A couple of junkyard finds

"Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing." (granfury) 02/12/2017 at 18:58 • Filed to: None

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The MB badge is surprisingly heavy, but the again, the W126 was a model of solidity so that should come as no surprise. I believe the Mazda badge was from an RX-8 (I grabbed that one a few months back)

XJDano > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/12/2017 at 19:04

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What yard? There a few decent ones around to harvest neat things like this.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > XJDano 02/12/2017 at 19:16

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Today I went to the one off of Adelaide in north city, and on Friday afternoon I went to the one across the river in Washington Park. Normally the one in IL has a better selection and is easier to walk around in since everything’s on pavement, but I was surprised by all of the good stuff found in north city today. Lots of Saabs, Jags, BMWs, Audis and other interesting stuff (I saw a nice B6 Passat with intact VR6; I just want to grab that engine for some future project).

When I have a little more energy I’ll sort through the pics I took today and put them in a post.

fintail > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/12/2017 at 19:20

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W126 500 SEL is somewhat uncommon on this side of the pond- either a grey market car, or US-spec MY 1984-85 car.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > fintail 02/12/2017 at 19:24

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And this badge was found laying on the ground right next to a 420SEL - no 500SEL in sight. I question whether this is really a 420 as I thought those all had the flat disc wheels; these look to be too early to be on a 420, but maybe someone decided to downsize to the older style.

XJDano > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/12/2017 at 19:31

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Pick-nPull. I have got a few axles and transmission from there.

They do have inventory now at Row52.com. Set zip & mileage and it’ll come up.

The one across from the racetrack is huge. Riverside? Maybe 3-4x the size of PnP. They do recent stuff to at B’s up front, but that’s not a pick place.

I’ve never been to the pavement one, unless that is on same street as Hollywood strip club, I didn’t have the $2 entry fee.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > XJDano 02/12/2017 at 19:41

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Yeah, that’s the one next to Hollywood, the one with the $2 entry fee. Sometimes I just go with my camera just to wander around. I’ve grabbed a bunch of small items over there that they didn’t bother to charge me for; I guess they figured my $2 covered the price.

I haven’t dealt with the one up by the racetrack since I tend to like to wander around the yards. I did deal with one over in Alorton when I needed a window for the 5 after a break-in; quite nice to find the cheapest price in the country for the part I needed was also the closest. Today was the first time I spotted a Mazda5 at a PnP junkyard, although it was a 2008 and didn’t have any parts I could use on my 2012 despite the similarities.

fintail > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/12/2017 at 19:45

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Good observation. You are correct about the wheels, 420SEL never had bundts. That car is definitely not a 420SEL, as it has the earlier style lower cladding, and a non-airbag steering wheel. It’s a pre-1986 car, maybe a 500SEL (but I think all US spec 500SEL had a driver’s airbag), so it very well could be a federalized Euro car.

Actually, now that I look at it, this is almost definitely a Euro car - as it appears to have the manual height adjustment switch for the headlights. Some of those parts might have a little value.

Lumpy44, Proprietor Of Fine Gif > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/12/2017 at 19:47

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They charge for those?

XJDano > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/12/2017 at 19:53

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Speedway was the one I was thinking of. Riverside is down the street from PnP. Riverside is $1 last time I was there as was speedway. B’s is recycled parts and storefront.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > fintail 02/12/2017 at 19:54

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‘Bundts’ - that’s the term I was trying to remember. Now that you mention it, the cladding is also a dead giveaway. I wish I spent a little more time checking it out as it seems to be a little more interesting than your average USDM W126.

I’d still love to have a W126. Probably the best looking one I’ve seen, and the one I’d like to replicate, belonged to a cellist with the orchestra I used to work for. Black 560SEL, polished 16" factory wheels, grey lower cladding, black-out tint on the windows and slightly lowered. No body kit or oversized wheels. A seriously sharp looking ride.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Lumpy44, Proprietor Of Fine Gif 02/12/2017 at 19:59

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Nah, they usually let you take them, especially if you’re buying other stuff. I’ve received lots of small bits and pieces for nothing, but would be willing to pay a buck or two if it’s something interesting.

fintail > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/12/2017 at 20:02

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They could have all kinds of odd options. Popular ones are those headlights, fire extinguisher under seat, trip computer (I can see this car lacks that), etc.

