Hello,
I just bought my first Mersedes 1983 300sd today. I have several questions.
1. What do I need to check as far as maintainence before I take it on the road.
2. There is a cluncking noise on the left side when I apply the brakes. The brakes do not squeal but there is like a bump or a clunck.
Thanks for your help.

Welcome to the forum!

We need more information to help you -- such as:

How many miles show on the odometer (does it work? do you believe the miles are correct?)

What did you get in the way of service records from the previous owner(s)?

Give us a list of things that don't work, or don't work properly -- or a list of things that do work -- which ever is the shorter list. An owner that doesn't fix non-critical things that break (like the a/c or the power seats or windows, for example) may also have skimped on necessary maintenance.

What kind of work are you capable of and willing to do yourself?

Once we know a little more about you and your new car we will be able to make some good suggestions.

Jeremy

__________________

"Buster" in the '95

Our all-biodiesel family
1995 E300D (W124) 201,000 miles My car
1996 E300D (W210) 289,000 miles Wife's car

"Politicians are the same all over the world;
we build bridges where there aren't any rivers."
-- Nikita S. Khrushchev

I am willing to do a lot myself. I am fairly mechanical and have a lot of tools.
The car shows 383418 miles. the odometer does not work. The engine has about 50K on it since a rebuild along with the transmission.
The things that do not work
1. Odometer
2. dash lights do not work (radio missing also)
3. sunroof very slow and sometimes will not shut
3. front windows will not roll down
4. several of the buttons missing on the dash in the middle I have the hazard light and the sunroof buttons, but know there are three more buttons missing. Not sure what those buttons do. Please inform me about what those buttons do.
5. the Ac has been converted but was not working. I pulled a vacuum on it and did not find leaks so I charged it and now it is working fine. However the compressor makes a lot of noise.
6.Passenger door on the left side will not open and the lock knob is
missing.
7. I changed the air filter and found some oil in the air filter pan. (is that normal?)
8. Apparently there is a primer on this car so I primed it 1 time and then it started leaking. I screwed it a little tighter and it stopped.
9. There was a lot of rust piced in the spare tire spot and I could not find anything rusted inside until I looked up under the rear window. it is rusted badly there. What do I need to do about that?
10. There is a clunking noise coming from the front left tire area when I put on the brakes. It only cluncks once when I apply the brakes. What could that be?
11. The transmission shifts smooth, but very premature for what I am used to, but it does not seem to affect the power. I get all the gears before 30mph.
That is all that i see right now. i just bought it today for $600

Do a search on guide rods and guide rod mounts. This is about the nastiest job on that car. One of the few things a daredevil like myself will not tackle without an extra set of knowledgable hands.

Sixto
87 300D

guide rod huh. I will look. i am willing to get dirty, but not very knowledgeable.