Bridge Classic Cars in-house restoration team have been busy assessing and cataloguing the next round of parts from the 1987 Mercedes 500SL restoration project. Tamas, has been going through each individual part to check its part number and operation/condition for when the car comes back in for final assembly. This is a crucial part of […]
The Bridge Classic Cars in-house restoration team have been busy cleaning and cataloguing the parts for the 1987 Mercedes 500SL which is in with ourselves for restoration. Our in-house restoration technician Tamas has been meticulously going through every component which was removed from the car to evaluate and note its condition and part number if […]
The art of interior trim is something our in-house trim experts have mastered over years of experience. A great example of this is the door cards on our 1987 Mercedes 500SL. These are all being entirely made in-house in our trim shop. The fit and finish of our interior pieces is world class thanks to […]
Interior trim is one of the key elements of any restoration, and we here at Bridge Classic Cars have got probably the best in-house trim shop bar none. Take for example this classic car, Craig’s 1987 Mercedes 500SL which is having a whole new interior done by our in-house trimmers. The fit and finish on […]
Craig’s Mercedes 500 SL restoration has taken a back seat recently but Brian has been working on covering the centre console by pulling tight the fabric and glueing down the stitching.
The trim shop has started on Craig’s 1987 Mercedes 500SL trim which is being done in a Claret red. Kath has been painstakingly pouring over the dash, making sure the intricate details of the holes and curves are perfectly catered for and covering in bespoke fabric, which has been pulled taught and glued back by […]
Craig’s 1987 Mercedes 500SL seats are still in the capable hands of our in house trim shop. Lydia has been leading the charge with the interior, creating each seat cover by hand. Brian has also lent a helping hand with the frame and hind mechanisms. Lydia has recently been heating and stretching the fabric, applying […]
Lydia has been focusing exclusively on Craig’s 500SL Mercedes interior restoration. Over the last week or so shes been working on the seat covers, re-working the original material and creating new covers. Lydia began by adding a layer of scrim foam over the top and sides of the frame to replace the old worn out […]
Lydia has been making the second front squab seat cover for our 1987 Mercedes 500SL. This included taking the cover off the frame which is something. Lydia had to start with loosening the sides from the frame by levering the cover off. The next step was to remove the plastic parts by holding the cover […]
Lydia has completed another seat cover using the same process as before. Brian and Kath have also been working at creating a cover for the dashboard. The dashboard process included measuring out and cutting the leather and cutting out holes for the dials, sewing around the edges to make for a neat fold and fit, […]
Lydia has continued the work with Craig’s 1987 Mercedes 500SL. Here we can see her sewing the piping on to the skirt for the seat. Each detail and design is thoroughly thought through and done by hand. Lydia has recently completed the glove compartment for the door of the Mercedes 500 SL. This process included […]
We’ve been working on a plastic speaker panel for Craig’s Mercedes 500SL that needed to be stitched back together. This was done by attaching the two pieces together via plastic welding.
Lydia, one of our trim shop technicians, has been working on preparing and creating the interior for Craig’s 1987 Mercedes 500SL. A while ago Craig decided to go with a Claret red to dress the interior of his custom classic, and now the interior trim creation begins Lydia has been focusing on preparing the gearstick […]
Craig has recently decided on a colour for the interior of his 1987 Mercedes 500SL. The trim shop has just started tackling the trim which will be done in a Claret red. Lydia has been prepping the windscreen panels for recovering, which have been done in the claret leather. The sanding and filling of the […]
Our director Craig has had his Mercedes 500SL in for restoration for a while now. There are many choices to be made when you’re not only restoring your classic but also redesigning it. Some of those choices are more interesting than others. One of the more fun choices in the customising process is choosing the […]
There’s been a lot going with week already and its only Wednesday! Take a look at what’s been going on s far. Range Rover Sport 2016 One of our directors, Gordon, had his Range Rover Sport’s tyres refurbished, ready for the cold winter months ahead. Now fully refurbished, Gordon’s Range Rover is ready to take […]
Now the exterior colour of our 1987 Mercedes 500SL has been chosen we are now on to the decision of our interior. All interior components are now down off the shelf and in the Trim Shop with Kath and Brian ready to be rebuilt to our bespoke specifications. The colour will be chosen within the […]
Our 1987 Mercedes 500SL has had its colour transformation initiated with a prep mask being applied in the engine bay. It then continued to have prime and topcoat added. Soon it’ll have a whole body of fresh paint.
Our Director Craig’s 1987 Mercedes 500SL has been with Anthony in our body shop this week. Anthony has been carrying out some extensive work on the the Mercedes’ shell. “Now the body’s been completely stripped and primed” Anthony explains “we’ve put a full black raptor coating on the entire shell.” Raptor is tough and durable […]
Our stunning 1987 Mercedes 500SL has been in the paint shop having her primer sprayed ahead of being shaped and re-primed. Her owner, our Director Craig, is yet to choose the colour for his gorgeous classic. It was originally in silver, but he’s keen for a change. What colour would you go for?
Our soon-to-be stunning 1987 Mercedes SL500 is being prepped for a complete paint re-spray. She’s been with us for over a year where we’ve worked tirelessly on repairing her body from an incredible amount of rust and damage. All the welding work is now complete though, so- it’s onto our precious paint shop! First things […]
After spending many years stored under a tree before arriving here at Bridge, we continue to uncover rust and corrosion throughout the 1987 Mercedes 500SL. One of our welders Toby has completed welding work in the boot this week. “There was excessive corrosion all over the boot floor,” Toby described. “So I’ve welded a new […]
Toby, Bridge Classic Cars’ new Fabricator Welder has been working on our 500SL bodywork restoration. Toby has cut out the rear chassis rust and replaced with new sheet metal. The replacement nearside boot floor panel has been fully welded. The rear of the boot has also had all the rot cut out and fresh metal […]
The 1987 Mercedes 500SL has received a new floor in welding shop this week. The car arrived to us with so much work to have done, so we really are stripping it back to it’s bare metal and rebuilding it from there. These pictures are of the floor itself, along with the spare wheel well. […]
Antony has been working on our 500SL Restoration. The rusted areas are ground out with fresh metal let in to repair. It seems with this Mercedes the deeper we dive, the more rust is found. We cannot wait to get this lovely classic back on the road. At the moment this is still quite a […]
The third generation Mercedes SL, R107 generation frequently have issues with bulkhead rust. We’re experienced in classic vehicle rust repairs and, fabrication. Within our in house fabrication bay, Anthony, has been working on our 1987 Mercedes 500SL. Does your Classic Car need rust repairs or fabrication? Give our friendly sales team a call on 01473 […]
The restoration of our 1987 Mercedes SL500 is now well underway with the car completely stripped, the windscreen removed and the rotten body panels having been cut out. The new panels have arrived from the guys and girls at the SL Shop and Andrew is now working through, getting the areas ready for the new […]
More parts are now refurbished and put away safely ready for reassembly.
It seems that whichever way we turn at the moment we are uncover more areas that desperately need our welders touch. It’s great that we are finding the issues and addressing them but I’m sure Tommy is looking forward to being able to sit back having passed the car on to the paint guys for […]
The welding work is now complete on our 1987 Mercedes SL500 body. Parts of the floor have been cut out and replaced. The front nearside arch panel has also had work as has the rear box compartment beside the spare wheel carrier. Tommy now has grinding and tidying to carry out before he can pass […]