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Yeah its true, I hate it when people build pretty average/below average cars and everyone tells them how great they look.
On the other hand this car is taking something (hard slam) to an extreme on an interesting car, and that I like to see. Weather it works as a daily driver is of no interest to me, I can appreciate its aesthetic and I'm sure it'll end up drivable, but compromised, eventually. The bulge under the rear end is a bit ungainly (as Matt pointed out) and I think I'd rather it had the bumpers on, but then I've not built anything this radical or that has turned as many heads so ... I'll concentrate on taking what I do like and adding it to the thinking for my ride.
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Reminds me of another low merc......
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Club Retro Rides Member
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Yeah its true, I hate it when people build pretty average/below average cars and everyone tells them how great they look. On the other hand this car is taking something (hard slam) to an extreme on an interesting car, and that I like to see. Weather it works as a daily driver is of no interest to me, I can appreciate its aesthetic and I'm sure it'll end up drivable, but compromised, eventually. The bulge under the rear end is a bit ungainly (as Matt pointed out) and I think I'd rather it had the bumpers on, but then I've not built anything this radical or that has turned as many heads so ... I'll concentrate on taking what I do like and adding it to the thinking for my ride. Thing is, HW, I'd consider your Datsun as way more radical than this... even if you've not finished it! There's a lot of this type of merc laying pretty low - and most with more work/expertise/effort and thought gone into them. I don't know may Sunnys outside of japan running as low as you are, or that are going to run special struts, eventually engine etc etc. All Burrows has done on this has cut the springs really really short, shot some paint and removed 2 bumpers. Not exactly radical. I do however LIKE the look of it, and would roll it if it were mine. Just don't think it deserves all the accolades
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Your car is not 'epic', this thread is not 'epic'....the OCEAN is epic, the UNIVERSE is epic.... please stop misusing this word!! It would appear Hotrods are the new VWs - aint fashion funny! '69 BUICK LESABRE 350
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Low Brown Merc..BenzBoy
@benzboy
Club Retro Rides Member 7
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The bulge at the back is the spare wheel well, so easy to remove and carry the spare lying flat. I intend doing that on mine - rust is gradually doing that job for me but it's a messy worker. ;D I'm always pleased to see other slammed stacklights, doesn't make any difference to me who took the photos, did the car or whatever.
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Rob M
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,915
Club RR Member Number: 41
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Low Brown Merc..Rob M
@zeb
Club Retro Rides Member 41
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I have no idea of the person responsible for the Merc, nor do I care. I also couldnt give a monkeys whether the car is practical or not, as I'm not going to be driving it. I'm not too fussed how the car looked before its make over and i don't give a rats willy whether its design over function blah, de blah. Its different, it looks the nuts ( IMHO, which is all that matters) and there are enough ideas and trains of thought that can be pulled from it to transfer to your own car. Nobody goes to the Louvre, looks at the Mona Lisa and says " Her conks a bit big, isnt it!" or "Its all well and good but you cant actually use it..." Treat the car as a small piece of automotive art, granted, not the finest piece but, nevertheless, a mini statement of the builders ideas, intentions and ambitions. It works for me...and thats all that matters!
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VIP
South East
Posts: 8,293
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I don't know may Sunnys outside of japan running as low as you are, or that are going to run special struts, eventually engine etc etc. Oh, it's not THAT low, JS, it didn't even scrape when driving into the dungeon. Even my Cuore does that...
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Last Edit: May 8, 2010 18:33:45 GMT by VIP
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US spec bumpers are foogly, plenty of choice though in euro ones, there are 3 differnet bumper options that will fit that i know of, W114's are easy to dump, long travel suspension sees to that, its keeping things working at the same time hats difficult, and driveshafts and stuff break really easy when running really low.
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Volvo back as my main squeeze, more boost and some interior goodies on the way.
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stealthstylz
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 14,812
Club RR Member Number: 174
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Low Brown Merc..stealthstylz
@stealthstylz
Club Retro Rides Member 174
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I was thinking he'd removed the euro spec chrome bumpers. Those US spec ones are awful i'd bin them aswell.
