i had good luck with my 93 300D 2.5 turbo. (124 chassis) over 450K miles and still had a lot left in it. com to think of it, i still wonder why i ever sold the car.

 

Who ever tolds you a "rattle" in a W126 was normal was or is off their rocker. That rattle, as you probably had to find out the hard way probablywas the timing chain telling you it's about to die. The timing chain should've been the first thing they checked because as you know now, if it breaks, the engine is dead. That's with any Mercedes W126 diesel or not. But diesel engine on Merccedes tend to be a bit more expensive than the gas ones.

Any engine that have aluminum heads and been over heated before is a clear red flag of don't buy. Because they can and or will warp and cause lots of problems.

But isn't the 350SDL notorious for the heads cracking or something of the like?

 

The 350s bend rods Avoid at all costs unless u have deep pockets and dont care.

These are the years that motor was in those cars

90-91 350sd/sdl
92-94 300sd
95-96 s350

 

I'm also at a 92 300D, 2.5 Turbo. Anyone know if the heads are made of alluminum or iron?

 

1990 to 1993 300D five cylinder turbo's are excellent buys too! Same engine (basically) as the 1987 190D turbo I own.
Dave J.

 

Greetings all,

This is my first post here. I just contracted to by a 1986 300 SDL with 153,000 miles on it. It is in absolutely beautiful shape, but I am curious about this overheating discussion. Could someone help me understand the head cracking and overheating problem? This car appears to have been meticulously maintained, but....


Also, anything else i should worry about?

Thanks,

Tom

 

I'm considering a 1987 300sdl which has a crack in the head from overheating. What do you think about a machine specialist at a head shop welding and resurficing the crack?

 

Well Tom from the way the car sounds if they have some service records on the maintenance. I say go for it, there has to be a cause for the problem with the heads on these vehicles they dont just crack from age. Something hs o cause the car to overheat and thats not good for any car diesel or not.

 

Thanks, I did buy the car.

Man is it beautiful. It is at the dealer right now getting some minor maintenance done (brake flush and Radiator flush). It turns out the car has never over heated, and that the maintenance records go back quite a few years. I could not get the original owners records though, he died and the car was sold in the estate sale. I am pretty sure he kept it up as well though.

One question though, should I worry about the timing chain? I was told by the dealer that the chain was good to 180k. What do y'all think? I read horror stories about them.... No rattle nor any other sign of trouble yet.

 

I'm considering a '96 E300D and I noticed at the beginning of this thread it specified a "buy" would be the non-turbo. Did this year/model come in a turbo? I haven't seen the car in person yet, so before I waste the fuel, can I tell by the VIN whether it's turbo or not?