200TE problems?

[Slaphead]

Hi All! Newbie here ......

a simple enough question to start with.

I have a '93 E200 and love it to bits but due to the addition of a large dog to the family I'm considering swapping the wifes '97 Rover 600 (a nice Honda 2.0 lump) for a '90 E200te Estate.... now the paint is tatty (and white!), drivers seat needs patching and a new 'cover' is needed for the boot area. The guy selling it is my MB Mecahanic so he'll sort out the rear wheel bearing and central locking problems and it is at a very reasonable price (circa ?1,500).

I can sort out the paint with a bit of T-Cut and elbow grease, ther seat can be repaired but... I heard that 200TE's can have problems with the self levelling gubbins and it can be expensive to fix... anybody know about this aspect of the estates? how can I check it?

 

[landover]

Make sure the rear shocks are not rusted and not leaking fluid as they are expensive to replace,.

 

[Slaphead]

Thanks for that Landover, good point... although I suspect, looking at your "signature" that you say that to everybody!

 

[Bolide]

early W124 estates

W124 estates don't have shock absorbers at the rear - despite what most people say!

They have a complete Citroen-style suspension system with fluid-filled struts connected to a pair of spheres, a height corrector and a lift pump & fluid reservoir under the bonnet. However, unlike a Citroen, they also have rear springs

The height corrector determines the ride height (via an adjustable link with rose joints on it - that can seize) and instructs the pump to supply enough fluid to level the rear. The damping is supplied by the compressed gas in the spheres. There are no shock absorbers in the traditional sense

Problems arise when the spheres lose pressure. Citroen ones can be regassed, and I'm sure Mercedes ones can be too, but most of the time they fail when the internal diaphragm ruptures. They then need replacement. Other failures involve leaking struts, duff pumps and leaking pipework

Any Citroen mechanic will be able to fix the system and it's normally only expensive when non-experts get involved and say "your shock absorbers need replacing"

Don't worry about the self-levelling. Worry about rust, condition, history, sagging drivers seat, non-working sunroof, rusty brake pipes and tired engine & box

I suggest looking around more. All cars of that age seem to cost £1500 so be very picky!


Nick Froome
www.w124.co.uk

 

[Slaphead]

Re: early W124 estates

Don't worry about the self-levelling. Worry about rust, condition, history, sagging drivers seat, non-working sunroof, rusty brake pipes and tired engine & box

I suggest looking around more. All cars of that age seem to cost £1500 so be very picky!

Thansk for all the useful info Bolide, that's in line with what I've heard about the rear struts.
Well there's little choice at that price (?1500 = BG£1060 ish) in Ireland. Believe me I know the market over here! This one is a bit rough but it's "honest" in that I can see what needs doing to it.

There's a few rust spots but they're surface ones... I should be able to handle them. Drivers seat needs attention alright but there's a place here repairs them like new - other wise it's one more item on the list for the breakers yard! I'll get the estate up on a hoist and check the suspension and brake pipes, I know it's just had tappets and frost plugs replaced.

thanks again....

 

[190]

SELF LEVELLING PUMP £275.40
VACUUM SPHERE SELF LEVELLING £49.00
SELF LEVELING REAR VALVE £145.50
S/ABSORBER 124 ESTATE S/LEVELLING ALL MODELS 86-REAR SHOCK ABSORBERS £134.99
.

 

[andy_k]

not sure where you got those prices from 190, but they do seem cheap.

The accumulator spheres on the rear axle are £135 a pair from Mercedes (you must change the pair)

the struts are mega expensive (about £500 a pair) but there are alternatives which cost about £250 a pair

the self levelling pump rarely fails - the weakest link is the spheres and they last approx 100k miles. Don't bother with non MB parts in this case it's worth the reassurance knowing you've got the "real thing" not a refurbed unit.

Unlike Citroens, it's not a five minute job to change the sheres, MB book the job at 5 hours but I reckon the average DIY mechanic can do it in about half that time assuming everything goes smoothly - if you need to change them and would like a "how to" based on my own experience, trial and error (mostly error) and serious examples of sods law drop me a line

Andy

 

[Slaphead]

the self levelling pump rarely fails - the weakest link is the spheres and they last approx 100k miles. Don't bother with non MB parts in this case it's worth the reassurance knowing you've got the "real thing" not a refurbed unit.

Given that this particular TE has done 166k I should assume the spheres are, at best, on their last legs (no pun intended).

Andy, is there any visual clue as to the condition of the spheres? leaks etc?

 

[andy_k]

no, just drive the car - if it's smooth then they are OK if it's bouncy or harsh at the rear then there's a good chance they've failed.

They give no warning though as the usual reason for failure is (as was pointed out earlier) the internal diaphram splitting.

You are right though, at 166k if they are the original spheres then they are due for replacement. If the car has a full service history check receipts around the 100k miles mark.

Andy

 

[Slaphead]

bit of an update (out of politeness!)

The suspension seems ok, should last another good while anyway... a rear wheel bearing needs replacing and the central locking is a bit iffy but the guy selling it will look after those - although the price will go up for parts/labour. The missus is still not 100% sure and as this car will effectivly be hers she has final say... but she likes driving mine so... :wink:

 

[Slaphead]

Another update... whether you want it or not! :wink:

I had a look in the Buy & Sell on Thursday and spotted another White 1990 200TE and decided to have a look at it, it had a full MB Main dealer service history and seemed to be in good nick.

It was a 2 hour drive to see it and immidiately I knew it was a dealer, albeit a casual one but the other cars around the front of the house seemed ok so I decided to test drive it anyway. It was clean, a bit tatty but with an honest 150k I'd expect that. The auto box was smooth and the engine, tyres and electrics all seemed fine. We started at ?3500 but I drove it away fro ?2900 with little to do to her for while.

All in all I'm happy with two w124s outside the house

 

[190]

not sure where you got those prices from 190, but they do seem cheap.

The accumulator spheres on the rear axle are £135 a pair from Mercedes (you must change the pair)

the struts are mega expensive (about £500 a pair) but there are alternatives which cost about £250 a pair

the self levelling pump rarely fails - the weakest link is the spheres and they last approx 100k miles. Don't bother with non MB parts in this case it's worth the reassurance knowing you've got the "real thing" not a refurbed unit.

Unlike Citroens, it's not a five minute job to change the sheres, MB book the job at 5 hours but I reckon the average DIY mechanic can do it in about half that time assuming everything goes smoothly - if you need to change them and would like a "how to" based on my own experience, trial and error (mostly error) and serious examples of sods law drop me a line

Andy

Prices are from http://www.eurocarparts.com/

 

[andy_k]

thanks 190 - that's good to know - although when I phoned ECP to ask about the spheres they quoted a price higher than the dealers.

I'm not sure if the £50 ones are recon/refurb units but having done the job on two W124s I wouldn't economise and put cheap ones on with the risk they may not last as long as original parts

Andy