The Beginning...

I've always thought that the Mercedes 6.9 was truly one of the best cars ever built. Solid build quality, comfortable ride, and

gobs of torque. Recently the opportunity presented itself to pick up one of these rare automobiles, but in this case, some

assembly would be required. Hence, the beginning of Frankenbenz.

It's rare that a 6.9 will come up at the insurance auctions that I look at. Last year there were three. The first went for more

than I was willing to spend. The second (a Euro spec) went for even more than that. The third, however happened during

the middle of one of the worst snowstorms I've ever seen here in Seattle, and I picked it up for a very reasonable price.

What was wrong with it? Well, here's the pictures from the auction listing....

It was a 1979 450 SEL 6.9, black on tan, with 124k miles on it. Also, there had been an engine fire, most likely

caused by fluids dripping onto the catalytic converters. After seeing the car in person it actually looked worse

than the photos, and it was determined there had been too much damage under the dash and to various

components under the hood to make repairs cost effective. The interior had suffered quite a bit too, as the

car was left to burn until the fire department doused the interior with water. Even after sitting inside with

all the doors open for days it smelled really foul inside.

Hence, "Plan B" went into effect: find anotherW116 chassis V8, and do a drivetrain swap. This way I wouldn't have to

deal with fixing and maintaining a 30+ year old hydropneumatic suspension, too.

The search for a suitable heart transplant recipient began...