I wouldn’t mind a later car like that 560 on earlier Monoblocks, either. It’s a timeless car, and they won’t depreciate any further, good ones are already being stashed away.

Just after the turn of the century, I bought a 300SE, and used it as a DD for a few years. It became miled up, but I was the second owner, and it had been cared for. I was still in my 20s, and wanted something faster, so I sold it. It was a lovely car, I like blue cars, so this pushed my buttons:

I later found a set of chrome wheels and Euro lights (don’t comment on the corners, it was a thing at the time):

I sold it back in 05 at around 200K, I should check and see if it is still on the road.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > fintail 02/12/2017 at 20:09

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Nice! Love the Euros, and I understand about the clear corners. I resisted the temptation on the E34 525i 5MT, with the major external modifications being tint, a lowered front and E39 wheels. I was trying to preserve some load carrying capability and wanted to even out the gap between the top of the tire and the bottom of the fender opening. I also liked that slightly aggressive rake that came from lowering just the front.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/12/2017 at 20:11

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Your keyboard is disgusting.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 02/12/2017 at 20:15

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Yes, yes it is. I will admit this. This is the downside to eating at my desk. It’s about time I pull it apart and clean it out. I’ve been using this one for 8-9 years (and my trackball for about 17) and don’t want to switch even though I have plenty of newer units.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/12/2017 at 20:16

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Eat in front of the keyboard, not above it.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 02/12/2017 at 20:26

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Not enough room. Plus there will still be gunk transferred from my hands to the keys.

fintail > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/12/2017 at 21:09

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Those wheels suit the car very well, I like multi spoke wheels such as that. I’ve never lowered a car, none of my cars would wear it well. My cars tend to be a bit grandfatherly :)

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > fintail 02/12/2017 at 21:27

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I’ve done a few (Vanagon, E21, E34, Rabbit Pickup), but I don’t think I’d do it again. The E21 was being prepped for autocrossing, so it was no longer a daily driver and thus the lack of compliance in the suspension was acceptable. The Vanagon was never going to be a canyon carver, but it looked a little cooler. Despite my best efforts, I could never make the Rabbit Pickup handle worth a damn; I wanted a faster, lighter-weight GTI, but the crude rear suspension, poor weight distribution and long wheelbase made it good for nothing but straightline acceleration (scaryfast, with a built 2.1l motor). The E34 handled the curves quite well, but it was a tad uncomfortable.

The problem tends to be the choice of components. From what I’ve read, with a lowering spring you should actually soften up some of the other components, like shocks/struts, in order to achieve the same ride comfort. This is especially critical when going from 65-series tires to 40/45-series. I put on lowering springs, low-profile wheels and tires, as well as stiffer struts, and this made it a bit painful at times.

I was thinking of lowering the Mazda5 because I like the lowered look, but I’m too old and have too much back pain to put myself through that again. I might get some 17" wheels and tires, but that’s about it. I’m also not as aggressive a driver as I used to be, so wringing maximum g’s out of corners really doesn’t interest me as much these days. If I want that I’ll get a Miata as a second car and leave my DD as my comfort car.

fintail > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 02/13/2017 at 21:10

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I’ve never done it, never will. My cars just aren’t suited to it, and I am to the point where I like to preserve a little ride quality. It’s also money down the drain to me, my old car has enough needs before I start burning cash modifying the suspension. When I had a W210 E55, I considered finding 19" wheels, but lowering that didn’t seem worth the effort either.

I got behind an E34 in traffic today (530i, maybe). Turn signals must have been broken :)

My current fleet - these don’t need to be lower than stock: