MB Spares & Service Newsletter No.147
August 2018
Hello, in this Newsletter we answer a question we are
being asked a lot, news of the upcoming inaugural OZBENZ National meet and our
ongoing search for more staff.
What happened to all
the spare parts?
We have had a lot of questions as to “what happened to all
the spare parts” Well, a lot of it is slowly being used up though our workshop
and now nearly 5 months on from closing our spare parts division, we have
started to list some of it up on eBay. This will be a long process with our aim
to list around 40-50 parts per week. You can check them out at our eBay store. To make things easier parts can be searched
by the model they are suited to. You can find these categories on the l/h margin of the
listing. Just to slightly complicate things, some parts are suited
to a number of models. Below are some examples of just some of the parts listed
so far.
1x A124 821
28 51 r/h/f elec seat switch
9x A111 758 51 58 boot star W108/109 sedans and w111/112
coupe/cabriolets
1x A163 820 22 42 heater fan assembly early W163 ML
3x A129 820 03 66 l/h tail lamp lense early R129
1x A639 680 00 07 center console with heater vents W639
Vito/Viano
1x A124 821 28 51 electric seat switch
1x W113 timber set
1x A123 910 03 05 seat adjuster handle
1x W906 Sprinter cab chassis towbar
2x A230 421 09 12 CLK55 sports pack brake discs
We will also be listing some of the more significant USED
parts on eBay and advertising them via social media. Here is an example of a
very rare set of pre merger AMG alloy wheels that we have listed on eBay at the
moment.
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/263893015748
Automotive
technicians wanted!
Since publishing the list of back logged work a few weeks
back we can now report that we have managed to catch up a little. The list is
much shorter, but for those of you who understand how much work each job is, you
will realise there have been two mammoth jobs added to it.
W140 600SEL -engine
rebuild
W108 280SE - diff repairs
W109 300SEL 6.3 – leaking rear main oil seal
W109 300SEL 6.3 – oil leak from head gasket (not the same car)
W111 230S - head service
W108 280SEL - engine rebuild
W114 250 - fit roll cage and
reinforce body for 2019 Peking to Paris
Some pictures of various recent jobs are attached to this
newsletter.
With all this work we are looking for an Automotive
Technician to join our team. Our workshop does everything from basic servicing
to Concours winning restorations. We pride ourselves in being able to repair
parts, not just fit parts. The successful applicant will require skills in
basic machining, welding and other repair techniques.
A successful applicant will be able to demonstrate a wide
range of these repair techniques and excellent diagnostic skills. They need to
be able to manage their own jobs and work unsupervised. Our workshop is well
equipped, with factory tools and a wide range of factory repair information.
On offer is a full time position, but we would discuss part
time options with the right applicant. Salary is by negotiation.
You
can find the job advertisement here on seek.
OZBENZ National meet.
On the 02 May 2002 at 16:08:38 OZBENZ, Australia’s first
online Mercedes-Benz community, came into being with its first ever post. This
makes OZBENZ one of the oldest online Mercedes-Benz groups world wide. It was
started by a small group of enthusiasts and sponsored by MB Spares &
Service. Since then the technology has
changed and so have the various online platforms that the community use. Today
OZBENZ is a community spread across Facebook, an online Forum and Twitter using
these mediums to share their passion for the three pointed star.
The first OZBENZ National meet is planned for this September,
joining with the ACT car clubs German Auto day. The event is open to all OZBENZ
members and to MB Spares & Service Newsletter subscribers. If interested
and you have a FaceBook account please indicate so by following the link below.
To attend the dinner, you will have to notify us by e-mail, (see below).
We look forward to meeting you at what promises to be a
great weekend for Mercedes-Benz Enthusiasts.
https://www.facebook.com/events/291885414889336/
https://ozbenz.net/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=25165
https://www.mbspares.com.au/Information/OZBENZ-National-meet.aspx
The schedule, Saturday 22/09/2018
BYO Lunch Cotter Reserve – The
Cotter Reserve is a great meeting point to start off this weekend.
There is plenty of parking, BBQ facilities and a great playground for younger
Mercedes-Benz enthusiasts. We will meet at 12:00 - 12:30pm.
Paddy’s River Rd cruise – Around 2:30pm we will head off on
one of the ACT’s iconic drives, heading south on the Paddy’s River Rd to
Tharwa. Those interested in tourist attractions we will be passing the Canberra
Deep Space Communication Complex and the Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve.
OZBENZ enthusiasts dinner – To be held in the style of the MB
Spares Spanners and Sausages nights, with gourmet sausages from our
local butcher. Held at the MB Spares workshop 16 Lyell St Fyshwick from 6:30pm.
This is the only catered event of the weekend at $5.00 per head and as such
will require a
formal RSVP to this e-mail address by the 19th of September to
attend. BYO drinks and kids
are most welcome.
