I'm new to this forum and I am about to purchase a 1985 300D. I've never owned a mercedes (I drive a volvo) but have always kinda longed for one.

This particular car was owned by the mother of a friend of mine. She recently passed away. He said she did a fairly good job of having the car serviced (I don't think he has the records though) Initially he was asking $1000. I had a mechanic give it a quick once over and found out the ac compressor was locked up. I live in Phoenix, AZ so the ac is sort of a nessecity. The engine seems to run good, no smoke, It has 240,000 miles on it but a new transmission was put in a few years ago.

I offered him $500 plus five free music lessons for his son. I normally charge $30 an hr for lessons. He said he would do it.

I'm sure there are plenty of little things that need fixing, I'm not a guy who works on cars, I'm a musician. The car has been sitting for six months or so but after swapping out the battery it started right up. Any repairs are gonna be done by a mechaninc. I have a regular guy but I wonder if I should find one more specific to mercedes.

How much would it cost roughly to get the ac fixed? What should I start doing first as far as getting the car in good shape after sitting for so long?
The body, paint (white) and interior are all in really good shape. Tires look pretty good, but I don't really know what surprises may come up. But for that price it seems like something I shouldn't pass up.

Any and all suggestions/opinions are much wellcome and appreciated

Kevinlee

Any person on this site will scream buy, but there are a lot of costs with these old benzes.

One of the things you could do is buy it and then post it forsale on this site and make a quick G or two.

It depends on the type of work being done. The basic air conditioning system, for example, is essentially the same as the typical US car. The climate control system, however, is very "Mercedes." And the 300D is special in two ways. Not only is it a Mercedes, it's also a diesel.
To get your air conditioning fixed, I recommend you find a mechanic with lots of kids. You are going to have to give $800-1000 worth of music lessons, assuming that the compressor is the only problem.

Welcome to the forum.


Since we don't exactly know the condition of the vehicle, it's difficult to guide you in what to do with it. However, for a price of $500.00, you really cannnot go wrong.

You did not say where you are located, however, I would encourage you to use the shop forum to find a good mechanic for it. Under the very first page of Mercedes-Shop, look down and there is a forum entitled "good MB shops". Go to this forum and type in your location for a search. Check out the results.

Find a mechanic that is familiar with Mercedes diesels and bring the vehicle to him. Pay him $150-$200 to thoroughly go over the car and make a list of everything that it needs. Assign a cost to all these items. Then you can make an intelligent decision on whether to keep it.

I will say that any used vehicle with this mileage level normally has $3K worth of odds and ends that it requires. If it has not had any front end work since it left the factory then you are looking at over $2.5 K right there. As previously mentioned, the a/c will command a minumum of $1K in order to replace the compressor, dryer, and expansion valve. Costs can climb dramatically if the evaporator needs replacement (not likely).

The vehicle may be an excellent purchase. On the other hand, be aware:

There is nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes-Benz

The difference lies in the maintenance over the past 10 years.

Make sure you understand what you have purchased.

I sometimes "speed read" and miss things too, or is it that my eyesight is getting worse.

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Tony from West Oz.
Fatmobile 3 84 300D 295kkm Silver grey/Blue int. 2 tank WVO - Recipient of TurboDesel engine.
Josephine '82 300D 390kkm White/Palamino int.
Elizabeth '81 280E, sporting a '79 300D engine.
Lucille '87 W124 300D non-turbo 6 cylinder OM603, Pearl Grey with light grey interior


Various parts cars including 280E, 230C & 300D in various states of disassembly.

Ahh, Tony, you got me there. Was looking for the "location" in the upper right corner.

I would almost suggest letting someone else from the forum look the car over before buying. I would also like to say unless you are able to work on the car yourself, don't buy it. Just as Brian was saying, and I agree, there is nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes Benz. They are simple enough to DIY if you have some mechanical skills. But if you decide to have someone else do the work, expect to see dollar signs in the mechanic's eyes. Mercedes mechanics for some reason feel they have a right to charge more than your average meckanick to work on them even though old Merc's are no more complex than an average car. The previous owners of my car had it serviced regularly at a "reputable" shop. I found many of the items were either unnecessary or were charged excessive amounts. One example the transmission was rebuilt at only 108K miles for what I found based on the symptoms to be nothing more than a stuck kick-down switch. My car is an '85 and it has a number of differences from the earlier models. If the car you are looking at is a CA model, there are issues with these cars that have had recalls in the past. Also it needs an expensive air filter. The easiest way you can tell if it is a CA model is to open the hood and see if the air filter can is located at the front passenger side of the engine compartment.
This forum is an excellent place to get advice on these cars if you like doing the work yourself.

