240D questions
 

Hi guys, I'd like to start off by saying hi as i am new here, now for the questions. I live in Maine, so the winters here are pretty harsh (shouldnt be a problem, most gas stations here sell "winter diesel" and all of them have kerosene just in case). Today i went and looked at a 79 240d for sale in the next town over. The guy wants 500 bucks for it and it seems to be a pretty good deal. It has a brand new clutch, 220,xxx miles, good body(only one spot of rust on the whole underside), absolutely mint interior, paint is rather poor, but is not rusted thru in any places, the car on the whole is very clean. So now for the bad stuff...somehow one of the glow plugs got snapped off, so it takes a little effort to start it. the owner (a mechanic) said he just usually sprays a little silicone into the intake before starting and it gives him no problems (he demonstrated this for me and it did work). The engine purrs like a kitten and the clutch engages very smoothly. The fuel injector above the broken off glow plug is also leaking a bit but it seems to be coming from the rubber hose attached to it ( a little silicone around the base of it should seal it up no problem). The only thing it needs for an inspection sticker is some new tires (local junkyard here charges 10 bucks and i have had good luck with them before [ i payed 40 dollars for an almost new set of BFG's]). The exhaust is very much so intact, no rust on it at all for that matter. So with that all said, what is your opinion on this car (good deal?) and also how much would it take to get the glow plug tapped out and replaced? well, sorry for the tome of a post, i would like to thank you all in advance for the help.

grab it.

any running car for 500 bux is worth it. let alone a mercedes.

i have the same car, but mine is automatic. youll get used to feeling antsy when you see big red GMC logos the distance from the back of your head to one inch behind the back of your car EVERY day.

again...

Grab it.

any running car for 500 bux is worth it. let alone a mercedes.

If its not "hot" buy it. $500 is a great deal for condition discribed. I don't recall the price for glow plug(s) but when I was browsing for a water pump online, I recall the plugs being very reasonable. You can get them from this site's sponsor Fastlane or other MB parts outlets. Search for an "Arizona Parts Warehouse" or "Adsit" for price comparison.

I don't know. Where is this car at? If it is close I will check it out for you. :D

RU kidding...no rust; mint interior, a new glowplug is $10. bucks.....

I would love a stick 240D......it runs great; owned by a mechanic.......

get us some pics after you get it home....this site will help you repair and maintain just about anything that comes up.....

thanks
 

thank you guys for the help and support...the question about the glowplug that i was asking was that one of them has been broken off and the part that is in the threads is still there, i was wondering how much a mechanic would usually charge for that type of work...it just needs to be tapped out and vacuumed to suck out all the filings and have a new plug put in. i would do it myself but not only do i not have the equipment for such a venture, im not sure if i trust drilling into the engine of my new to me car...most likely will be picking this up on saturday, all pending whether or not i sell my pickup...again thanks alot

I concur with the others: buy it! Finding any W123 without rust in the Northeast is a good thing. And for $500? Glow plugs are cheap and easy to replace - the injector could be either a $2 or $60 problem (depending on whether it's only the washer that needs to be replaced, or the whole thing.) It won't take much to get it up and next to the old VW Bug, it's the simplest car to work with. Also, 220,000 miles is nothing on the engine. It's barely broken in.
I could never imagine buying used tires. Even if they appear to be in good condition, you can never know. All it took for me to look only at new tires is when it was explained to me that all the tires treads on the side of the freeway are from tires retreads on semis. Next to your brakes, they are the most important safety device on your car. I would take some of the money you'll be saving by purchasing this car for $500 and get new tires!

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no the tires i'm talking about are absolutely not retreads, they are just very new tires off of some very unlucky cars the BFgoodrich's that i got were barely 2,000 miles old. I used to work at a VIP so im used to checking for flaws in used tires, so i have a pretty good idea of what to look for as far as that goes. Believe me, i wouldnt buy tires that were jeopardizing a mercedes...i mean my life...right my life :). The salvage yard also goes thru all the tires they consider selling (they wont sell bad tires). Being a college student, I dont exactly have the finances for 800 dollars worth of new tires at the current time..my mom is giving me a fairly new set of studded cooper snows for this winter.

Sounds like a great deal. Where in Maine are you? I'm up in Bangor, and my 240D started fine down to about -10F... but that was with 4 good glow plugs. Spraying silicone into the intake is a new one to me... if he's a mechanic, why doesn't he just fix the broken glow plug? Seems kinda strange to me. But, if it's in good shape otherwise, it's practically a steal.

Nate

The guy has about 20 ongoing projects around his garage just by himself, so he doesnt really have the time to take care of the problem. As far as tapping the glow plug out...how much effort would this take, as i am going to my grandfather's house for turkey day and im thinkin he could give me a hand on that one, he's owned a farm all of his life, so im sure he's had to deal with a snapped gp before. Also, i was wondering if one of those special bits for taking out stripped screw heads might work?

I was thinking that ...Go to a sears and get one of those bits to fit the GP....DIY in 2 minutes.....

and btw I got 2 used tires a few months back (not retreads) for $30. mounted and balanced...almost new tread; I had 2 decent tires in the front; got 2 flats in 1 day, then got those......When the fronts wear down ; I will go for 4 matching new tires....probably Kuhmos.....

I paid $500 for my car too and the only thing in it's favor was it was running and not incredibly rusty. Your's sounds like a steal.

I got my tires at u-pull-it for $40 for a set of four, like-new (they had the those little rubber nubs sticking out everywhere like on new tires) Firestone Sealixs. They have been perfect, so if you can can find a good set go right ahead.

Attempting to seal this leak is the wrong thing to do. Get yourself a meter of fuel injector return line and replace all those lines.

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i was thinking of sealing them only for the purpose of driving it home, after that replacing the return lines is no obstacle.

As a new owner I haven't payed attention to the glow plug construction. Is there enough ferrous metal to tack weld a stud to the glow plug. I had a sheared bolt that I took to a welding shop (due to my "easy-out" set being too small for the job). In lieu of using a larger tap set, they welded a stud to the bolt and removed it with vise grips. Don't know if this is an option but would preclude drilling. Does your Grandfather have a welder like many farmer's?