Waiheke
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- May 7, 2022
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- Your Mercedes
- 2008 W245 B170
I found this forum while looking for photos on how to remove the passenger side door mirror glass on a W245.
About me:
I bought my first Mercedes in the US in 1987 when the W124 came out. Bought it new, 300D (diesel), and kept it five years. Replaced it with a 1986 280E (petrol) that I kept until we moved overseas in 1997. We drove the 280E across the US - the most comfortable crossing ever - before selling it and moving to the other end of the earth: an island (Waiheke) off an island (North Island, New Zealand) at the bottom of the planet.
Before the W124 I was an Alfa racing guy (I still have the 1969 Alfa Spider in the garage awaiting restoration) and BMW enthusiast because I was not fond of driving German tanks. The W124 was a game changer for me.
When we moved to New Zealand in 1997, I bought a 1982 280GE (G-wagon) that was RHD and impounded at the Port of Baltimore by US customs. Stuck on the dock for two years because it was a UK car, yet under 25 years (it had to be crash tested to be allowed in the US). I bought it sight-unseen for $1,200, had it shipped to NZ, spent 10X the purchase price getting it roadworthy, and still have it. - now a 40-year old antique. The inspector required the shotgun rack and dog cage be removed however - the previous UK owner must have been of the tweedy set and the jump seats had been torn apart by canine teeth. I went to the auction of the Xena-Warrior Princess film set and bought the leather room, and found an upholsterer who used to redo new luxury cars in custom leather, so the G-Wagon is done in Italian handbag leather on the trim and 1/4" saddle leather on the seats. With a horsey family and dogs, I highly recommend saddle leather. It takes infinite abuse and looks better for it.
The G-wagon has 407,000 miles and going strong, although the fuel mileage is painful... last fill up in town before taking the ferry back cost $60 and the odometer showed it had driven 50 miles. Ouch, that's over a dollar a mile. I use it to pull stumps, haul tonnes of stone, collect large parties from the ferry and generally abuse it as a farm truck.
When we emigrated, I also brought three Bristols with me (405DH, 409, 411-S1) but eventually sold them because they were not suitable for island life. The 405 Drophead ended up back in the factory in Filton where the Bristol man who built it in 1955 rebuilt it in 1998. He remembered making it... as did Sid Lovesy, the shop boss who had been there since the factory started making cars in 1946. It was a basket case when I bought it, still a basket case when I sold it, although it had consumed massive amounts of cash by that time, and had been shipped around the world before being given a new lease on life by the factory and a very wealthy London banker who wanted a brand new 1955 car. The other two Bristols were bought by an Auckland collector who has a stable - literally on a horse racecourse - filled with classic cars that he restores. I sold the last Bristol shortly after the factory went into final liquidation meaning the parts supply was coming to an end.
Our current Mercedes includes a 2001 R170 SLK-230 and a 2008 W245 B170, both JDM. The B170 is a shopping cart with a panoramic moon roof and the SLK is the summer car, although thanks to global warming, we have had glorious weather deep into autumn (today is 22° and sunny... the southern hemisphere equivalent of Nov 8), thus this morning a top-down drive to the beach for a shirt-sleeve walk.
I'm currently considering replacing the R170 with a R172 SLK200. I was never a fan of the R171 nose - reminds me of a LOTR Orc nose, but the R172's are creeping into the top of my budget range. Only concern are the electronics. The newer the car, the more sophisticated the electronics, and even with an Autel MP808, there is a lot to chase down. I may ask a few questions from time to time.
I also would like to replace the B170 with a B250E, but finding an electric W246 in NZ is not easy. It would be perfect for our limited driving distance, but reportedly only ten were imported from the UK.
Other non-MB cars include a 2004 Jaguar XJ6 that we keep in the city for cross-country touring and a 2005 Honda CR-V for house guests and unpaved roads on our island.
Our bucket list includes flying to the UK, buying an almost classic (bottom end of sales curve before it begins to rise) and doing a summer motor tour of Scotland. Our grandson is a Macdonald and I will need to learn his lore to tell stories around the fire in a few years. Not sure if I will look for a Mercedes or a Jag.
