Mercedes 280 SE from 69

[CooperWorks]

Hi everyone,

my name is Pedro and i'm from Madeira Island ( Portugal ). Last year i bough a Mercedes 280SE W108 from 69, and i strip it all down.

The car had some rotten parts, and now it's all repaired. The next step i want to take is the suspension, but where i live nobody has air suspension, and i would like to have some advices before buying something.

My ideia at the moment is buy the BC Fab kit they sell for my car. I think it's plug & play. They have 4 levels and i'm thinking on this one: level 3

http://www.bcfab.com/Complete-FBSS-Airbag-Suspension-Kit--65-72-Mercedes-W108--LEVEL-3_p_1274.html

Can you guys please tell me if it's a good deal for the price, or if i have better solutions with less money.

Cheers everyone !!!

Some pictures of the project here:

https://www.facebook.com/pedrofreitas1985/media_set?set=a.10204971742159513.1073741835.1420225928&type=3

[Fuzzytaint]

Bcfab kit is basically just an air management kit you can buy through bagriders or open road tuning paired with brackets that are already cut and designed for the w108 platform. If you or anyone can fab brackets yourself and can weld you could do it for cheaper. But the Bcfab kit is good non the less, plug and play.


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[Fuzzytaint]

By the way. Those cafe racers are pretty sick. You build them?


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[pointless]

I got the BC Fab kit and it was perfect. I had no previous experience with air suspension and had it installed over a couple days with the help of my brother. The front went straight in without having to cut or drill anything and for the rear I just had to drill 2 holes into the rear of the car to locate the upper bracket. It's a very straight forward kit and Phil was very easy to deal with. I did everything via email due to the time difference between Australia and the USA and had no problems.

[CooperWorks]

Bcfab kit is basically just an air management kit you can buy through bagriders or open road tuning paired with brackets that are already cut and designed for the w108 platform. If you or anyone can fab brackets yourself and can weld you could do it for cheaper. But the Bcfab kit is good non the less, plug and play.


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When you say bracket you referring this 8 pieces ? If i can get someone who fabricates me this, do you think that the price difference is so significant?

http://postimg.org/image/ep6xoobln/full/

By the way. Those cafe racers are pretty sick. You build them?


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Yes, me and 2 friends of mine. Here is the page of our project: Legendary Cafe Racer. www.facebook.com/legendarycaferacer

I got the BC Fab kit and it was perfect. I had no previous experience with air suspension and had it installed over a couple days with the help of my brother. The front went straight in without having to cut or drill anything and for the rear I just had to drill 2 holes into the rear of the car to locate the upper bracket. It's a very straight forward kit and Phil was very easy to deal with. I did everything via email due to the time difference between Australia and the USA and had no problems.

That's why i'm afraid, i got ZERO experience with air suspension setup, but i think it's not going to be something very difficult to install. I already talked with Phil on the phone and he said that the kit comes with explicit instructions and if i have any doubt i can contact him.

By the way what was the Level you choose ? It would be awesome if you can share with me some pictures, so i can see the install process and final result.

I would like that my W108 look like the green one they have on the pictures, but they have a NOTE at the end saying:

The pictured car has had a couple of additional modifications to make it sit approximately 1" lower than this kit would normally allow. Notching the front control arms, installing shorter front shocks, and modification of the rear mounts will get you here without much trouble!

So if you could please share some pictures i would be very grateful!

Cheers everyone !!!

[Fuzzytaint]

Yes you can get a management system from somewhere and if you have a friend or yourself who can fabricate and weld you can do it for quite a bit less then the Bcfab kit. At the same time the Bcfab kit is nice and for the piece of mind of ease of installation you might just want to get that. Up to you


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[Oh Damn, it's Sam]

Those of us without Facebook accounts aren't able to see the pics you've posted there. At least I can't. And I'd really like to see what you're working on!

I see a couple of things with the BCFab kit that are worth considering:
1. If you're going to get the Level 3 kit from BCFab, I would add a pair of twin-needle gauges so you can monitor your bag pressure, otherwise you're basically blind.
2. I don't see a safety valve anywhere in that kit. You're going to want one, so either make sure it comes with one or buy one elsewhere.
3. The aluminum air tank they're offering looks like it's the Specialty Suspension one. If that's correct, note that Specialty Suspension calls that tank 5 gallons, but it only holds 3.5. Depending on your expectations, that may not be enough air.

[CooperWorks]

Yes you can get a management system from somewhere and if you have a friend or yourself who can fabricate and weld you can do it for quite a bit less then the Bcfab kit. At the same time the Bcfab kit is nice and for the piece of mind of ease of installation you might just want to get that. Up to you


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Thanks for the info Fuzzytaint, i think i will choose to buy the complete kit from BC Fab because for me it's more simple. If in Europe exists any shop that produce a kit plug & play for my car would be GOLD, because i would't have to pay a lot of shipping and the Customs, that is a lot of money !!!! 30% of the value of the order and makes things a bit more expensive!!!

Those of us without Facebook accounts aren't able to see the pics you've posted there. At least I can't. And I'd really like to see what you're working on!

