within reason, since we're keeping the original SLS components), it will be the car I want it to be. After swinging by the shop last week, I was reminded just how much of the total package is made up of those front fenders - they're gorgeous. And, the mechanic telling me how many people stop by each week asking if it's for sale doesn't hurt, either. 

I had a sneaking suspicion when the 500E arrived that I was due for transmission trouble. The seller was an honest guy, but it seemed he was in the camp of being able to live with some flaws that I wouldn't be able to abide.

The 722.365 automatic transmission found in the 500E is used across the W124 lineup. It's a fairly reliable transmission but does have a certain life expectancy. The tell-tale sign is longer and longer engagement to go into reverse. Two seconds is normal; anything longer is considered indicative of the gearbox being on its way out. My delay was about 4 seconds. 

We did a bunch of work hoping to remove any doubt about the transmission. The transmission bushings and differential "guibos" were all replaced to tighten up the gearbox action. While the shifter moved more confidently through the gate, it did nothing to address the delay going into reverse. 

No dice. So, after weighing a transmission rebuild, we bit the bullet and ordered a rebuilt transmission from Sun Valley, a known rebuilder of Mercedes gearboxes. It's on order and will be installed in the coming weeks. While unfortunate, it will be a major value add to the 500E's future price tag.

The progress on the 500E has been slow, but I'm not terribly worried; there's been no ugly discoveries at the moment, and it seems like my fears about transmission issues are unfounded. Most of the issues with regards to slow shifting and noises in reverse have nothing to do with the transmission itself but rather heavily worn rubber components that help to support the transmission and driveshaft. 

Knowing that the transmission itself is likely fine is a major win. In addition to the shifter bushings, the transmission mount itself is very tired; both "guibos" on the driveshaft are heavily cracked and overdue for replacement; the noise heard in reverse was actually an insulation pad that was dropping down and rubbing on the driveshaft; ball joints, steering linkage, and the lower control arm bushings, all shot; and the shop also discovered a long-festering fuel leak coming from the charcoal canister in the driver's side wheel well. 

Right now, the exhaust and the driveshaft are dropped in preparation for repairing all that I just mentioned. Once we're through that, we'll see how much the drive quality has improved and what may need to be done next.

When the 500E arrived over a month ago, I was pretty happy with what I saw. There were no major surprises, and the seller likely even "over-sold" the cosmetic faults that the car has. The only real area of concern that didn't come through in my discussions with the previous owner was the health of the transmission, which was weighing on my mind as an area of possible concern. The W124s are not immune from needing transmission replacements, so I hoped that wasn't in my future.

With the car at my local shop, it all seems like mostly good news. The biggest issue outside of the transmission bushings (which are non-existent) is apparently a transmission mount that is in very, very poor condition, and likely a major player in concerns over hard shifting and some reluctance to engage reverse. Combining the bad bushings with a bad mount will almost certainly create the conditions I'm seeing, so here's hoping that with those fixes made, the transmission feels healthy once again. 

Other issues seem fairly minor, aside from a leaking rear shock. The rear SLS shocks are NLA, which means you have to live with bad shocks or pay some scalper $1000 for one shock (yes, really). My only hope is that the leaking is attributed to the rear accumulator ball, and/or that the one used shock I managed to track down will work in a pinch. 

There are some minor fluid leaks and bushings that need attention, but overall, for what will absolutely be the cheapest 500E to sell anytime now or into the future, it's mostly good news. 

My 1992 500E arrived this week, and I have some thoughts. First, I bought this car on the basis of the honesty of the presentation and the seller. The seller, who I believe is a legitimate rocket scientist, had clearly been proactive on some big items, and the 500E had been passed between him and his brother since 2003. 

I feel a paid a very fair price, and with that, comes the expectation that there will be some issues. The bigger and better news is, however, is that the cosmetics were better than expected; the interior smells good; the portfolio of records that accompanied the car are solid; and there's lots of OEM parts, from the glass to the body panels, still affixed. The widebody fenders are much more impressive in person and the car has a great stance. The disclosure about the faded paint was accurate, but the car still looks better than expected. 

The issues seem to stem solely from lack of use. The suspension feels a bit tired. The shifter bushings are non-existent, and make it difficult when cold for the shift selector to move between gears. There's a whine in reverse that has me nervous - these cars are known to need rebuilds of the various clutches in the gearbox - but we'll do the shift bushings first before I start shopping for rebuilt transmission. I don't have records of any major cooling system work, so I'll likely proactively replace the water pump and thermostat. The other major disclosed flaw is an errant battery drain that could be traced back to a replaced under-dash wiring harness, but for now, the seller removed the number 9 fuse which controls things like the flashers to ensure it doesn't drain the battery while it sits.

Overall, a pretty manageable lists aside from some cosmetic repairs, and when complete, I feel confident we'll have a car worth more than the cost of the repairs and purchase price.