About me:
I bought my first Mercedes in the US in 1987 when the W124 came out. Bought it new, 300D (diesel), and kept it five years. Replaced it with a 1986 280E (petrol) that I kept until we moved overseas in 1997. We drove the 280E across the US - the most comfortable crossing ever - before selling it and moving to the other end of the earth: an island (Waiheke) off an island (North Island, New Zealand) at the bottom of the planet.
Before the W124 I was an Alfa racing guy (I still have the 1969 Alfa Spider in the garage awaiting restoration) and BMW enthusiast because I was not fond of driving German tanks. The W124 was a game changer for me.
When we moved to New Zealand in 1997, I bought a 1982 280GE (G-wagon) that was RHD and impounded at the Port of Baltimore by US customs. Stuck on the dock for two years because it was a UK car, yet under 25 years (it had to be crash tested to be allowed in the US). I bought it sight-unseen for $1,200, had it shipped to NZ, spent 10X the purchase price getting it roadworthy, and still have it. - now a 40-year old antique. The inspector required the shotgun rack and dog cage be removed however - the previous UK owner must have been of the tweedy set and the jump seats had been torn apart by canine teeth. I went to the auction of the Xena-Warrior Princess film set and bought the leather room, and found an upholsterer who used to redo new luxury cars in custom leather, so the G-Wagon is done in Italian handbag leather on the trim and 1/4" saddle leather on the seats. With a horsey family and dogs, I highly recommend saddle leather. It takes infinite abuse and looks better for it.
The G-wagon has 407,000 miles and going strong, although the fuel mileage is painful... last fill up in town before taking the ferry back cost $60 and the odometer showed it had driven 50 miles. Ouch, that's over a dollar a mile. I use it to pull stumps, haul tonnes of stone, collect large parties from the ferry and generally abuse it as a farm truck.
When we emigrated, I also brought three Bristols with me (405DH, 409, 411-S1) but eventually sold them because they were not suitable for island life. The 405 Drophead ended up back in the factory in Filton where the Bristol man who built it in 1955 rebuilt it in 1998. He remembered making it... as did Sid Lovesy, the shop boss who had been there since the factory started making cars in 1946. It was a basket case when I bought it, still a basket case when I sold it, although it had consumed massive amounts of cash by that time, and had been shipped around the world before being given a new lease on life by the factory and a very wealthy London banker who wanted a brand new 1955 car. The other two Bristols were bought by an Auckland collector who has a stable - literally on a horse racecourse - filled with classic cars that he restores. I sold the last Bristol shortly after the factory went into final liquidation meaning the parts supply was coming to an end.
Our current Mercedes includes a 2001 R170 SLK-230 and a 2008 W245 B170, both JDM. The B170 is a shopping cart with a panoramic moon roof and the SLK is the summer car, although thanks to global warming, we have had glorious weather deep into autumn (today is 22° and sunny... the southern hemisphere equivalent of Nov 8), thus this morning a top-down drive to the beach for a shirt-sleeve walk.
I'm currently considering replacing the R170 with a R172 SLK200. I was never a fan of the R171 nose - reminds me of a LOTR Orc nose, but the R172's are creeping into the top of my budget range. Only concern are the electronics. The newer the car, the more sophisticated the electronics, and even with an Autel MP808, there is a lot to chase down. I may ask a few questions from time to time.
I also would like to replace the B170 with a B250E, but finding an electric W246 in NZ is not easy. It would be perfect for our limited driving distance, but reportedly only ten were imported from the UK.
Other non-MB cars include a 2004 Jaguar XJ6 that we keep in the city for cross-country touring and a 2005 Honda CR-V for house guests and unpaved roads on our island.
Our bucket list includes flying to the UK, buying an almost classic (bottom end of sales curve before it begins to rise) and doing a summer motor tour of Scotland. Our grandson is a Macdonald and I will need to learn his lore to tell stories around the fire in a few years. Not sure if I will look for a Mercedes or a Jag.
