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  #16  
Old 11-18-2005, 11:32 AM
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If you're using this car, because you think rear wheel wheel drive is better in the snow, think again. If your other car is a front wheel drive, you should be using that one. Plus it starts in the cold.

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  #17  
Old 11-18-2005, 12:02 PM
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I had a 201 that I went up a hill with snow and snow tires. Accelerated fine. I hate FWD and you wouldn't get me caught dead in one. Yes, they are supposed to be better but I am more used to RWD.
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  #18  
Old 11-18-2005, 01:08 PM
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I've got a hard starting 300 (when it's very cold). I go out at lunch time, start it, drive around the block. After work it starts fine. This year it has new GP's so it should be OK. Buy and auxillary jump start battery thing. About $50. from Kmart, sears. That helps too. Good GPs the car should be able to start even at 0.
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  #19  
Old 11-18-2005, 01:54 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aklim
I had a 201 that I went up a hill with snow and snow tires. Accelerated fine. I hate FWD and you wouldn't get me caught dead in one. Yes, they are supposed to be better but I am more used to RWD.

Definatley, leave the steering to the front, and propulsion to the back, to take a quote from BMW.

I also vastly prefer rear drive to front drive, I've driven our van in the snow, while it is near-impossible to get it stuck, it still slides around a whole lot more and is far less controlled. My SD can plow right up our hill in the deepest of snow w/out a problem. We had quite a snowfall the other day and I did just fine, you can always tell your losing grip cuz of the speedo jumping and the car drifting to the right in the back, a simple letting up and slowly reapplying throttle always returns the car to gripping. What I like is how "stable" the cars are. If our van looses grip (which it does) it slides to the right in the front, and that is no fun at all. The worst surface for the SD is when the road has the slick icy stuff on it, then sometimes you really have to burn it to get moving, thats just because they are so heavy though. On snow they grip excellently.
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  #20  
Old 11-18-2005, 03:21 PM
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I love my old 300D but in deep nasty snow my wife's Subaru is pretty hard to beat. Much better than my old Jeep. I only wish I could afford a nice MB 4-matic for winter. My 300D got badly stuck last winter so this time around I will be running Blizzaks (sp?) or at least some new M&S tires. I live in New England so salt's a big deal. Winter generally has a few nice 40~45 days and on those days, out comes the powerwasher to flush out the crap. Car's haeld up pretty well rust-wise.
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  #21  
Old 11-18-2005, 03:44 PM
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With diesel u can use a small heater under the oil pan.
DSL wont catch fire like a gas eng.
A Coleman propane stove, or kerosene stove.
heat her for 10-15 mins, once oil thinned out should start soon.
Up north they use tiger torch with a long stove pipe, direct the heat there.
Old days folks use some fire wood lite up under oil pan.

GAS engine becareful, unless u want a new car!
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  #22  
Old 11-18-2005, 04:14 PM
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I would be extremely careful lighting a fire under any vehicle, diesel or gas. Particularly with these old cars and all their associated past and present oil drips. I'd rather walk than burn up my car, but that's just me.
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  #23  
Old 11-18-2005, 04:22 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aklim
I had a 201 that I went up a hill with snow and snow tires. Accelerated fine. I hate FWD and you wouldn't get me caught dead in one. Yes, they are supposed to be better but I am more used to RWD.
I kind of feel the same way. I think in my case it's that I'm simply used to driving a RWD vehicle on slick roads. I expect my car to behave the way it does ... when I get in a FWD, the movement of the vehicle beneath me seems foreign and unpredictable. I don't know how I would feel, though, if I drove a FWD for the next five years without getting in the Benz. Had a FWD family van to drive to high school for a couple year when I was first learning to drive, but never, never in the bad weather. Even though my mom considers it a winter death trap, most of my first bad-weather driving experiences came in the Benz, a RWD. I have never driven a 4X4 in winter conditions (i.e., never USED the 4X4), so it ought to be interesting when I first get the chance in the Jeep.
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  #24  
Old 11-18-2005, 04:29 PM
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There's a real easy and cheap solution out nowadays to start the older diesels in cold weather. Buy the Bosch quick start conversion kit for $88.00. I'm a big supporter of this kit because it works so well. The plugs heat up to maximum tempeture, even in the coldest weather, in about 7 seconds. The relay post glows the plugs until the engine completely turns over and runs for a few seconds. Do a search on this forum and you'll find a bunch of places to buy online.

