Mercedes 500SL’s Trim Restoration Story Continues
February 12, 2021
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
mercedes
Mercedes 500SL Trim Update
January 29, 2021
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.
Plastic Stitching For The Mercedes
January 28, 2021
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
Claret Interior For The Mercedes 500SL
January 15, 2021
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
500SL Mercedes’ New Robes
December 18, 2020
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
New Addition
November 20, 2020
Our latest addition to the Bridge Classic Car family is this lorry! Although it looks rather plain and underwhelming now, when designed, it’s going to
Introducing the 1999 Mercedes 280SL
November 17, 2020
We’re still got our beautiful 1999 Mercedes 280SL up for grabs and tonight is the Double Your Odds draw! You can check that out this
Workshop Walkabout
October 28, 2020
This morning we took a walk around the workshop to take a peak at how our engineers are getting on with the current projects. 1996
Mercedes In Its Prime
October 1, 2020
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
Live Draw: 2003 Mercedes SL55
September 17, 2020
Congratulations to Robin Yates, winner of the 2003 Mercedes SL55 AMG with ticket number 4995Â For your chance to win your dream classic, head to
Welcome To The Workshop
September 12, 2020
The Bridge Classic Cars team welcomed this incredible 1972 Mercedes 280SE into the workshop this weekend. Due to begin restorative work in October, we’ll mostly
Boot Repair On The 500SL
September 4, 2020
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.
The Sweet Sounds Of The Becker Radio
August 26, 2020
This week, our 1957 Mercedes 190SL had a retro look Becker radio fitted into the dashboard. But don’t be fooled by its 1960s façade, as
More Welding Wonders
August 12, 2020
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
1985 Mercedes Benz 280SL Revisits Us
November 29, 2019
Coming back to us at Bridge Classic Cars is this wonderful Mercedes 280 SL. It’s owner would like the car in tip top shape for
2013 Mercedes-Benz E220 AMG
November 28, 2019
Coming in for a service today is this lovely Mercedes-Benz E220 AMG. While performing our extensive service checks Pete and Tom noted the front tyres
1953 Mercedes 220 Engine Rebuild Complete
November 12, 2019
Ady’s finished up work on our Mercedes 220 Engine rebuild. The engine has had a brand new bespoke machined flywheel, valve seals cut, valves refaced
Mercedes 500SL’s Trim Restoration Story Continues
February 12, 2021
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 padding which had turned hard. She then drew a line down the centre of the seat to make it easier to identify the middle of the cover. Once this is done, Lydia placed the cover over it and pull the calico inside it. Once fitted, she could pull it tight and glue it in place.
Lydia then applied weight to the frame springs and pulled the other edges of the cover over and under the frame. She then glued down the side flaps around the frame, cleaned up the bolts that screw into the bottom of the seat, and made a hole on each side for them.
Mercedes 500SL Trim Update
January 29, 2021
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 skiving the edges of the leather that’s going to recover it, which makes it easier to fold over the edges. The next step was to sand down the vinyl to be recovered in leather.
Lydia has also marked the leather for the seat. It’s her first seat cover that she’s made from scratch and it is looking great so far! The first step was to take off the current base front seat cover and use them as patterns to make the new ones. She’s then cut out the new sidebands and mounted them onto the foam.
Lydia made a mock-up of the fluted design to make sure that the measurements are correct before making the final version. She then measured and marked out the real fluted face once the mock-up was correct. The fluted face was sewn on, the sidebands mounted and cut out, and the piping made up. Lydia then cleaned up the rod that goes inside the flap with wire wool. Once this was all done, she clipped everything together.
Plastic Stitching For The Mercedes
January 28, 2021
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.
Claret Interior For The Mercedes 500SL
January 15, 2021
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 front window panels has been completed, allowing for Lydia to get started on the next step. The cover is first marked out in paper, then leather and then sewn and glued together.
500SL Mercedes’ New Robes
December 18, 2020
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 colour of the interior. There were many options, all of which took on brown and orange tones to contrast with the bright blue exterior.
After taking a while to think and decide, Craig took the decision to go with… none of these options. But instead went for a rich Claret, a beautiful burgundy red!
New Addition
November 20, 2020
Our latest addition to the Bridge Classic Car family is this lorry! Although it looks rather plain and underwhelming now, when designed, it’s going to look great as our new transporter!
We still have our covered vehicle transporter trailer however it can only fit one car in at a time whereas this new lorry will be able to transport multiple cars and equipment!
Alongside using the lorry for our own vehicles, we aim to offer our own transportation services for other companies.
We can’t wait to get this lorry designed!
Introducing the 1999 Mercedes 280SL
November 17, 2020
We’re still got our beautiful 1999 Mercedes 280SL up for grabs and tonight is the Double Your Odds draw!
You can check that out this evening on Facebook Live and head over to our competitions website here.
Take a look at the photos we shot below!
