How much trouble am I in? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Douge · #1 12-17-2007, 08:51 PM

Hi guys, I just bought a 1981 300TD. It has a few issues like it doesn't start.

The battery is dead and the car has not run for about 2 years. The rear of the car purportedly has a self leveling mechanism and is nearly dragging on the tarmac? What is up with that? Two of the four tires have gone flat.

Owner reports that the car was a daily until two years ago when he bought another MB and stopped driving it. Only mechanical issue he recalled was that the car hesitated when shifting to second when cold but has done it for years and never had any further degradation in the transmission.

The good news, the exterior is great, two small dents that can be easily fixed, paint is very good and imagine it will pop right back with an orbital and a little TLC. Chrome and trim is very good. Interior is good, does have a cracked dash and does have a small hole in the the driver seat but as a whole its very good.

Car has 165K and the owner states he is the original purchaser. I paid the whopping sum of $750 for it and hope to whip it into shape in short order.

Any comments, positive or negative are more than welcome. When I was 15 I spent two weeks one summer helping a friend of my fathers' restore a late 60's 190 I believe and here I am 25 years later trying it on my own. Wish me luck!

Magoo · #2 12-17-2007, 08:56 PM

If thats all that's wrong with it and there is no rust, you did pretty good. The Self Leveling Suspension in the rear of the TD's can be expensive though. Depends what's wrong with it.

crashone · #3 12-17-2007, 08:57 PM

You have come to the right place to get all the help you need. These guys have helped me out with all kinds of issues. Good Luck and enjoy the ride, (literally)!!

BoomInTheTrunk · #4 12-17-2007, 09:05 PM

Alright, well congratulations first off you need to change the oil, trans fluid, change both fuel filters and the tank screen. Also you will need to do a diesel purge and a good Italian tune up. over the years of sitting the fuel system can get pretty dirty. depending on the amount of fuel that was in there you will need to most likely put a biocide clearner in the fuel tank to kill any algae that may have formed, also this depends whether or not the car has been sitting in a

cold enviroment, if it gets cold were the car was then most likely the car might have algae in its fuel. My car sat for 2 years and it caused the engine to leak oil, very small amounts like one little drip every time I drive it so i haven't bothered to fix it but most likely it is the rear seal. besides that my car drives fine. so these cars tend not to have problems for sitting. well hope your TD comes out looking good when all is finished and ready for the road.

Oh yah the rear suspension is most likely just bad hydraulic lines. they tend to break down and leak.

Douge · #5 12-17-2007, 09:12 PM

Thanks Boom, what in the heckfire is an Italian tune up? Can I purge the fuel system myself? Suppose I should hunt down a shop manual straight away.

Car has been in AZ since new. It gets into the high 30's low 40's at night this time of year but that is the worst of it.

kerry · #6 12-17-2007, 09:15 PM

I say before investing money in fluids, filters etc, I would try to get it started. Swap in a good battery, and try to start it. If the glow plug light works and it turns over but won't start, I would then disconnect the fuel and return lines from the metal fuel lines in the engine compartment and run them both into a soda bottle of good clean diesel fuel. Then try to start it. If it does run, you can then begin to do the fluid changes and rehook up the fuel lines to see if will run off the existing fuel system.
If you have hydraulic fluid in the suspension and there are no major leaks, the rear should raise up like a cat in heat once the engine starts running.

There have been quite a number of people on this board who reanimated long standing diesels. A number of them found that it was necessary to pull start the engine the first time. Don't exclude this possibility in your case.

Chad300tdt · #7 12-17-2007, 09:24 PM

Congratulations and Good luck with your wagon.

I am repairing my SLS right now. The accumulators were shot, the SLS valve needed to be rebuilt and the feed and return lines were rotted under the subframe. I spliced new sections in the lines to replace the rot and threaded them under the subframe without dropping it. I don't know if the extra difficulty with the lines was worth the effort saved by not dropping the subframe. I've spent about $500 in parts and tools needed for the job. (flare nut wrenches and bubble flare tool kit)

If your rear is really low you may have worn out springs in addition to a leaking SLS valve and possibly rotted lines. The accumulators just absorb the pressure with the struts and don't effect the height. Hopefully your struts aren't leaking (they rarely do) since they are very pricey.

