Cross Country Trip - Part Two

[83 300D]

Part Two - Departure: What problems await?

We got up early and loaded Eric’s boat and gear. I’ve driven this car on weekend trips with my gear loaded, but I’m sure this is the most weight the car has ever carried. I’ve been so concerned with preparing the engine and trans that I haven’t event thought about the suspension. I know from the repair records that the p.o. has rebuilt most of the front end and has replaced the passenger side rear axle. The rear tires are worn but I think they will do. The front tires are practically new. The p.o. told me that the shop he bought them from could not do spin balancing so they balanced them the old fashioned way. He suggested I have them balanced, but I’ve never worried about it. I notice some slight shake on the highway, but have never gotten around to fixing it.

Shortly after leaving Eric’s I notice vibration in the steering wheel. Perhaps I should have turned back them, but I didn’t. The problem would go away at speeds above 50 mph so I continued onward. We discuss stopping to have the wheels balanced and both agree that’s probably a good idea, but we didn’t follow through with that.

I was happy driving. Eric was tired from working his butt off to finish a house he has been remodeling so he was happy to rest and let me drive. The MB was running great. I liked being on the road and was driving way too fast. What great cars, these diesels. Keep the pedal down and keep them pointed between the lines and they will go on forever. Or so it seemed.

That evening, somewhere past St. Louis, we pull into a diner to eat. I hit a bump and the car started making an awful racket. We went in to eat then came out to inspect the car. I couldn’t find anything wrong and drove on. I thought the noise was coming from the driver’s side front wheel, but couldn’t be sure. The noise went away. Later we stopped for the night. The next morning we continued. The wheel still vibrated but we couldn’t agree on the cause. Eric thought the unbalanced tires were the cause. I didn’t see how that can cause so much vibration. It still went away above 50. Looking back, I think it was a dangerous game we were playing, but there weren’t any shops around so we just kept on driving. We had four days to reach Oregon and I was determined to make it.

That evening we reached Boulder, CO. My cousin lives there and we had made plans to overnight at her place. When we pulled off the interstate the vibration returned. I thought it was probably a wheel bearing but Eric still thought it was the wheel balance. But going up the steep grades to her mountaintop home we encountered another problem. I had read posts here about the ALDA and how it can cause problems at high altitude. I don’t think this car has ever been at high altitude so the ALDA was probably stuck at the low altitude setting. Even though I had read the posts about this problem, I didn’t remember reading a fix, other than cleaning out the vacuum line. I had done that last fall, so I didn’t think that was the problem. The car would barely crawl when started from a stop. When it reached speed it would go fine. But it was hard to reach speed going uphill. So I crept up the mountain to her house, leaving a trail of smoke behind.

Next morning I was still convinced the front left wheel was the cause of the vibration. I jacked up the car and removed the wheel. I had brought a well stocked tool box and jack stand. Sure enough, the locknut was about 1/8 turn loose! I tightened it but the hex bolt that holds it in place was stripped. What is it with these hex bolts? I tightened it the best I could and it held for the rest of the trip. Thinking that the wheel bearings may have been damaged I stopped at an auto parts store that miraculously had the wheel bearings. I bought two inner, two outer and the seals. I also bought some break parts cleaner to clean the vacuum line to the ALDA. I never used any of these, but at least now I have a spare set of wheel bearings.

The ALDA problem never resolved. Colorado was the worse place for it because of the elevation, but we had the problem off and on whenever we were at altitude. I soon learned that the problem would go away when the turbo kicked in, at about 2,000 rpm. So the trick was to keep the trans in low gear as long as possible to keep the revs up. Then the car ran fine. Starting from a stop required a little patience.

Tightening the front wheel had stopped much of the vibration. But the noise soon returned. I looked under the car and discovered fluid on the differential. I worried that the diff had lost fluid and was soon to self-destruct. So I stopped at a quick oil change place and had them check the diff. fluid. It was full but dirty, so I had them change it. I also had them lube the front end. We had the tech check out the rear components. The only thing he found was some play in the left rear axle. He thought that was normal and that seemed logical.

We drove on but the noise got worse. It would go away when the car was cold and was worse on acceleration and climbing hills. It would come and go and even go away at higher speeds. I didn’t mind doing 80 on the interstate. Once when approaching a long, steep grade, I built speed to 95 before the climb. I was ready to downshift to S when the speed dropped to 70 but it never did. Gotta love these cars!

It was a two days’ drive from Colorado to Oregon and I worried about the car the whole way. I had my Haynes manual and we read about bearings and axles. We were surprised to learn that there were no rear wheel bearings, our guess of the most likely culprit. I decided that it was probably the axle and there was nothing I could do about it until after our river trip. I figured the damage was done and it wouldn’t hurt to drive it. The repair records showed the p.o. had spent $400 for the right side axle and $150 in labor to replace it. I figured that was my damage and I would have time to fix it once we got off river.

