i think you just answered your own question. thats why i love my 300's also. (otherwise i wouldnt be paying boat loads of money to fix up the '85 that i wrecked)

they are like my little esoteric curiosity

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1985 300D - "Desi"
1981 300D - "Pepi"
1984 240D - "Sticky"
1985 300TD - "Flitstone"
1984 300TD - "Frenchie"
1987 300TD - "4481"

Having read through this entire thread, I think I can say that the answer to the original question is a resounding NO! The average diesel-head doesn't hate cars - we LOVE them (some of us too much maybe).

Like many here I have owned a wide variety of cars from a pretty broad spectrum of manufacturers. Last count I was sitting at having owned right around 40 different vehicles. Almost all the modern American brands - Ford, Dodge, Chevy, Oldsmobile, Jeep. A bunch of Japanese - Datsun, Mazda, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Honda. A couple of Korean, Kia and Hyndai. A few German, VW (both water and air cooled), BMW, Porche, and now Mercedes. I even owned one Fiat.

My love of diesels started just a couple of years ago when I bought an old naturally aspirated 6.9 liter F250 as a camper hauler / Jeep towing rig. I learned a lot about diesels in the year that I owned it - mainly because it had so many problems when I bought it. I have since replaced it with one that has a Banks turbo kit on it. The thing that hooked me is their economy and longevity. My F250 with 200k on it gets 15 mpg and has never been apart. Compared to my buddy's F250 of the same vintage with a 460cid gasser that gets 8 mpg and has already had a complete engine rebuild. A rebuild that cost him more than I paid for my whole truck I might add.

By the time fuel prices started their recent big upward spiral I had learned enough about diesels to know I wanted one in a car for my daily driver. If for no other reason than the fact that alternative fuels are an option. I'm in favor of ANYTHING that will allow me to keep from giving the Shieks and the robber-barons of big oil one more dime than I have to. But that is another rant for another thread...

I looked hard at some of the VWs - Jettas in particular - and even considered a Volvo or an Audi (despite their reputations - especially Audis). But then I started looking at the old MBs and the first time I drove one I was HOOKED! Compared to a 90's VW or an Audi, an 80's MB that was 10 years older felt an order of magnitude more solid, safer, tighter, and of better quality. The final straw was when I saw that the 10-year newer VW and Audi diesels were going for as much or more than the older MBs - despite the fact that an MB will probably still outlast a VW diesel that is 10 years newer. The VW and Audi diesel motors may last a long time, but the bodies and suspesions on them are JUNK compared to the MB.

I'm sold on these old MBs. Now if I can just convince my wife that SHE should be driving one too, that would go a long ways towards the "dieselization" of my personal fleet....

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1984 300 Coupe TurboDiesel
Silver blue paint over navy blue interior
2nd owner & 2nd engine in an otherwise
99% original unmolested car
~210k miles on the clock

1986 Ford F250 4x4 Supercab
Charcoal & blue two tone paint over burgundy interior
Banks turbo, DRW, ZF-5 & SMF conversion
152k on the clock - actual mileage unknown

The Pacific Northwest is home to quite a few car collectors and restorers. That may because the Northwest is one of the last areas where family properties and barns go unmolested for generations and still house Great Great Grand Uncle Fred's prize Coupe from the 40's. You see Gleaming restored antiques from the 40's, 50's and on. I saw a Deusenberg the other day.There's quite a few car shows but I doubt I would go to one... Some cars' like old Thunderbirds and Muscle cars really turn me off. You see a lot of well restored VW Beetles out here, at least three a day.They are usually driven by writer/artist types. In NJ thats the equivalent of a Flying Saucer sighting.

The flipside is I am never happier than when I am in my garage fixing my own car! I must be the wierdest guy in the world. I spent 4 days sorting my 4 mm, 5 mm, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 14 mm 1.0 to 2.0 pitch bolts and nuts into separate peanut butter jars. now that bolts cost $4.00 at the hardware store, my collection may well be worth $4000 alone!
I restored a 30 year old jack to brand new which is the spiritual equivalent of restoring an old toilet.

put me in the "likes good engineering" group.
In the 70's and 80's - the diesels that MB made were good engineering. Lousy by today's standards, but thats called progress.

I gave up on my 240D and went to a Mk3 VW 2.0l Jetta - I am regretting this decision. Why ? Becuase the engineering isnt there. Yes, 240D's and Jetta's are built to different price points, but sometimes you have to pay more to get better stuff.

