I have a 1985 300 sd .Block heater is shot.The person I bought it from used a heated dipstick in cold weather but I heard they break down the oil.I have a magnetic pipe thawing devtce that I can.stick to the block and plug in.Would this be a better alternative?

 

Joemal,
About three years bago, I tested a dipstick heater to see if it would affect the oil. The answer: the oil barely got above 100 degrees or so, when I stuck a long thermometer from a lab into the sump. The engine will do far worse damage to the oil when hot. The dipstick heater may not be enough, depending on where you live. I went for the block heater.
strelnik

240d 220Sb used to have an Adenauer

 

If you have the money, GET A HYDRONIC HEATER. These things are super cool. It is basically a device somewhere between the size of a shoebox and a boot, that goes under your hood. It hooks inline in one of the coolant hoses leading to or from the radiator, burns diesel to heat up the fluid and uses a tiny built-in pump to circulate it through the engine. Get one on ebay, maybe you can find one used for around $500. I actually got overexcited about buying one last year and accidentally bought two on ebay. But they're great little devices, you can either have them on a timer or remote controlled. The most common brand is espar / eberspacher.

 

I was afraid to even plug in my heater on my 84300SD, I just didn't want to risk a fire.

Listen guys, will good maintenance on your car, it should start just beautifully even in cold weather.

What I used to do (I know I will get a couple of bad replies to this), is when the weather was getting cold, I would fill the tank and put 1 gallon of Kerosene in the car as well. It is expensive, but well worth it when you have cold weather coming. The car ran BEAUTIFULLY in very COLD weather and started easily.

I was NEVER NOT ABLE To start it in cold weather, even though it was rarely garaged.