Repair your SLS, it's worth the effort.

BoomInTheTrunk · #8 12-17-2007, 09:36 PM

The Italian tune up that i talked about consists of driving the car around like you stole it. Before doing this I highly recommend changing fluids. The point of this is to get the engine up to high operating temperatures and burning out any carbon that might be in the engine. These engines really dont like to be babied. If you drive these cars around "Slow" then carbon can build up in the engine, this is also the case if you drive short distances and the car doesn't get up to proper temps. Take the car up a high in one of the lower gears to the car can rev high, you will probably see alot of black smoke come out the exhaust dont be alarmed that is just the soot being burned out. once it goes away then your good. try to use a hill because the car needs load in order for it to work properly.

Douge · #9 12-17-2007, 09:37 PM

Wow you guys are awesome. Thanks so much. I am having the car towed down to my house tomorrow and will probably at the very least grab a battery and see if it won't magically start. Based on the fact that the car was pretty clean and he has another older MB that was in very good condition, I am hoping that it won't be to much of a problem. He said the rear end would pop back up as well. We will see. I wish I had digicam to document this stuff. Be fun to do a little before and after granted it probably won't be all that dramatic.

If all it needs is some hard driving, it couldn't have found a better home.

turbobenz · #10 12-17-2007, 10:59 PM

When you get it suitable to drive, do a valve adjustment. Then take a long road trip. And at some point in that trip find a long straight and bury it if you have the balls. I set the cruise control on my 84 at 95mph and ran it that way for about an hour (but then again, i was comming back from LA to nor cal at 2 in the morning). When I got back I noticed the car smoked less, and idled very smoothly. I also noticed a beautiful exhaust note. I then purged the car, and the returning purge was dark black! It amazing what a purge can get out.

t walgamuth · #11 12-18-2007, 12:45 AM

Running 95 will get you jail time a lot of places.

Just take a trip once you get all the bugs worked out and drive it 75 or whatever you can do without getting a ticket. That will flush out the built up stuff.

Really though, these old diesels really deal with extended hibranation better than most vehicles.

Tom W

JackG · #12 12-18-2007, 07:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Douge

Hi guys, I just bought a 1981 300TD. It has a few issues like it doesn't start.

The battery is dead and the car has not run for about 2 years. The rear of the car purportedly has a self leveling mechanism and is nearly dragging on the tarmac? What is up with that? Two of the four tires have gone flat.

Car has 165K and the owner states he is the original purchaser. I paid the whopping sum of $750 for it and hope to whip it into shape in short order.

You are in deep.......way deeper than you realize. These things are addictive. The last thing you want is one you have to work on yet. That increases the heart rate and appears to speed up the addiction. Think about it, look at the list of MB's in our signatures......is this what want for yourself, your life, your family. Run Douge, Run away and don't look back.

P.S. please pm me your address so I know where to pick up the car

.

Douge · #13 12-18-2007, 09:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JackG

You are in deep.......way deeper than you realize. These things are addictive. The last thing you want is one you have to work on yet. That increases the heart rate and appears to speed up the addiction. Think about it, look at the list of MB's in our signatures......is this what want for yourself, your life, your family. Run Douge, Run away and don't look back.

P.S. please pm me your address so I know where to pick up the car

.

I think you answered the question the best. Reading between the lines and seeing the true depth of my predicament. I listed my former MB's but you can see this is my first diesel. I am excited to go and get it today, I hope I can have it running shortly. If not, I will pm my addy in short order to avoid any further complications.

Dee8go · #14 12-18-2007, 09:10 AM

I hope you can get it running without too much expense. I love mine, think it's terrific-looking, and it gets great mileage. These engines are very strong. I love the sound of mine when it is idling. When that turbo kicks in, it's schweeeeeet!

Good luck with it and congratulations!

vstech · #15 12-18-2007, 10:21 AM

addictive? I don't know what you guys are talking about.

the SLS system is very well designed, get it up on ramps, and look for signs of leaks.
as far as starting it, go to dieselgiant.com and look at the Diesel purge setup he came up with, use fresh fuel in the bottle, and give it a go. you may want to test all the glow plugs first, his site also has a nice pictorial of testing the plugs!
enjoy your beginning of a long standing addiction.