i just ordered new motor shocks and shock mounts for my 82 300td. it vibrates and oscillates something fierce. i replaced the motor mounts first and foremost, and after reading up i decided to go for the motor shocks. now i find out about the dampening pin. what is this? where is this? would anyone be kind enough to help me trouble shoot this problem? the car shakes worse i "D" and "p" than "N". reverse is the worst. another user just suggested a rubber donut of sorts, which i am not familiar with. i am prepared and able to replace the motor shocks but would love for some sagely advise first if possible. thank you. shoots

The rack dampener pin is on the back of your IP next to the oil filter housing. To adjust it you will need to loosen the nut that holds it in place and then turn the pin. If memory serves correct you need a 14 mm wrench for the nut and a 13 mm for the pin. Before adjusting it I'd take it out and look at it, if the spring-tip doesn't seem to be operational then you need a new one. To adjust it, BTW, just loosen it and while the engine is idling tighten it until the vibration becomes tolerable. You have to keep in mind that a pin which is too tight will constrict your fuel supply and you'll have low power at low rpm's. It's not hard to do but you might not get it right the first time. In any event it's easy to adjust.

I'm not sure it's your problem but it can't really hurt to try, either, I suppose. The usual symptom of a problem with the pin seems to be 'the shakes' after a hard drive. I don't know if the pin can cause the problems you describe, but it sounds like you should give it a shot as you've got nothing to lose.

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Ralph

1985 300D Turbo, CA model
248,650 miles and counting...

thank you. i went to harbor freight and bought some 28 dollar jack stands and replaced the motor shocks and shock mounts first thing today. i noticed a nut missing under one of the bushings for the air filter mount. i tightened that up and took the car off the jacks and started it up. it still moved around, but not as much. after a test drive i decided to mess with dampener pin. a little turn to the left, a little turn to the right and shazzam, the car mellowed out and stopped jumping around. one thing i noticed was that if left at idle in drive the r.p.m.s would be lower than in nuetral or park. by tweaking the dampener pin i was able to raise the idle r.p.m.s enough to compensate for not being in nuetral. really, i think it was a combo of new motor mounts, motor shocks (one of which was bent), motor shock mounts, a missing nut on the air filter housing shock, and the dampener pin. thank you much for the advice. shoots