I try to be a "car guy", which to me, means being interested/knowledgeable in all types of cars. Imports, muscle cars, MB, RR/Bentley, pre-war etc. I go to every car show I can, reguardless of the vintage, and try to learn as much as I can about how they were built. I try to read everything I can. I want to be the guy that can help you fix your W123 ("have you adjusted the valves recently?") , or recommend a new minivan for some friends who just had twins, ("because y'know, the 2004 Honda Odesseys's had a 4spd auto trans but the 05's had a 5-spd auto- which is quieter on the highway...) or roll to the blue ash airport where they are restoring a WWII B-17 and help out...

But I'm not sure if I'm a "dieselhead" either....

=)


-John

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2009 Kia Sedona
2009 Honda Odyssey EX-L
12006 Jetta Pumpe Duse
(insert Mercedes here)

Husband, Father, sometimes friend =)

OMG dude where do you live we have to hang out hahahahaha hey guys i tell you one thing, that thing is that your MB (especialy a Diesel MB) will not leave you for an other guy, or steal your wallet "might empty it sometimes but shuuush LOL" it wont try to harm you or do hurtful things to you. well preaty much what i am trying to say is that a W126/W123 Diesel can be your best friend..... sorry for the people that thinks that saying that might be weird but actually i cannot remember the last time, my MB's tried to f*ck me over for money or anything "obviously its a car but" you know i rather have my car and work on it every time i that i am not working at my shop then be spending some time with careless people, idiots, or what ever. i often notice that i waste time on people that don't really matter instead of driving my W126!. I know lots of people since i own my own parts store/Garage but i rather be with my Car or people that loves Classic German cars/MB's.

All that stuff might sound weird to some of you but to me it just means that my cars will always be there waiting for me to drive them without any *****ing..... god i love my cars "the Girl-Friend does gets pissed off at me sometimes for loving my car too much" oh wellll. hahahahahaha come here ill adjust your valves baby PRRrrrrrrrr VROOM VROOM!!! ;-)

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1991 560SEL AMG "Jap spec"
1989 560SEL Euro spec

-dieselfreak- my lady gets tired of how dirty i get with the benzos. I do side with diesels over 'cars', when friends need some car help, certainly will lend my hand, oil changes, belt changes, and fuel filters, but that is about it! Now when trucks enter the picture...

There is a romantic loss in modern cars and trucks. There is so much electronic wiring everywhere, it feels like im looking at a fat mess, not a tuned automobile! But when i look inside my hood I am not overwhelmed with the components, or the processes of diagnosis and repair. It may be more user friendly to work on an engine with electricity incorperated, but I prefer to sweat to feel the accomplishment.

Its similar to stone carving. (hope i don't go too far off track) The Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, and any group of stone carvers up to the 1900's used hand tools! And my, what beauty they have formed out of the earth! And how long it will last! Many of my stone carving friends love to use power tools because they can move so much matter so quickly with power tools. Or they can achieve textures nearly impossible to reach with a set of hand tools, but i stick with my hammer, point, rakes, and rasps. And at the end of a sculpture, Ive really gotten my back into it. Ive felt the energy of the stone and transformed it with metal extensions of my being, powered not from a manufactured electrical source, but from the electricity from the center of me.

long story short, the harder i work, the more intimate i am with any project, i will appreciate it much more.

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'79 240D
'79 300SD

those that are missed:
'80 300TD bandit
'76 300D cleta jill

Harmless neurosis quite a few of us have. I have never evaluated it totally. Why bother as I am a reasonably happy person.

I have no clear accurate conception of why I own older mercedes diesels either. It certainly is not because they are popular. In some ways it's like the people who own orphan brands like studebaker and hudsons.

Maybe without people like our members the average vintage mercedes diesels would have gone to the yards some time ago. If someone seriously asked me why in fact I own them. I would be at a loss for words perhaps. The 240ds seem to have a distinct character about them compared to any other car I can think of is about all I can come up with at this moment.

Might be a subconcious thing. The other obvious difference is the majority of site members own more than one example. Most orphan owners only tend to own one of their examples. Carrameow may have part of it right as being in the eye of the beholder.
As far as I know no other particular series of cars has a site following as active as mercedsshop. Could it also be partially true that we own cars that we probably could not have been able to afford when they were new? Many, many possibilities exist. I sure do not have the answers.

I'm still impressed by how compitant the W126 still is, even though its a late 70's design. I don't feel that a lot of the newer cars are better enough to make me want to rush out and buy them.