Sunday 23/09/2018
Early Morning cruise – the morning will start with a
cruise around some of Canberra’s landmarks winding up at Pialligo where the
German Auto Day is held. We will leave at 8:30am sharp from the front of Old
parliament House. Arrive early for a chat and to pick up your route instructions.
ACT German Auto Day – OZBENZ will be displaying as a separate
group to the Mercedes-Benz club of the ACT at this years German
Auto day. The event is held at the Pialligo Estate on the
banks of the Molonglo River with all cars required to be in position by 9:30am.
Catering is available onsite supplied by Pialligo Estate.
OZBENZ Show & Shine – As part of the display we will be
awarding prizes in a very different style of Show & Shine. We are still
working on the categories, but they will definitely not be the traditional
style of awards. Awards will be made at 2:30pm allowing interstate members time
to head off home. Sydney is 3hrs down the road and Melbourne around 7-8 hours
ideally with 2 drivers, so you can be back at work on Monday. Brisbane and
Adelaide guys you might have to take a day off!
Accommodation – Canberra offers a wide range of
accommodation for all budgets. If you need any assistance with accommodation
options please
contact us here.
For more
information see the pinned posts on Facebook and on the Forum. We look forward
to meeting you and sharing your passion for the three pointed star.
W 113 Pagoda series was the first sports car in
the world with a safety body.
The article
below is from the MB Classic Center Media unit and whilst it does have a few
mistakes, such as listing the W110 as being around in 1959, it demonstrates
just how far ahead of other manufactures Mercedes-Benz were in the 60’s. The test car was a W111 body, not a W110 as
they were not released until 1961.
Stuttgart – The Mercedes-Benz SL, W 113 series,
launched in 1963, was the first sports car in the world with a safety body. It
was designed so that the area impacted upon – both at the front and at the rear
– would deform, thus reducing or completely dissipating the kinetic energy in
the corresponding area. The vehicle interior, the actual passenger compartment,
on the other hand, was designed to be rigid in order to act as a safety cell
for the vehicle occupants. The safety body also contributed to the protection
of other road users, which was an explicit development goal for Mercedes-Benz:
it also absorbs a part of the kinetic energy for the other – insufficiently
protected – road user involved in an accident.
The issue of the improvement of passive safety
had been hanging in the air for quite some time. At Mercedes-Benz it was
promoted by engineer Béla Barényi, considered the father of the vehicle safety
body. In order to test how the safety body responded, the first simulated crash
test was carried out in Sindelfingen with a test car of the W 110/4 series on
10 September 1959 as a crash against a stationary obstacle. At that time the
first vehicle built according to the new bodywork concept was already on the market:
the W 111 series, presented to the press on 1 August 1959 with its six-cylinder
models 220, 220 S and 220 SE.
This had consequences for the W 113 series SL
because its dimensional concept had already been laid down in October 1958. At
the same time a decision was made in favour of Barényi’s safety body. The
previous plan – to add a more powerful-engined and cultivated variant alongside
the Mercedes-Benz 190 SL (W 121 I series) by equipping it with the six-cylinder
engine from the 220 (W 111) saloon – was abandoned at this point.
As the floor assembly for the new mid and
executive-class cars ranging from 190 D (W 110 series) to 300 SE (W 112/3
series) was already based on the principle of the safety body, the same floor
assembly was used for the W 113 series of the SL, which was being developed at
the same time. Although Barényi’s reflections were spelled out in a patent,
they were not at the time as well-founded and confirmed as they were later to
be by a series of crash tests. The accident test carried out with the W 110/4
mentioned above remained the only test in 1959. In 1960, the tests were
expanded and also included roll-over tests. With them it was possible to
demonstrate in practice the basic demands for the greatest possible rigidity of
the passenger compartment against impact from any arbitrary direction, and the
assigning of limited rigidity to the front and rear sections with the object of
reducing the violence of the impact through their planned, energy-consuming
deformation.
With the W 113 series of the SL, the concept
was applied to a sports car for the first time; at the same time, the steering
gear was moved back to the firewall, the steering column yielded to axial
compression and additionally featured a joint to prevent the feared lance effect,
there was an impact plate on the steering wheel, and later, in the 250 SL
launched in 1966, an impact absorber was featured. These safety features were
not offered by any other vehicle of this category anywhere in the world. The
same is true for the elimination of hard corners and edges on control buttons
and knobs on the dashboard, with its padded upper and lower edges, and the
recessed door handles.
With each of the following SL generations, the
issue of safety has been raised to new, exemplary levels. For example, series R
129 (1989 to 2001) set impressive standards with its sophisticated safety
concept for an open-top sports car, including among other things a roll-over
bar, which can be deployed to protect occupants within just 0.3 seconds in the
event of the imminent danger of the vehicle overturning.
So that’s it for this Newsletter,
John and Sandra Green.