I see a couple of things with the BCFab kit that are worth considering:
1. If you're going to get the Level 3 kit from BCFab, I would add a pair of twin-needle gauges so you can monitor your bag pressure, otherwise you're basically blind.
2. I don't see a safety valve anywhere in that kit. You're going to want one, so either make sure it comes with one or buy one elsewhere.
3. The aluminum air tank they're offering looks like it's the Specialty Suspension one. If that's correct, note that Specialty Suspension calls that tank 5 gallons, but it only holds 3.5. Depending on your expectations, that may not be enough air.

Sorry, i have account on imageshack.us that's where i make the upload of the pictures i use in all forums i'm in, but they want me to upgrade the account and pay, and i can't upload anymore, that's why i put the link of Facebook.
If you know another website i could upload the pictures, i can put here a few ones with the work process since the beginning of my car.

About the things you said for me to consider:

1- i can buy the gauge on another website because as you can see the only option i have to upgrade when purchasing the Level 3 from BC FAB are:

Upgrade to Chrome tank, Add a Second Tank, Upgrade Air Compressor ( i will do this for the ViAir 480 Dual Pack ), and Upgrade Switch Box ( here i would like to have some help )

Upgrade to Accuair Switch Speed Controler ??? What consists this ? It's only the remote control ?

Upgrade to Accuair eLevel Ride Height Control ???

2- What is the function of the safety valve ?

3- i will check with Phil if the tank is 3.5 or 5 gallons.

I'll wait for your reply

Many thanks

[Oh Damn, it's Sam]

Flickr. 1TB of storage free, and I've never managed to hit a bandwidth cap. I also serve photos off my Dropbox from time to time.

1. The Switchspeed controller also allows for fill/exhaust rate control via fluttering the valves. Some people like this feature, but I think it's better handled by adding SMC flow controls inline on the bag lines. It is a nice remote, though.

E-Level, on the other hand, is completely awesome. Rather than you having to adjust your ride height by pressing buttons and watching gauges, it gives you ride height presets based on sensors you install on your suspension. It's what I run on my car, and I would never do air ride any other way now that I've used an e-Level system. It's absolutely superb.

2. The safety valve opens at a set pressure such that if your compressors fail to shut down when they're supposed to, you don't over-fill your tank and damage any equipment. A safety valve is a requirement for safe operation of air ride, and it's astonishing to me how many kits fail to include one.

3. If it's the tank I'm thinking of (i.e. the one in their picture), it'll say it's 5 gallons, but it is not. They claim the "industry labeled size" is 5 gallons, whatever the fuck that means. See also: http://bagriders.com/modlab/products...LESS-TANK.html

[mslipac]

Anyone know if these brackets will fit W114 W115 subframe configuration?

[pointless]

I went with level 4 as I wanted elevel.

As I said installation was very straight forward and shouldn't be a problem for you, I am a complete beginner also. If you pm me your email ill send you through the pictures I took, not that it was many though but it will give you an idea of how they sit without the extra mods.

[Fuzzytaint]

How much does it cost you to build the bikes. I'd be interested in a bike if you were willing to build one. Let me know?


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[CooperWorks]

Flickr. 1TB of storage free, and I've never managed to hit a bandwidth cap. I also serve photos off my Dropbox from time to time.

1. The Switchspeed controller also allows for fill/exhaust rate control via fluttering the valves. Some people like this feature, but I think it's better handled by adding SMC flow controls inline on the bag lines. It is a nice remote, though.

E-Level, on the other hand, is completely awesome. Rather than you having to adjust your ride height by pressing buttons and watching gauges, it gives you ride height presets based on sensors you install on your suspension. It's what I run on my car, and I would never do air ride any other way now that I've used an e-Level system. It's absolutely superb.

2. The safety valve opens at a set pressure such that if your compressors fail to shut down when they're supposed to, you don't over-fill your tank and damage any equipment. A safety valve is a requirement for safe operation of air ride, and it's astonishing to me how many kits fail to include one.

3. If it's the tank I'm thinking of (i.e. the one in their picture), it'll say it's 5 gallons, but it is not. They claim the "industry labeled size" is 5 gallons, whatever the fuck that means. See also: http://bagriders.com/modlab/products...LESS-TANK.html

Thanks for the info!! Here are some pictures of the project till now:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/49510618@N02/

About the safety valve can you advice me a good one ?

I went with level 4 as I wanted elevel.

As I said installation was very straight forward and shouldn't be a problem for you, I am a complete beginner also. If you pm me your email ill send you through the pictures I took, not that it was many though but it will give you an idea of how they sit without the extra mods.

Waiting for the pics my friend

How much does it cost you to build the bikes. I'd be interested in a bike if you were willing to build one. Let me know?


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First check out on Google Map where i live ( Madeira Island ) and tell me if you're still interested to make you a bike from here

[Oh Damn, it's Sam]

Generic safety valves are fine: http://bagriders.com/modlab/products/SAFETY-VALVE.html

Lovely color. I hope you keep it that shade of green.

[CooperWorks]

Generic safety valves are fine: http://bagriders.com/modlab/products/SAFETY-VALVE.html

Lovely color. I hope you keep it that shade of green.

Yes, i will keep it green with dark brown interior. The interior is already done but no pics yet.

The exterior will be dark green, because i like the color it's classic, and also matches with the front windshield, it has a green lane on the top from factory