The only car that I feel really is "better" than the W126 is the W140, which is a highly evolved W126. Its like the W140 got a doctorate from an Ivy league school, while the W126 stopped at a 4 year.

To replace a W126 with an equal new car your going to spend at least $70k.

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2016 Corvette Stingray 2LT
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

See i have a 1990 honda crx, that ive built up (high compression pistons its running at allmost 13:1 compression on pump gasoline) But even then, its just not a diesel, the head is alluminum, the block is alluminum. I just dont like the feeling of the head in my hands, i like the cast iron head and block because i can trust it no matter what. The gasoline engines are just too flimsy too, So ive decided after i build up my honda get it to the point i want it to be, ill buy a 300d with a 617 turbocharged, and go through the entire drivetrain, You gota love the diesel, its gota be in your veins to see these cars for what they really are.

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Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?

As long as they would add one additional commandment for you to keep thy religion to thyself.
George Carlin (Wonder where he is now..)

1981 240d (engine donor 1983 240d) recently rebuilt engine hurray! - No more.. fought a tree and the tree won.

pearl black 1983 240d 4speed (Converted!@$$%) atleast the tranny was rebuilt.

Your damn right buddy i think the same way sorry if i took a long time to respond to your message man i have been receiving all kinds of parts from eBay for my W126 and i got a new W115 and their keeping me busy when the shop is closed lol take care man!

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1991 560SEL AMG "Jap spec"
1989 560SEL Euro spec

for new members

I'm a diesel head and I love cars. I love going to car shows and seeing all the different designs, etc.

-J

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1991 350SDL. 230,000 miles (new motor @ 150,000). Blown head gasket

Tesla Model 3. 205,000 miles. Been to 48 states!
Past: A fleet of VW TDIs.... including a V10,a Dieselgate Passat, and 2 ECOdiesels.
2014 Cadillac ELR
2013 Fiat 500E.

I started loving cars since I could drive. I got really interested in diesels for some reason because they were different. I remember I even got some diesel emblems from a diesel van and put them on my gas van. How stupid but hey. I ended up getting a 300sd solely because it was diesel. that only lasted a few months as I got into an accident and totaled it. By that time I wanted another mercedes. I looked for diesel but couldnt find one so I bought a 420sel. I swore off diesels after that. At least MB for sure. Anyway three years later I trade up the benz for a new mazda and enjoyed that until I started really wanting another benz. I wanted another 420sel because I made a mistake. I started looking around and I didnt look for another diesel. I ended up buying my grandmothers 300Sd and I really only wanted it because it was an MB and it was her original car bought new and I wanted it to stay in the family. I was a little bummed by the fact it was a diesel. Fast forward to now and I cant get enough diesel. I really dont want to drive my mazda but I know I need to have a reliable car. But the crazy thing is that the mustangs and high power v8 engines really dont excite me any more. I want diesel! I want another diesel. I went and looked at the new TDI jettas and seriously considered trading the "mazder" in for one. I talked myself out if it though but I still want another diesel. I know mazda is supposed to bring a diesel engine to the USA in 2013 so I shall see what car they put it in. I still like cars and read a lot about them, but I find it very hard to get excited about them if they are not diesel powered. Why else why I look at a VW? I still catch a lot of hell at work for driving my "bucket of bolts" and purposely getting a money pit. I just tell them that I didnt even have my car for 24 hours and I had a guy come up to me and start a conversation about my car while no one gives a **** about his jeep cherokee. Diesel just does something to you. I got a thumbs up from a young kid at autozone who drove a jetta TDI wagon. I saw this huge smile on his face when he heard my car start. I thought that was pretty awesome.

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1984 300SD Orient Red/ Palomino
1989 560SEC
2016 Mazda 6 6 speed manual
1995 Ford F-150 reg cab 4.9 5speed manual

I like cars, but I like them best if they've got something odd or quirky about them. At car shows I'm the guy ignoring the rows of shined-up '57 Chevies in order to ogle a 2-stroke Saab or an Amphicar. Given unlimited maintenance funds I'd probably drive a Citroën DS.

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1981 Mercedes 300TD, 1994 Honda Civic Del Sol
http://mefi.us/images/fuelly/smallsig-us/67195.pnghttp://mefi.us/images/fuelly/smallsig-us/103885.png

Me too. I also like motorcycles, and planes, and trucks, and ships, and old steam locomotives, and pretty much anything else that goes about under its own power.

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Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 401,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 26,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.
99 Mazda Miata 183,xxx miles.