What to look for when buying a 300TD
 

I am looking for a 300td. I am wondering if there are any pitfalls to look out for. Most of the cars I have seen have 200 plus thousand miles on them. Do I need to worry about this?

I have moderate mechanical ability so I will be doing most of my own service.

Any help will be greatly apreciated.

Thanks
Karl

The main difference between the sedan and the TD is that the TD has self-levelling suspension. This has some pretty expensive parts should anything need to be repaired so a close inspection of the SLS would be prudent. It'll be hard to find a low mileage example so either you will have to search for a long time or be content with a high mileage version.

Thanks Kerry. I have located a 1985 close to my home. I am going to look at it tomorrow. How would I tell if the SLS is working?

Self-leveling suspension
 

How would I tell if the SLS is working?
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Open the tailgate and have one or two people sit there. Then start the engine, and if the rear slowly raises to level the car, the SLS is working.

In the left front corner of the engine compartment, behind the left headlight, there is a round container with the word "OEL" on the cap. This holds the special hydraulic fluid used by the SLS system.

The parts that are most likely to fail seem to be the hydraulic struts in the rear and the Nitrogen spheres just behind the rear axle. The former are much more expensive and harder to fix than the former.

If the system does not work, the rear of the car will tend to droop, and the rear suspension will feel rigid.

The AC is always a pain on older Mercedes, as is the radio antenna.

You can adapt a sedan antenna to fit the TD if the parts are there to swap.