Valve Bounce

Radio Gaga

Introducing the Retrosound radio. At last a neat way to install a modern radio in an old car. Available from Moss Europe. I'm not sure if I'd use one myself but this is a really good way to get all the modern options without having to invest in a modern retro style Becker.

I don't think it will fit the slimfit W111 coupe slot, but would be ideal for the Triumph.

 

Sitting pretty

The front seats in the Coupe have been in need of some attention for a while now. This was especially true of the driver’s seat which was stuffed with oddments of foam by a previous owner to stop it collapsing. The original leather the Mercedes used was coloured only on its surface and in places the colour was worn through, plus there were a number of splits and cracks. The leather was all a bit dried out when I bought the car so I’ve been regularly feeding it and it now seems to be good and supple. My main concern was to keep as much as possible of the original seats and blend in any repairs to the rest of the interior. I’ve seen many restored cars with new leather and it never seems to come close to matching the look and feel of the original.

The question was who could do the work, I wanted someone specialising in 1960s Mercedes interiors and leather but there don’t seem to be many experts in the UK. After talking to a few people Kevin O’Keeffe’s name came up a few times and I eventually tracked him down (don’t bother trying Google he’s not there!). Kevin’s main business is 1950’s SL restoration but is taking on more and more 60’s coupes and cabriolets. He had a 300SL Gullwing, a 600 Grosser with the head off and several 190SL in his workshop when I was there. He did his apprenticeship at Jack Barclays on Bentleys but has specialised in old Mercedes for many many years so knows what is doing.

BEFORE

He has a fabulous workshop which seems completely detached from modern life, it’s buried down a leafy single track Surrey lane just inside the M25. He dug out some original Mercedes leather from his store with the exactly the right grain and thickness which was a great start. This was used to replace a couple of driver’s seat panels, then he re-stuffed the squab flutes, fixed a couple of springs, restored the horse hair pads, and filled in a couple of cracks then re-coloured the whole lot. I am very pleased with the result. The seats came up well and do blend in with the rest of the interior well. It is difficult to tell what work has been done.

I would normally leave a link to Kevin’s web site but he hasn’t got one, finding him is half the fun…

AFTER

Clarkson's Mercedes 600 Grosser vs. Rolls Royce

The 600 Grosser (or 'Mercedes Big' as Clarkson like to call it) gets the Top Gear treatment...

Top Gear Mercedes Benz vs. Rolls Royce big car cha

Classics on the Common 2008

The Classics on the Common event in Harpenden goes from strength to strength. It's run on the last Wednesday evening in July, this year the weather was perfect and there was a huge turn out. There must have been over a thousand cars on the common and a big turn out of spectators having a nose around.

There is always a diverse mix of cars from to humble to the exotic and they are all jumbled in the order you arrive so you'll have an Amazon parked up next to a 356, and Bristol next to a TVR.

There was a very friendly bunch of people and it was very well organised by the local police.

Taking pictures pretty difficult as the sun was so low in the sky, but I had a go...