Buying my first - 300D - questions/suggestions
#1
04-20-2008, 06:19 PM
Buying my first - 300D - questions/suggestions
Hi all! This looks like an awesome forum!
I'm looking for a great diesel to either use a mix of diesel/used motor oil or biodiesel, and have been considering getting a Mercedes. I took a look at a '76 300D this weekend which was a hunk of junk (I'll name one problem, and that should be enough: to shut it off, you have to open the hood and hit the stop lever), and am thinking about upping my price/model year.
To that end, I've found a '95 300D which looks pretty good. 178k, $6,000 (NADA says $5,975 so I'd say that's alright), fully loaded.
I'm still waiting for the owner to get back to me but I have a few questions you might be able to answer:
On the front passenger quarter panel, should there be an air intake that's not on the driver side? http://images.autotrader.com/images/..._A.562x421.jpg - that's the picture of it, and here's the driver side - http://images.autotrader.com/images/..._A.562x421.jpg. I see some a nice dent near the wheel well on the driver side, I wonder if that might be evidence of a front end collision, or just a nasty battle with a shopping cart?
The other thing that's unsettling is that it's a straight-6 diesel, and reading up for that engine (OM603) on Wikipedia it says
Should be asking for proof of a replacement engine? Or were there other engines in the 603 line?
The last thing I can think of: I know this sounds dirty, but I've read about people running their diesels on a mixture of used motor oil and diesel. Since it's the summer and I live in a warm area, this sounds doable, but does this model use any sort of optical sensor in the fuel line? I've read of some people having a problem since the sensor can't "see" through black motor oil. I'm going to be filtering it through 0.3 micron filters before mixing, so that should get any metal/debris. I want to start using that as it's faster and easier to make while I work on a bio-diesel setup. I already have a source for large amounts of both WVO and used motor oil, so I can't wait to get this going. Right now I have a car which gets 13-15 MPG and I can't take it.
Thanks in advance!!!
I'm looking for a great diesel to either use a mix of diesel/used motor oil or biodiesel, and have been considering getting a Mercedes. I took a look at a '76 300D this weekend which was a hunk of junk (I'll name one problem, and that should be enough: to shut it off, you have to open the hood and hit the stop lever), and am thinking about upping my price/model year.
To that end, I've found a '95 300D which looks pretty good. 178k, $6,000 (NADA says $5,975 so I'd say that's alright), fully loaded.
I'm still waiting for the owner to get back to me but I have a few questions you might be able to answer:
On the front passenger quarter panel, should there be an air intake that's not on the driver side? http://images.autotrader.com/images/..._A.562x421.jpg - that's the picture of it, and here's the driver side - http://images.autotrader.com/images/..._A.562x421.jpg. I see some a nice dent near the wheel well on the driver side, I wonder if that might be evidence of a front end collision, or just a nasty battle with a shopping cart?
The other thing that's unsettling is that it's a straight-6 diesel, and reading up for that engine (OM603) on Wikipedia it says
These 603.971 engined cars, however, had weak connecting rods that resulted in numerous engine failures. While never formally recalled, Daimler-Benz replaced many engines under warrantee, even somewhat after the original warrantee term expired (at least for the original owner). Conventional wisdom holds that cars with these engines are generally to be avoided unless accompanied by proof of a factory replacement engine, as the time of free replacement engines is long over.
The last thing I can think of: I know this sounds dirty, but I've read about people running their diesels on a mixture of used motor oil and diesel. Since it's the summer and I live in a warm area, this sounds doable, but does this model use any sort of optical sensor in the fuel line? I've read of some people having a problem since the sensor can't "see" through black motor oil. I'm going to be filtering it through 0.3 micron filters before mixing, so that should get any metal/debris. I want to start using that as it's faster and easier to make while I work on a bio-diesel setup. I already have a source for large amounts of both WVO and used motor oil, so I can't wait to get this going. Right now I have a car which gets 13-15 MPG and I can't take it.
Thanks in advance!!!
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