here's the scoop. i got turned onto biodiesel about a year ago. since doing a lot of research on it, i've been on the search for a diesel the past few months. my 3 choices are 2003 Jetta Wagon TDI, 1987 300TD wagon, and 1995-98.5 Dodge Ram 2500 cummins. I've recently found a 300TD with 123k miles on it, and have a few questions.

I'm not exactly a car guy. I know a few things here and there but I've grown up mostly not doing much work to any of my cars. My family has owned a GM/Chrysler dealership, so I've had the luxury of getting fairly new cars at a very cheap price and having the dealership do the maintenaince at a cheap price. This leads me to believe that a 20 year old vehicle isn't the best choice as my daily driver, however...i'm in love with the Merc!

My question is, how much issues can I expect on a regular basis? Are these issues usually easy enough to remedy on my own? Part of the reason of going to a Merc or VW is to break away from the GM/Chrysler chain i've been fed on for so far. I'd like to become more self-sufficient in my care of my car, so I'm willing to learn. I just don't want to buy a car that I'm going to get bombarded with issues and not be able to keep up on my own. Any advice here is highly welcome..