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DJ


84 300D Turbodiesel 190K with 4 speed manual sold in 03/2012

Thank you everyone, for your input. I think I'm gonna have to buy. It's just one of those things that if I don't, then every time I see a cool old benz going down the road I will say "I coulda had one of those" I'm in no immediate rush to get the car on the road so I don't have to invest a heap of money right off the bat. I checked the shop page and found a couple shops here in phx and will take the car to one of those to get an idea of what the big picture will be regarding repairs. Who knows it may end up on this forum for sale.

I payed $900 for my volvo (also an 85) about four years ago. I had to put a new ac in that as well. I think it cost me about $1000. But the car ran great for a couple years with only very minor repairs. But since then I have probably put about $2500 into it.

Sometimes I think, man why don't I just buy a new car...but I don't. I like old cars. As a friend of mine said "you either pay new car payments or old car repairs". And most new cars I see seem to lack character....

It started right up after sitting 6 months? Buy it.
Does it drive well? Buy it.
Do you want to get a major education on working on MBZS? Buy it.

My advice to anyone looking at Benzes is, if you are willing to work on it yourself, they are great cars. If you are not, you better have very deep pockets. Living near salvage yards that have junk ones for parts is a major plus.

but you say " Any repairs are gonna be done by a mechanic," and a "regular guy" to boot. That sounds dangerously expensive.

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Think Alternative Energy!
300CD '80 (now gone but not forgotten...)

I live in Phoenix too and for the last five years I've been trying to find a Mercedes with no luck. I'd say you must definately get this car. If only for the fact that with white paint it can still look good, instead of almost every other old Mercedes in Phoenix that looks like crap with their Metallic clearcoats that have burst in the sun. I know of one place called "Tirman Auto" on 7th street I think just south of Camelback that seems to be quite a good place. I've often seen diesels in their for work and a colleague who has a 240D had some work done there and was happy with them. Maybe check them out and see what you think of them yourself.

- Peter.

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2021 Chevrolet Spark
Formerly...
2000 GMC Sonoma
1981 240D 4spd stick. 347000 miles. Deceased Feb 14 2021
2002 Kia Rio. Worst crap on four wheels
1981 240D 4spd stick. 389000 miles.
1984 123 200
1979 116 280S
1972 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1971 108 280S

"My advice to anyone looking at Benzes is, if you are willing to work on it yourself, they are great cars. If you are not, you better have very deep pockets. Living near salvage yards that have junk ones for parts is a major plus".

I suppose it's never to late to learn how to do some repair work. How to begin? Get an operators manual? Get a list of suggested repairs from a mechanic and start from there? I suppose asking alot of question on this board will follow if I take up DIY auto reapair. I'm pretty handy, good with electronics to a degree, and fixing things around the house etc.

I guess fixing my own car always came down to the fact that I needed it up and running asap whenever I'd have car trouble because it was my only transportation. So taking it to a mechanic was useually my course of action.

But that not being the case with this benz since it would be a second car, it seems like the perfect opportunity to take some time and learn how to do this stuff myself.

Kevinlee

Go for it! Then let us know when you get it and post some photos of it it for all to enjoy.

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DJ


84 300D Turbodiesel 190K with 4 speed manual sold in 03/2012

Will do...I may pick it up tomorrow.

Kevinlee

I would budget between $500 and $1000 to get the a/c going. Last time I purchased a compressor for one of these it was under $300 (don't remember the exact number).

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Jim

They run Delco compressors which are found on GM's. You might be able to cross reference the numbers and find one for a reasonable price.

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DJ


84 300D Turbodiesel 190K with 4 speed manual sold in 03/2012