Workshop Walkabout
October 28, 2020
This morning we took a walk around the workshop to take a peak at how our engineers are getting on with the current projects.
1996 Nissan Patrol
The Nissan Patrol is almost ready to be set free on adventures again. Pete has given it a general ‘health check’ and service to ensure its exploration spirit is still intact.
The last stage on the Nissan is to ‘blacken’ the underside to protect it from rust and erosion, which is all the more important for adventurous vehicles like this Patrol!
1972 MGB Blaze Orange
Tamas has been working hard on the latest refurbishments to the MGB which has recently included a new radiator as the old one had developed some rust and holes.
The thermostat has also been refurbished along with its housing and the grill. Tamas has also installed new reversing lights as well.
The Rosytle wheels are currently in the hands of our paint specialist Darren who’s just finished applying the first layer of paint to neaten them up.
1960 MGA
The Red MGA has had a seasonal refurbishment with a heater being added to accommodate for the cold months approaching!
Paul tells us that “the car originally never had a heater in, so the parts have been shipped in from America.”
Its not uncommon to see our classic cars fitted with modern creature comforts such as heaters and radios.
1972 Peugeot 504
Scott has been working on fitting the doors, making sure the latches catch and shut efficiently.
Darren has also been working on the Peugeot, painting the engine bay. This needed two sets of paint, one for the inner parts and a separate colour for the outer parts to match the body of the car.
1957 Jensen 541R
The Jensen is still in the trimming shop where Brian is installing the leather padding that sits just above the windscreen. This piece followed the original design but still had to be cut and made by hand.
Brian tells us ‘It’s quite a fiddly job to fit this panel’.
We can’t wait to see the Jensen completed with its smart new leather from our trim experts.
1965 Amphicar
Our classic car electrician Adam has been working on tidying up the Amphicar’s wires and installing a second pump to ensure enough water is removed from within the vehicle. This means a custom made pump bracket will have to be designed and fitted when the second pump is installed.
1987 Mercedes 500SL
Our engineer Anthony is currently applying a filler to the engine bay to smooth out any bumps.
A keen eye for detail from Anthony is needed to ensure that the Mercedes doesn’t leave the fabrication bay with any imperfections.
Mercedes In Its Prime
October 1, 2020
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?
Live Draw: 2003 Mercedes SL55
September 17, 2020
Congratulations to Robin Yates, winner of the 2003 Mercedes SL55 AMG with ticket number 4995Â
For your chance to win your dream classic, head to bridgeclassiccars.co.uk/competitions
Welcome To The Workshop
September 12, 2020
The Bridge Classic Cars team welcomed this incredible 1972 Mercedes 280SE into the workshop this weekend.
Due to begin restorative work in October, we’ll mostly be focused on welding work around the wheel arches on the underside of the car. As you can see from the pictures, there’s a good amount of rust and damage to rectify.
We can’t wait to get her into our in-house body shop to begin work restoring her back to her former glory. Keep an eye on our project blog to see her transformation.
Boot Repair On The 500SL
September 4, 2020
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 piece into place.”
There’s still a way to go to get this classic into tip-top condition. Belonging to one of our Directors Craig, he’s enjoying seeing the progress so far.
The Sweet Sounds Of The Becker Radio
August 26, 2020
This week, our 1957 Mercedes 190SL had a retro look Becker radio fitted into the dashboard.
But don’t be fooled by its 1960s façade, as behind it lies an all-singing-all-dancing modern system that includes navigation, telephone, radio and card reader.
Although a slightly larger gap had to be made in the dash for it to fit, now it’s secured in place, it looks like it’s always belonged there!
More Welding Wonders
August 12, 2020
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.
The car belongs to the company’s Director Craig. “I plan to keep and enjoy this car for many years after it’s restoration. It’s one of my favourite classics, so I’m glad the team are able to able to give it special attention and get her back into mint condition.”
1985 Mercedes Benz 280SL Revisits Us
November 29, 2019
Coming back to us at Bridge Classic Cars is this wonderful Mercedes 280 SL. It’s owner would like the car in tip top shape for his return to the UK for Christmas. As such, the vehicle is having a thorough service and the wheels will be refurbished.
2013 Mercedes-Benz E220 AMG
November 28, 2019
Coming in for a service today is this lovely Mercedes-Benz E220 AMG. While performing our extensive service checks Pete and Tom noted the front tyres were in need of replacing. Later the same day, the tyres were fitted by our friends at We Fit Tyres Anywhere.
1953 Mercedes 220 Engine Rebuild Complete
November 12, 2019
Ady’s finished up work on our Mercedes 220 Engine rebuild. The engine has had a brand new bespoke machined flywheel, valve seals cut, valves refaced and new valve guides. The camshaft has been re-profiled and the engine block completely re-bored. The crank shaft has been re-ground along with new gaskets and bearings being fitted.
Check out the video below to see her up and running for the first time!
