More mechanical progress

New rear axle mounts have been sourced by Will. He has also had the brake drums turned and blasted and new brake linings fitted to the brake shoes.

Blasted

Some of the major mechanocal componets are back from the blasters and ready to go off for power coating.

Mechanical rebuild progress

All the running gear has been removed and major components are going to be blasted and powder coated.

The engine is due to be placed on a stand with a replaced water pump and run to enable compression tests etc to be carried out. Hopefully we can avoid a major engine rebuild as the car has relatively low mileage.

External trim

The front bumper is almost perfect having been factory replaced at some time. Only issue is one missing aluminium spacer between 2 of the sections which Will is sourcing for me.

The main blade parts of the rear bumper are good as well. Rechroming replacement of the rear licence plate light covers and other small parts might be needed though.

Interior retrim progress

The new seat covers, made with Austian sourced leather/kits, are being fitted. Here is what one of the backrests looks like with its newly rechromed frame.

Bodywork strip down

Here are some photos of the bodywork strip down underway. A few extra holes have appeared but nothing dramatic. the rockers/sills had been brazed on and have been removed for replacement. The front end has suffered an impact at some stage, the good news is it has a new front section and factory bumper but the joining up to the front inner panels left a little to be desired and will need attention/

Major work has begun

After returning to work and reviewing how to approach putting the car back on the road we have changed our minds and decided to revert to the original plan of having everything done State side. this decision means that the mechanical work gets done by Will at S & S Imports as intended and the bodywork goes out to a local bodywork specialist who has worked closely on other Mercedes projects with Will.

Contracting out work on cars is something I have never done before and certainly not thousands of miles away, preferring to do the work myself. I am extremely confident in the work that Will produces and his attention to detail and he is now going full steam ahead to make use of the time in the body shop which we have waited for over 2 years for.

Here is a quick picture of the body being stripped, loads more to follow.

Body work plans

Due to a change in work arrangements we have decided to concentrate on the mechanical, structural and trim aspects of the car and save up for paint work to be done at a later date here in the UK.

The plan now is to press ahead with the interior, this is already underway. The mechanics will undergo a major overhaul with Will at S & S Imports as planned but the body work will be restricted to repairing the passenger side wheel well and part of the rear boot along with repairing several small areas of the chassis side rails and inner wings.

Will plans to get the underneath carefully blasted, repaired and repainted before completing the mechanical repairs.

This will leave us with a very usable car with a great interior which we can use for a number of years until we can afford a quality respray. We will also be able to get to know the car better and decide if we do want to take it back to its original colour scheme or leave it silver like at present.

Progress with seat frames

The seat frames have now come back from having the chrome on them renewed and are ready for being rebuilt with the new leather covers. The pink tinge to the paint work is just a trick of the light with Will's camera when he took the shots.

Seat frames

Once the seats were stripped down the frames were found to be in excellent condition and other than rechroming the section at the bottom of the seat back rests, the seat adjusted and a touch of paint nothing is needed to them.

Will pointed out that the crayon marks for the build\upholstery option can still be seen on the frames.

Interior retrim

When the car was bought it had cloth/nylon over covers fitted and glued over the original leather ones.

Whilst the door panels and tops were reasonable 40 years had taken their toll and it. The carpets had seen better days and when Will removed the seats and front rubber mating a few mice nests were discovered along with missing wooden floor bording.
It was decided to undertake a full retrim on the car including carpets, seats, the hood cover,and leather around the hood cover stowage area. I have also decided to fit a rear jump seat to the car.

The materials have now arrived and the trimmer is getting ready to start work on the car. The match for the leather was found to be best in the glove box area which was unaffected by light etc.

Radiator

When The radiator was removed it has heavily silted up and not looking good overall. It was decided that a new core would be advisable and this has now been fitted.

What restoration is planned?

Priorities in the restoration are as follows, Rebuild the running gear, particularly front and rear suspension and brakes, retrim the interior and hood/hard top lining, including adding a rear jump seat. There is some small body work required to the righthand wheel well in the boot and some repairs to the inner front wings.

After this, and subject to money the priorities are a repaint in the original colours and rechroming some items.
here is a photo of each area to give an idea of what is required. (all courtesy of Will Samples)

On the plus side for the car, whilst it has been poorly maintained during its last few years on the road it is very original and a good starting point for a nice drivable car.

The Car's original details

Our 190SL is a 1962 model and was originally DB166 - Blue/Gray with a black hood and hard top. It was delivered new to its first owner on 13 January 1962 in Oslo. It then spent the majority of its life in Germany, where it was resprayed by Mercedes in the current all silver scheme, before being exported by its owner with her back to her home in the US.

Here is a photo of a 190SL in what I believe is the original colour scheme.

Here are the culprits!!!!

Here is a photo of Hannah & Jon House in Hannah's car that we drove across in California and which persuaded us to finally buy a 190SL.

How I found our 190SL

I have admired the 190SL since a trip as a school boy to the Mercedes museum in Germany in the 1960s. I often looked at buying one but never got round to it.

On a trip to California in June 2004 I drove the 190SL belonging to the wife of a friend and really enjoyed it, as did my wife and daughter. He also told me about a second 190SL he had bought which had been in one family from new and later told me he had decided to sell it .

I bought the car in July 2004 and it rests at the moment with leading 190SL expert Will Samples at S & S Imports in Dallas, Texas awaiting restoration work.