Matt
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qwerty
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 2,409
Club RR Member Number: 52
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Low Brown Merc..qwerty
@qwerty
Club Retro Rides Member 52
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I like it. It looks cool
That is all ;D
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skinnylew
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 5,546
Club RR Member Number: 11
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Low Brown Merc..skinnylew
@skinnylew
Club Retro Rides Member 11
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Satin Brown, low, de american bumpered; win in my book
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Mark
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 2,097
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May 12, 2010 20:06:15 GMT
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As with Benzboy, I love seeing other peoples take on modifying a W114/5, and as far as the stance goes, it's great. Also, nice to see another red interior The US bumpers are horrendoes, so I understand why he ditched them! Some Euro spec bumpers would improve the look imho. What I think is a bit of a pity is how amazing the car could have looked without the paintjob. It was an absolutely superb colour. On the other hand this car is taking something (hard slam) to an extreme on an interesting car, and that I like to see. Weather it works as a daily driver is of no interest to me, I can appreciate its aesthetic and I'm sure it'll end up drivable, but compromised, eventually. I agree that it's fantastic to see something taken to the extreme on something interesting (and a car I love) but surely if it doesn't function as a driver, has a successful hard slam been achieved? I'd love to know how he's tucked the exhaust up so far - it absolutely broke my heart on the way back from RR'09. I don't think there is much left now
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Mark
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 2,097
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May 12, 2010 20:09:23 GMT
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Reminds me of another low merc...... Speedbumps of doom. Ever bloody road I took off the motorway seemed to have a speedbump!! ;D ;D
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Last Edit: May 12, 2010 20:09:13 GMT by Mark
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Low Brown Merc..e21meister
@GUEST
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dumped on cutties with no bumpers? can't see much else changed?!? You say that like its a bad thing!? Yeah, like he needs to do some smoothing out of the front valance to cover the ugly bumper mounts. I hope this is the start of the project, not the end. A good start, but that's all it is.
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mercmad
Posted a lot
Flush Hard,it's a long way to McDonalds.
Posts: 1,740
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May 13, 2010 11:27:29 GMT
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I had a W114 low like that,totally impractical because it got stuck on every single bump. A set of Four cylinder front springs and rear springs from a W123 station wagon got it up but it ride lower than stock with a nice ride. here is one way to get a W114 down and still be able to drive it.
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Many years ago I changed my driving style to cope with rising fuel prices; I have now reached the stage where I am contemplating keeping my eyes shut in order to lower wind resistance.
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Tim
Posted a lot
Posts: 3,340
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May 13, 2010 12:35:39 GMT
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Looks great aesthetically, but I do agree with JS to a degree as I personally am more interested in seeing a well engineered solution rather than some choppy choppy :-) Making something uber low thats driveable (see Streets Escort project or that W114 above) - looks ace and is cleverly done. Just making it low and pretty much undriveable - looks ace but it may as well just be a mockup without an engine - a bodyshell with some wheels stuffed underneath I guess i'll get flamed now :-)
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Last Edit: May 13, 2010 12:36:13 GMT by Tim
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valman
Part of things
Posts: 603
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May 13, 2010 12:50:47 GMT
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here is one way to get a W114 down and still be able to drive it. more on this please ;D
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Low Brown Merc..e21meister
@GUEST
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May 13, 2010 23:15:10 GMT
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Just making it low and pretty much undriveable - looks ace but it may as well just be a mockup without an engine - a bodyshell with some wheels stuffed underneath I guess i'll get flamed now :-) I was saving these pics for a wind-up thread but your comments above practically begged the use of these: Before any 'choppy choppy' merchants stick their hands down their Y-fronts and shout 'MASSIVE WIN!' take a look at the next pic: Don't get me wrong, I LOVE lowered cars with the right stance, but in that pesky thing called The Real World™, if said lowered car can't clear a speed hump or go round a corner properly, it ain't worth bup-diddly-upkuss. You can consult your internal dialogue all you want, but let's face it, deep, deep down in the pit of your stomach - ................yyyyyyyou know I'm right.
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Low Brown Merc..BenzBoy
@benzboy
Club Retro Rides Member 7
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STOP PRESS! Slammed cars scrape on speedbumps! It's about compromise isn't it? The stock suspension of a car is a compromise between practicality, handling, ride and looks. Some people are prepared to trade some practicality for better looks. Some trade ride comfort for handling... etc. My Mercedes had to slow to a crawl to get over speedbumps. I had to re-route the exhaust to gain some clearance. It could not transport a family of five and all their luggage to Skegness for a holiday. But it looked awesome. For me that is more important than all of the previous attributes.
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rob0r
East of England
Posts: 2,743
Club RR Member Number: 104
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Low Brown Merc..rob0r
@rob0r
Club Retro Rides Member 104
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May 14, 2010 11:10:46 GMT
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Ditto. You lower a car that far and you accept the consequences. On my E28 520i over half the original springs were gone and I was running standard dampers, and guess what, it scraped everywhere and bounced badly on rough roads. The thing is it looked great!
With my E32 735i I ran it with stock suspension and it was brilliant car. I got bored of the ride height and with it being so sensible and great to drive I was using it too much and with 20mpg it was costing me too much. So I absolutely decked the car on coilovers, it looks great and I avoid using it at all costs since it will scrape - saves me loads of money! That said it rides 10x better than the E28.
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E30 320i 3.5 - E23 730 - E3 3.0si - E21 316 M42 - E32 750i ETC
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May 14, 2010 11:37:23 GMT
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if it doesnt scrape, it aint low enough exhaust scraping is fine but believe me its not fun to scrape your sump. I eventually wore a hole in the sump on my metro. had it welded up several times, cost me ALOT in oil!
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1994 Mazda 323f 1.6i 16v GLX
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