[E320Cabriolet]

Unfortunetly, the Shinshine state wreaks havoc on any and all the plastic on the interior of my 90's Mercs.

I have a 1995 E320 Cabriolet & a 1996 SL320 Convertible as well.

From my understanding they have the same drivetrains, the E320 is In much better shape and only has 90,000 miles on it. Unfortunately the top doesn't go down and I was wondering if you guys knew of anybody who specializes in the Convertible mechanisms on Mercs in the SE area of the US (and what kinda price tag I'm looking at).

I'm also gathering that the SL320 ('96) is a far less special car in the sense that the '95 E320 Cabriolet is a much rarer care in that there were not many made or sold in the US? (please school me on any info if I'm wrong). I'm really a JDM speedfreak at heart and have always owned manual fast Japanese cars so I feel like a lost sheep but I do appreciate the culture surrounding the Vintage and "almost/near Vintage Merc" cars.

the outside of the 95 E320 is amazingly clean, the SL isn't bad either just the sun did it's damage on the paint and some of the interior.
inch
My first question is, if i decide to put money into the E320 I wanna get the top fixed so it can go down, lower it on some quality coilovers and a nice set of aftermarket wheels (BBS or something of the sort). I know exactly what brands I'd be looking at if I were talking about my old Z but I'm LOST in the euro car world. Any recommendations on coilovers or spring/strut combos for lowering an E320 Cabriolet roughly 2 inches? (adjustable would be ideal).

Another question I had was the seats in the SL are in MUCH better condition than the seats in the E320 and I'd love to swap them, does anybody know if they'd fit on the same rails, need different rails, or fit at all period? Other than the seats the E320 has a super clean interior (aside from the seats I just need to find the plastic parts that go around the rear-view mirror and the flip down sun-visors/mirrors.

But brass tax: Will 1996 SL320 seats fit in a 1995 E320 Cabriolet?

Anyways, look forward to chatting with you guys. I'll post pictures of the progression of the car(s).
Peace & Love!

 

[McQueen]

Greetings. A coupe of thoughts for you from a former 300ZX Twin Turbo hot rodder who spent a lot of money with the folks at Stillen back in the day. I moved on and up after that 10 year period and bought a 1993 500E and life hasn't been the same since. I currently have a 2001 ML55, a 2014 E350 and a 1995 E320 Cabriolet with 62,000 miles and can share a couple of things that might help.

First of all, there are 8 hydraulic rams for the top system that raise and lower the top, open panels, and lock things. I had 6 bad one ones when I got mine 8 years ago. They were $400-500 from Mercedes back then, not sure what the price would be now if they still have them in stock. I found a company called Top Hydraulics in Oregon that rebuilds them for around $75 and they are better than new. They have a website so Google them. Also I would recommend you have Mercedes or a Mercedes specialty shop do the work, It's a pretty complex project. Secondly, become familiar with Ebay if you aren't already. I found several parts over the last 8 years that were no longer available from Mercedes. Thirdly, I just found a company called Top Classic Cars LLC on Ebay. They 3-D print all of the plastic trim pieces for top levers and sun screen mounts. Check out there website also. Finally, I found a guy in Southern California who rebuilds the mechanism for the seatbelt presenters, There name is Universal German Auto Parts and you can google them if (when) you have that problem.

I'm not sure what to say about the suspension and wheels. I chose to keep mine stock and had the original wheels refinished. I would have chosen the AMG Mono Block if I wanted to change. Also, Tirerack has suspension parts available so check them out.

A couple of thoughts for you. The E320 is not a sports sedan, it's a comfortable touring car. You can spend a lot of time and money and not overcome some design characteristics. The transmission is an issue, it starts in second gear and you can't manually select a 1st gear start. The engine is smooth and reliable but will never be the kind of performance you are looking for. Also, I believe the seats in the Cabriolet are Recaros and likely better than the ones in the SL. I would find an upholstery shop and have them recovered, they may still be able to find actually seat covers. Otherwise, have them repair the old or make new ones. Hope this helps.