new to MB - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

pulpwoody · #1 06-22-2006, 12:02 PM

Right now I have a 2001 civic. I want to sell it and get a good turbo diesel. I have two years left on the car, don't want to mess with the payments, and have been blown away by the reliability, look and support out there for these great MB cars. This forum is really something else!

I just wanted to say hello to everyone and also say that the threads I have been reading cover everything I could possibly want to know about these cars. Freaking sweet!

So I guess my first question is:
what kind of mileage do the 300sd owners get? I've seen them posted at anywhere from 22-27 city and 25-32 highway! Big difference there. So what are you folks getting on a daily basis?
Thanks.

uberwgn · #2 06-22-2006, 12:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pulpwoody

So I guess my first question is:
what kind of mileage do the 300sd owners get? I've seen them posted at anywhere from 22-27 city and 25-32 highway! Big difference there. So what are you folks getting on a daily basis?

pulp, I don't know what country/region you are located in but climate and terrain can have a big impact on fuel consumption to start with.

I assume you're speaking of a W126 300SD? My 1983 car would turn in 23 -24 mpg around the city. I'd probably hit hi 20's when on the highway. It's quite hilly where I live. The level of fuel consumption is fairly typical and my car was in good mechanical condition.

Maroon 300D · #3 06-22-2006, 12:58 PM

If you are going to buy one you should make sure it's not a 'California emissions' car. They get worse mileage.

On the other hand, if you found a rust-free car with a solid engine, tranny, etc. and it had all its service records and it happened to be a CA car, it might be worth buying in spite of the mileage.

Anyone will tell you that all things being equal, though, the CA mofdel is inferior.

pulpwoody · #4 06-22-2006, 02:00 PM

the car that has my interest right now isn't a california car...I don't think. I live in Austin, Tx and the car is in south texas. It looks great, but I have yet to see it personally or drive it yet, but I will. So I guess the texas regs are a bit lighter, so you can get better mileage then? And the terrain here, as you might guess, isn't all that hilly, but hot, so the a/c will suck some extra gas, but that's a given down here.

rs899 · #5 06-22-2006, 02:58 PM

Quote:

Anyone will tell you that all things being equal, though, the CA mofdel is inferior

.

That's likely true about the W126, but I hope you are also considering W116s.
In the W116, it makes no difference (except that the 1980 has an EGR that could easily have gone missing)

Maroon 300D · #6 06-22-2006, 02:59 PM

Sounds doubtful that it would be a CA car, but you can tell for sure by the location of the air filter housing. If it's next to the engine it's not a CA car, if it's up by the grille on the passenger side it is. I think that's true of all the CA cars, it certainly is on the 85's.

Hatterasguy · #7 06-22-2006, 07:18 PM

That statement is only true up to 1985. Put a Fed SDL right next to a CA SDL and no one but the most knowledgable people will be able to tell them apart.

Figure low 20's for an SD around town. Its a heavy car with out a lot of power so they don't really shine around town, espeicaly with the AC on.

JimmyL · #8 06-22-2006, 07:25 PM

I can't see going from one of the most reliable car makers (Honda) to one of these old Mercedes. I love mine, but would never be comfortable with it as my only car.
There is a reason why there are so many threads.

They are great as a second car, or I would want 2 to be safe. Of course some will tell you they have never had an issue, but more fit into the other category.

Hatterasguy · #9 06-22-2006, 07:30 PM

Good point. Remember with most of us we don't have just one old MB. I'd buy at least two.

Even better would be to keep the Honda and then buy an old MB. The Honda will start and run, thats not always the case with a 25 year old car.

DslBnz · #10 06-22-2006, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyL

I can't see going from one of the most reliable car makers (Honda) to one of these old Mercedes. I love mine, but would never be comfortable with it as my only car.
There is a reason why there are so many threads.

They are great as a second car, or I would want 2 to be safe. Of course some will tell you they have never had an issue, but more fit into the other category.

That's why you find a good, clean example with a stellar background history. In printed form, of course.

Minimizes your chances of getting burned by the seller. If a private party is selling, they usually have a reason for doing so other than the excuse "it's time to move on".

Of course documented examples cost a small fortune. But, as the age-old saying goes: there is nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes-Benz.

blueranger · #11 06-22-2006, 07:36 PM

my 83 300sd get 25mph city, highway, sitting in the drive way,
it just always get 25 mph... no matter what... very little veration

Jeremy5848 · #12 06-22-2006, 08:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyL

There is a reason why there are so many threads.

I suspect that there are many reasons for all of the threads here. One is certainly that we are talking abour cars that are 20+ years old. Things break and wear out, even on Benzes (even on Hondas!).

Another reason is that most of the forum members are second (or third or...) owners of their M-B(s) and didn't pay $30,000 for them as a new car. People who buy such things new can afford to pay the dealer whatever it costs for maintenance and repairs. Later owners, like me, may have neither the ability nor the desire to pay dealer rates. We do as much of our own service as we can, hence this forum.

Finally, these are (again) old cars and some newer, younger wrenches (whether an owner or a service person) may be less familiar with them. Forums like this one keep the old knowledge alive so that these things can stay on the road.

But to agree with JimmyL and the others, keep your Honda for the first year, while you're working the bugs out of the new-to-you Mercedes. There's always something that the previous owner didn't know or chose to not tell you. Once it is debugged you should be no worse off than the owner of a newer car.

Mea Culpa, I can always drive my wife's car. I would be uncomfortable with only one car in the family, whether that's one person or many. (How did we ever manage with one car in the 1950s?

)

Jeremy

origamitect · #13 06-22-2006, 10:03 PM

We were down to just my frankenbenz 240/300D as our only vehicle for about 3 months. A very stressful and expensive 3 months - I had to rent a car for two weeks while completing a major transmission repair. $$$$$$$! Lesson learned - although we stuck with mercedes diesels for the second car. Now as long as they don't have issues at the same time...