Return to the BUILD

“In this phase, you will assemble your 300 SL’s dashboard, which includes the fuel and oil pressure gauges, along with the levers and switches for the air conditioning. You’ll also place the discs for the speedometer and tachometer, as well as the steering wheel with its column. Look out, also, for the levers for the windshield wipers and turn signals, but just hold them over for now, as they’ll be places later down the line.”

The second shipment of the build (Issue 2) contains phases 03 through 06.

Contents

Parts

• 03A – Dashboard
• 03B – Decorative Instrument Panel
• 03C – Turn Signals and Windshield Wiper Stalks
• 03D – Speedometer and Rev Counter
• 03E – Steering Wheel
• 03F – Steering Column
• 5 x EP Screws (+2 extra)

Materials: Everything in this phase is plastic, except for the metal sections of the Steering Wheel.

Magazine – Issue 2

• Assembly Guide: Model Instructions
• Track Legends: The Ferrari Testa Rossa 250 and the Jaguar C-Type
• The Story of Motorsports: The 300 SL Makes Its Mark
• Ace Racers: Olivier Gendebien
• Challenging Circuits: Mille Miglia

Build

The Instrument Panel

Step 01

Place the Decorative Instrument Panel into the Dashboard, positioning the five posts into the matching holes:

Step 02

Secure these parts together from the back with five (5) EP screws (do not over-tighten):

The Steering Wheel

The Steering Wheel is an exact copy of the original, including the folding mechanism that allows driver access. To unlock the wheel, move the lever (circled below) upwards and fold the wheel down. To lock the wheel, raise the wheel and move the lever down:

They mention that this lever is fragile and to be careful, but my wheel did not open at all. Since I did not know how it worked, I was hesitant to try and fix it. But, I took a chance and pulled the lever out. Turns out it is actually metal. Take notice of the flat section of the shaft:

That flat section is supposed to let the wheel slip out of this mount when the lever is turned:

But, if I put the lever back in, you can see that the flat section is still exposed. This blocks the wheel from opening:

Since I couldn’t file the metal down very easily, I resorted to filing down the plastic where the lever goes in so it would seat deeper:

I took a little off at a time until the wheel opened and closed successfully:

Thoughts

This phase really only had one thing to do, but all of these parts need to be stored until Phase 49 and Phase 50. The gauges look superb, but I was disappointed that the Steering Wheel folding function did not work correctly right out of the packaging.

Next Up

Phase 04 – Engine: Left Engine Block, Fuel Injection Pump/Shaft/Pipes, Flywheel Cover