250 SL restoration

[Bobe]

Hi There,
I told the forum back in April about the refurbishment process of my ’67 250 SL. The first part, the engine and the front part of the chassis is nearly completed. I should get the car back by the end of September., which is roughly according to the expected delivery time . A lot has been done, and the engine bay has been resprayed while the engine was out. The good news is that there were only very light rust marks in the bay, no perforation and no serious corrosion  . The hydraulics of the power steering was redone, the water pump changed and the alternator replaced. The timing chain was cheched. An electronic ignition is also installed.

The last part to do at this stage is to change the power break unit; leaking and not working anymore and that should be completed next week. The cold start issue should also be fixed.  The gear box has been overhauled, and the underneath anti rust cover of the car has also been redone: this was not planned initially but whilst the engine ger box and transmission was away, it was a good time to do it. Again, no bad surprises there, only tiny signs of light corrosion that needed to be treated before it gets bad. I have since purchased 3 skins of a beautiful crème leather and once I get the car back, a saddler will deal with the interior. The external paint and underneath coat the rear of the chassis will be redone next year. Results so far are stunning! I attach pictures of the work.

[Bobe]

Additional pictures, with the engine back to where it belongs. The chassis and wheel wells were covered with an anti rust epoxy, then with a rubber protection and finally resprayed in the body colour.

[Bobe]

The only bad surprise was that the drain behind the left front wheel well was removed or lost at some point and the hole was filled so that some water could stay inside. I could not see it myself but the expert eye of the workshop owner saw it at the first sight. It was necessary to replace this area with a steel plate of around 3 sq inches. Might be good to check regularly this spot.

[zak]

Beautiful work, Bobe. Congrats. Hope you get to drive it soon.
I see there are US bumperettes on the car. Is it US or Euro car ?
Also, is the car an early or late model 250 SL ?

jz

[Bobe]

Hi Zak,

It's an original California black plate car imported new by a local MB dealer which I bought in 1998 - I still have the original black plates. The car is a late (november) 1967. The bumperettes are indeed US and will probably go next year when i'll get the body redone and the bumpers rechromed, although they are  a good protection against careless parkers The reflector on the sides of the car, also typically US, will go. I bought new European head to replace the original sealed lights shortly after delivery of the car and I swaped the tail lights with someone in the US as the red turn light were a definite no go for the French administration: those are from a 230SL and i've lost the lighting in the trunk in the swap.

The car is now almost ready. The workshop is running the car for a series of road tests, the new power unit for the break is there, but the gear box is still a bit sluggish. The cold start issue which i had for all the time since I own the car is solved: no need for endless cranking before the engine jumps, which was the reason why the car was not used enough.

Cheers, Bobe.

[SEB]

Hi Bobe,

Great to hear about the progress on your 250SL! I’m really happy to see another one being restored with so much care – as you know, these cars are quite rare here compared to the 230SL and 280SL, so every 250SL that comes back to life is something special.

Looking forward to seeing it fully finished once the bodywork and bumpers are done – it’s going to be a stunning example!

Best