Greetings all...I just inheireted this 1990 300sel and am new to
MB. It has almost 300k miles. It runs great with the exception of it
overheating, the gauge goes up to 110-120. It only does this when I
am driving in town (stop & go traffic). It does not do this while
driving on the highway. I have noted that the one fan (in front of
the radiator) does not run at all, could this have something to do
with it? I am also wondering about the oil pressure, I can squeeze
the upper radiator hose as if it is a balloon. If I replaced this
hose could it alleviate this problem?
Although it is minor at this point does anyone know the radio code???

PS: As I said earlier I inheireted this car. The body and exterior
are in excellent shape & I love the ride of this car, but would I be
better off just getting rid of it? Basically what I’m asking is this
going to be a "money-pit"? I realize that MB can be expensive to
maintain. :?:

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It probably is bad fan clutch that cause the overheating... and yes, the aux
fan in front of radiator/condenser should have come on whenever AC is on or
car reaches 95 degree C. For this aux fan, check fuse... take it out and
inspect it. I would suspect the thermoswitches are bad.

It is best you let MB tech look over the car for you. The old timers... who
really knows about these cars.

How about a new thermostat, cheapest fix and right in front. Sounds
like its not giving any time for water to cool. Might replace the
coolant with proper mixture. Of course the water pump could be
supspect, normally makes noise first. Charge the A/C system. That
fan won't come on and comprssor wont run if its not. If it is charged
you have a bad pressure switch and need to bleed the a/c to change it
then refill. You can jumper the switch to make sure the fan works
first tho, sometimes the fans lock up. Also check all the fuse
(suggest ne replacement) gets rid of gremlins.

Thanks... changed the thermostat, still running a little hot. What is
the correct coolant ratio?

"macdrone" wrote:
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Replace the upper radiator hose-you can get a better part than the MB
original at Adv. Auto Parts, (theirs is reinforced with wire mesh) for
$6.00-I had one collapse in a 1991 300 SE with 220k miles on it which
caused the engine temp to soar until I could get the car off the road.

"kostecky6" <none (AT) 000 (DOT) com> wrote

30 to 40% coolant and 70 to 60% water.

if the fan never runs you need to check the fuses and then unplug the
fan run some wires straight from the battery to the fan make sure its
not sized or dead (happens sometimes). Also there should be a relay,
I'll look at my Cd's and see if I can find it for you.

hi macdrone...
is it the auxillary fan switch that I should unplug??? Thanks....

"macdrone" wrote:
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forgot to add...it is just the fan on the left (if you are facing the
front of the car) that is not functioning....

"kostecky6" wrote: