well, the deal finally went through! it took two months of talking everything out, matching up schedules, getting a third party to take a look at her, talking to previous owners mechanic, talking to people who had seen her in person, getting the details right, and getting her shipped, but i finally have her in my garage!
1984 Euro 280E. amazing condition original thistle green metallic on the most amazing and immaculate dark olive green cloth interior. the interior is literally flawless. manual crank windows, push button sunroof, rear headrests, trunk triangle, german first aid kit. only 106k miles showing with about another 4k to add before the conversion. the cars second owner bought her in 1986 from a car lot in germany (sill has a cool little dealer sticker on the bottom right corner of the windshield) and had her shipped over. did everything necessary to keep her running perfectly and looking great. sold to the guy i bought her from, who kept her in a heated garage and barely drove her. now she's mine! here's the sellers photo set, i don't have any pics yet as she isn't cleaned up from the trip and it's freezing here, she's garaged and a little torn apart already!
http://s952.photobucket.com/albums/ae5/davidseuro280e/?start=all. the hubbies aren't on her, just bundts because i've already got plans for wheels...
not 20 minutes after she was off the truck i had those terrible US DOT lights off of her and installed bosch euros with the inserts painted black as well as euro orange corner lights. the vacuum adjust works perfectly! then off came the black plastic cowl vents and on went the chrome. i've got euro tail light covers and a euro trailer hitch on the way in february as well as the wheels. 16" BBS RAs, came to me looking like this:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3007/2636053071_7194925811.jpg. they've been sent out to have the lip polished and the centers finished in black. i'll get the windows tinted dark to match, a look i absolutely love on these cars.
so i have the whole winter ahead of me to get this cars few issues sorted out. the biggest one is engine oil leaks. came to me with a known leak around the crank seal and a possible outward seeping leak from the head gasket. the oil pan is wet too but i think that's just the washer on the plug. the central locking doesn't work so some troubleshooting has to occur as well. i've got the right spark plugs to install but the wires look dingy as well as the rotor, distributor, and coil. the ICM is original and i had one of those go on me so i might just install a new one to avoid future issues. there's a problem with either the fuel pump or relay cutting out when the car is driven long distances so that'll be tackled too. and then there's the "getting familiar with the emissions, vacuum, and air flow systems" thing. this one has an oxygen sensor, EGR, and Lambda all hooked up, as well as some air hoses that my '78 cali did not have. very confusing looking. i'd really like to get in there and tear her up but i'm unsure of how much i can take out and re-plumb without messing up that Lambda thing. i want that engine to run unencumbered with emissions b.s. so i'll be back on here begging for help soon!
and the only thing i was really bummed about when i got her, she has no rear speakers! i thought 4 speakers were standard so i never even asked about it but i guess not. had big plans for new stereo, speakers, amp, and sub but, a sub with just two front 4" speakers? not sure how to proceed with that one...
so, that's my winter project. want to have her on the road early April and just can't wait!
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