Then, late at night on the fourth day of our trip, we reached the campground at the put-in for the Rogue. As we approached it, there was a loud clunk from the rear that we could feel and the noise and vibration went away! “Damn, it’s self-healing” I declared. Eric didn’t know what I was talking about, but I was referring to comments made by posters in this forum. I wondered if the problem had been a rock between the brake pad and the rotor that had now worked itself loose. I drove the car the next morning and it was noise free.

The plan was for a shuttle service to drive our cars to the take-out, a 90 mile or so trip. The river run is only about 45 miles but the winding mountain roads make the drive much longer. I was reluctant to let someone drive my car but the shuttle service lady picked a nice elderly gentleman to drive my old car. He had some experience with older cars, she said. I ran him through the cranking procedure and explained about the vibration problem. “There may be some noise,” I said, “but it’s ok to drive it that way.” I thought that the car would be alright without the weight of the river gear and two large guys in the front. I knew the shuttle roads were rough but thought he would have to drive slowly. He was concerned that the wheel would fall off, but I didn’t think that was a possibility. He agreed to take it on down and we left it at that.

So we began our 8 day river trip and left the car problems behind for awhile.

Next – Part Three – The Coastal Highway

[nazrat]

See, I just completed a cross country road trip, and you have FAR more faith that bad things won't happen than I do. I can't stand noises that I can explain, especially ones that sound like what a bad bearing sounds like. I really should be less paranoid, but the thought of getting stranded in Utah, with a dead "new" (to me) vehicle with work expecting my return in 2 days wasn't healthy for me

I've certainly done my fair share of what my friends call "Gheto-fab" fixes, but most of those are around here where if it dies I can call someone for a lift home.

I need to borrow your ability to be calm about such things. I have no doubt that an unbalanced wheel or a failing CV joint would last the remainder of a trip, but I'd have purchased a Napa shaft and put it in the trunk

When I did it, I flew to Portland and drove back to Virginia. I took a decent set of tools, a new serpentine belt and the factory service manual. I stopped at Walmart on the way out of town and purchased oil, water and paper towels. I did use the tools too - at one gas stop it wouldn't start and I had to reconnect the battery.

Congrats on making it, and I look forward to reading about the rest of the trip.

-Tad

[jcyuhn]

I can't wait to find out what happens next, it's like a mystery novel! Will the Benz make it? Will the elderly gentleman drive it off into the sunset? What part will fall off next?

BTW, the 123 definately does have rear wheel bearings. Servicing them ain't a side-of-the-road type of project, however. Lots of special tools, and it may require a hydraulic press; I forget the particulars. I'm don't recall ever hearing of a 123 rear bearing failing anyway. Oh, is yours the first?

- JimY

[turbodiesel]

Good luck.. you should really have your car in top running condition before you start a journey like this. I just came back from my cross-country trip about 6 weeks ago.. check it out: http://207.44.234.41/xc/

[nazrat]

And you did it in a Ford!

Sorry, I had to make fun, this is the Mercedes board.

-Tad

[turbodiesel]

Did 9,500 miles without a single problem..

[linski]

8 days on the river, very nice, most trips through the canyon are 3-5 days. Too bad the fall weather came early, (had some showers last couple of days). What day are you pulling out at Foster Bar ? Im 2 hours away, and my brother guides though the canyon, if the days are the same, I could make a road trip. I haven't been to Agness in weeks. Good luck on your trip.

[83 300D]

Yes, I certainly agree that the car should be in top condition before starting a trip like this. However, for all I knew, it was in top condition. I had driven it for ten months and fixed all things that cropped up, except the unbalanced front wheels. I had intended to do a through inspection and fix up before leaving but my finances got screwed up and I wasn't even sure I was going until a week before departure. Then I got busy with the fix up. I ran into problems and I guess I was just too stuborn to throw in the towel. Lesson learned and maybe my experience will be a lesson to others. I'm stupid for a cause. Also, I focused like a laser on the engine and trans. I live in fear that either will go out and leave me stranded miles from nowhere. The suspension wasn't even on my radar screen. Besides, how do you tell an axle is going to fail before it happens? (Ok, the boots were cracked and an inspection would have shown that.) I've never had an axle problem in all my years (33) of driving. As for the front wheel bearings, yes I should have inspected and repacked the bearings before setting out. In fact, in hindsight I would say that I should have gone to the shop for a through suspension and drive train inspection. Expecially in light of the fact that not every jack leg mechanic is willing to even look at these cars.

[83 300D]

Linski,

We put on August 8. The weather was perfect for August. We had two lay-over days and spent each evening watching the Persied meteor shower. It was a very nice trip.

[83 300D]

Turbodiesel,

Nice photos. Yes, that is Birmingham, my home town. Even with the fog, you had a better view of the Golden Gate bridge than I did - it was totally socked in. What's up with the dead buffalo? You certainly seemed to have covered all the tourist attractions. Your traveling companion is much more attractive than mine was.