I have a '77 300D that wouldn't start in 30F weather. Installed this kit and last winter I could start no problem, without the block heater, in 5F weather. One note - a good battery, alternator, and starter are essential components as well. If any one of these are weak, forget about it.
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  #25  
Old 11-18-2005, 04:50 PM
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Block heaters, new glow plugs........ or

Ever think of getting your boyfriend to move to a warmer climate?
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  #26  
Old 11-18-2005, 08:21 PM
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What city?

Quote:
Originally Posted by 75mercedes07
Well with all this cold weather i figured i would but the cord on for the heating core for the block to get warmed up but my father has misplaced it and it is sitting in my boyfrinds driveway. i kept trying to turn it over but ran down the battery. I have a question as to whether or not i can use starter fluid to start it up and if i can how would i do it (advice from a friend). If there are any other ideas i would like to hear. this is not a cold weather car. this sucks. i really wanted to take it out in the snow. rear wheel drive right on.
What city?
You may be local to one of us.
I am a master mechanic, and a couple of other local members could be mechanics, if they wanted to do it for a living.
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  #27  
Old 11-18-2005, 08:53 PM
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How long did it take to run the battery down? a little cranking or a whole lot?

I had to buy a new battery this morning..yesterday in the low 40's it started instantly...this morning it dipped to 30 for first time and all I got was a single click...

You likely need several glow plugs if you got more than a little bit of cranking out of it...did it try to start? or just crank over without trying?

DO you know when the valves were last adjusted or measured for clearance....

you can have a combination of these conspiring to make it hard to start. The colder it get the less forgiving it is.
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  #28  
Old 11-19-2005, 11:23 AM
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alright... here is the latest. first off, we got it started. we rolled it into the garage (which was quite an experience ) then we put a space heater under it for a while. we also charged the battery back up. (we had worn the battery down cause we were cranking it a whole lot). anyway, we ended up just trying to jump start it. we had put some diesel starting fluid in it (i had been advised that that would be just fine) and we jump started it. it cranked a little then started up. the previous times it would try real hard to start up, but it seemed to just not have enough juice. anyway, we got it running and drove it back to my place and put it in the garage. i went out this morning to try and start it up, and it started right up, granted it has been warmer outside and obviously in the car. i am too scared to drive it anywhere yet though, cause i dont want to get it stuck. we just did a valve adjustment about 2 weeks ago. so that should be just fine. i ordered a heater core cord, so that should come in in a couple days. i also think i will buy new glow plugs, because the car has never really started up the best. i know the starter is fine though, because we put a coulple different ones in there. so thats the latest, thanks for all the help! let me know if you have anymore suggestions

ra
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  #29  
Old 11-19-2005, 12:23 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Habanero
I would be extremely careful lighting a fire under any vehicle, diesel or gas. Particularly with these old cars and all their associated past and present oil drips. I'd rather walk than burn up my car, but that's just me.
This reminds me of a friends mom who had a kitchen grease fire in a skillet one icey winter. In a panic, she opened a window and tossed the flaming pan out.
It slid across the ice and came to rest just under her car.
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  #30  
Old 11-20-2005, 10:19 PM
if only
 
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where do i get the pencil like glow plugs for my car? i found the glow plugs on this website, but i think they are the hoop ones (but i am not sure). i would like to get the pencil like ones though if they are more helpful. let me know. thanks!!
ra

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