I have finally got the title back from the secretary of state and it's amazing that the state sent me a clear title for this vehicle, but that just makes it easier to be street legal once all is said and done.

Having originally thought about grafting an 8.8 or 9 inch Ford rear end into the SEC it occurred to me that it would not only be a major undertaking, but where would you stop? If you got a Ford rear end, why not install a less expensive Chevy engine and the list goes on and on.

After giving it some long hard thought I have decided to build this vehicle to pure drag racing spec's using mostly all Mercedes-Benz components. That means a Mercedes engine, and a Mercedes Powertrain!

For now we will set the bar somewhat low, looking for mid to high 11 second 1/4 mile times. Yes that's right, this vehicle will be a quarter horse. While my ultimate goal is to yank the front tires it may not happen this summer so I lowered the bar to mid to high 11's so we could see some action this coming summer. Then again with the rear SLS struts removed you can see that with the right 90/10 shocks in the back and a nice squeeze of NOS off the line might get them front wheels a cunt hair off the ground, but nothing in terms of what I ultimately have in mind. You got to start somewhere right? Well here is the start!

The recorded weight of this 1991 Mercedes-Benz 560 SEC was 4884 Lbs from the factory. Stock 560 SEC's can acheave high 14 second 1/4 mile times in mostly stock trim. That leaves me 3 seconds to shave off. How will I do it?

1st - The rule of thumb that for every 1000 lbs shed from the total weight of the vehicle will net nearly 1 second off the 1/4 mile time should mean that if I can shave off 2000 lbs I could conceivably shave off 2 seconds just by gutting the vehicle.

Where will the weight come from? Well it's no secret there is almost 1000 lbs in interior alone. Things like Seats, Dashboard, Carpets, Door panels, carpet, seat tracks, and sound insulation add up the weight VERY QUICK. Additional weight savings will also come in the form of all glass being replaced with plexi-glass, all window regulators and motors removed. The Hydraulic suspension system will removed, everything behind the dash including the HVAC box and cores will be removed. I am also considering removing the gear box for a light weight manual rack that I have been keeping around. More weight savings will be realized by removing the entire sun-roof and welding the sliding panel in place.

There is also significant weight savings in air bags, stereo, modules, speakers, and a great deal of savings by removing the AC compressor, Power Steering pump, various brackets and lets not forget the spare tire and all the electronics in the trunk area.

All of this should trim the weight of this SEC just South of 3000 LBS, putting this SEC with a stock powertrain solidly in the low 13 second to high 12 second zone. 

2nd - Performance modifications. It's quite clear that once the weight has been eleminated very little will have to be done in order to hit the 11 second zone. For example a simple dry nitrous kit of 175 HP , and some exhaust improvements should put us in the lower 12's and possibly the high 11's if we can get this beast to launch.

Using the old rule of 1 second off the 1/4 mile per 100 HP I think the high 11 second goal is pretty conservative given the fact there are an additional 50 HP I will be picking up exhaust and minor engine mods. Given the base HP rating of around 220 HP adding lets say 150 HP in nitrous = 380 HP, add in the additional 50 HP from the no-brainer mods puts us conservatively at 420 HP, especially since out current dry NOS kit is jetted for 175 HP in of itself.

You might ask "Where is this no-brainer 50 HP coming from"? Glad you asked... Glad you asked!  The 50 extra horsepower is made up by no longer having to load down the engine by turning a manual fan off the water pump. Also by doing away with power steering there is a slight gain to be had. Additionally the exhaust work, consisting of free flowing dual exhausts into a single flowmaster muffler. Additionally I plan on milling the heads .10 to .20 thousands to bump the compression just a tad. An improved air filter design should allow air into the engine easier. There are a few more engine mods that are explained in our engine build thread, but conservatively the stock HP rating of 220 + 150 NOS + 50 = 420 HP.  

I will save all the body work for last. After it turns it's first high 11 or low 12 second quarter mile pass I will have my friend perform the body work. I am thinking Black, Orange or Lime Green. 

All of this using nothing but stock components save the Nitrous system. I am curious to see if by lowering the weight of the vehicle I can utilize the existing drivetrain without problems. My only concern is the driveshaft and the rear end. I am not opposed to finding a low gear and welding the spiders in an effort to ensure tru Posi traction, however with all the weight removed its going to take some soft tires to keep this beast from burning the tires off. Welding the spiders will only be done IF POSI-TRACTION IS A PROBLEM, otherwise I will try using a limited slip unit I have in an effort to keep it street-able.

I have said many times in the past that one must decide what path their vehicle is taking in life. For me it's going to be PURE RACING. Like putting a big engine in a paper bag shaped like an SEC. 

It's going to be fun! The work is currently in progress and the engine is ready save for a set of heads and possibly some hotter camshafts. It will be a completely BONE STOCK lower end with 107,000 miles. We will be utilizing forced induction so there is really no need to increase compression on this engine.

Later down the road, depending on how well the chassis holds up I may consider a roll cage since the interior will be bare, save for two light weight seats. Tinting the plexi glass should keep the fact that this is not your grandpa's SEC under wraps!

More to come! Please feel free to share your thoughts, ideas and opinions!

You have to be kidding right?

I made $$ on that deal. Unlike idiots like Mcliar and co. I put business before pleasure. That's how I am able to drive a 560 every day! Maybe you should try that sometime and you wouldn't have to worry about the groundsman porking your woman every time you leave.

Making you realize that your desprate attempts to research my dealings was a complete waste of your time puts an even bigger smile on my face, and after all, he who laughs last laughs the hardest!

 Hahahahahahahahahaha!

Actually Stoma,

I used that SEC as a test to see how light an SEC was in bare trim. We got it down to 1200 lbs (Less the engine, transmission, interior and bumpers).

I know this because we had it weighed when we took the carcas to the scrap yard.

Additionally I toyed around with an idea I have had for a long time, which was to make a convertable SEL, which I did learn a few things when we scrapped that black SEL.

I still intend on building a race W126 (Be it sedan or coupe), and I still have the engines and everything needed. If I find that something is going to be more work and money than what it's worth (in this case the smashed SEC and rotten SEL parts cars) then I will just move on. The same can be said about forum users like yourself.

So I scrapped a few salvage vehicles? So what!? A lot of people were VERY happy to get the parts from them. Like I have said many times in the past.... I have scrapped nicer cars than YOU and your BW.ORG friends own.

SELLC wrote:

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Keep your BS confined to your cage or I am going to have to delete some more of your post.

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 MY BAD.................. I'LL END IT WITH A PLEASANT FUCK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOW.............. BACK TO THE REGULAR SCHEDULED PROGRAMING BIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATCH!!!!!!!!!!!! AHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!