Which diesels do you guys think would be best suited to run on vegetable oil? I heard somewhere that the ones with iron heads are better because of their durrability. I'm currently interested in the 1995 E300D. Also considering the91 & 92 300D 2.5 Turbo, and the 1987 300D.

 

I am 99% sure all of those have Al heads so really from what i know i would go with the 87 300D cause it has the most power the 603 in my86 300sdlwas a good motor from me it had 296k on it when i sold it.

 

check the sticky to see which models are good. after that go with that suits you best. all of them will make good conversions. if you are looking for a custom pre-fab tank there is more W123 and newer options out there than the W115 . i designed my tank for my W115 and the welding was done by a friend of mine at the local community college welding lab. everything else component wise is interchangeable. Dr. Diesel started with peanut oil i think its fair to return to his concept.

 

Isthereany difference between the 87 and 95 engines? I know the 95 isn't turbo,but is that all that accounts for the difference in power between the two models? Just bought a 95 E300D for $5k so I guess I'm going with that. Despite the fact that it has no glovebox [&o]and I will have nowhere to stash my guns and drugs, I thought it was a steal forwhat greatcondition that it's in. Also, are you sure the 95 has alluminum heads? I heard a mechanic say that the iron heads on the 95 sometimes cause rough idling. Thanks for all your help.

 

When I looked into buying my diesel (for Bio-diesel but may consider SVO some day), everyone seemed to say the same things..
1. Get a pre-1985 (iron heads) - thermal expansion of head/block same
2. Get a turbo, the non-turbo's are dogs.
3. Get the D, not the SD. The SD body is just too big and sluggish.

 

I knew forcedinduction would post. thet's clarify what WVO is if you refine it [recomend ] it is biodiesel if you run it straight it is WVO. Running it straight you have problems of diffrent acids and water plus mega filtering. If temps fall below 70*F it is harder on pumps tear up your injection pump$$$$$$ So any Benz in nice shape and you have to pay much money for is not a good WVO vehical

 

To clarify a little better:

biodiesel - a refined fuel made from vegetable oils (either WVO or SVO) that can be purchased commercially (recommend) or made at home - quality difficult to control if you make it at home, but if you buy it commercially it will not damage your car.

WVO - waste vegetable oil - has to be filtered and your car needs various modifications in order to run. this will eventually destroy your car. guys that have thought they were pretty smart have added this straight to their fuel tank or mixed it with diesel and killed their engines in less than two weeks.

SVO - straight vegetable oil - can be bought over the counter and run in a car with special modifications. if you're going to run a veggie car, this is the way to do it. however, while your car will last longer running SVO than with other "alternative" fuels, it will still lead to the destruction of your engine.

The issue of converting to a veggie car is not one of practicality or economics - you've got to collect oil and filter it and pay for the conversion to be done to your car. You give up your trunk space (unless you live someplace warm and a single tank conversion is practical), you get less mileage, less power, more pollution and you will destroy the car. Sure, in the short term it's a little cheaper, but you're guaranteed to be buying a new car in the long term. You've also got the issue of taxes to pay and it's illegal to use on any US road. Veggie-cars are just a fad and (in my opinion) a pretty stupid one at that. If you take care of your car and use the proper fuel, it will take care of you and you'll get far more enjoyment out of it and a better return for your dollar.

 

Cycleboy and forced induction have many good points. Diffently running a high precentage of WVO is harmful. Not neccessary to the engine but the pumps and injectors, and the cost of the injector pump and injectors is probely more then you paid for the car. To refine WVO is a lenghty process, spaceand work to do it right is not free buy any means. Most short cuts just destroys the injection system. I will say that adding 2 gal to a tank full will add some lube and quiet the pump that is new SVO or properly done & filteredWVOconverted tobiodiesel

 

After reading reports (on this very forum) of guys that added either SVO or WVO straight to their tanks to mix with diesel and then grenaded their engines less than two weeks later, I can't tell you how much I disagree with lwbrewer's suggestion (unless of course you then plan on selling all the rest of the parts to me cheap).

 

honestly, I have run both and here's my take. wvo is a pain in the butt in the winter. in the summer, it runs great. I'm running it now on my 83d. I have to add a mix of diesel to it to get it thin enough when it gets cold. Biodiesel was much easier on the car when I ran it. even with imperfect batches, it runs great in the 123. I was making for about $1 a gallon, and I wasn't buying in bulk. I lost my place to make it, so that's why i switched to wvo. if I had the choice, go with bio. it's really not that hard to do after you make a couple batches, and the reactor can be build for only a few hundred bucks. (search appleseed reactor). you are legally allowed to make 400 gallons each quarter for private use without buying a manufacturer's bond. if I had the choice, i'd go with homemade bio. just my opinion.