What to do with this beast - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

ultralight · #1 08-11-2008, 04:03 PM

Ok, here we go. Back in November I purchased this 1987 300D that had 134,000 miles on it. My wife liked the car and she was tired of driving her Wrangler to work because of the "open" nature of rag tops. I have a problem with cars in general as I am 6'4" and don't easily fit into them. I agreed with the diesel because of their inherent reliability and the fact that the car was PRISTINE inside and out. This example was driven by an old woman who bought it new and drove it until she went blind. Her son was selling it for her and he didn't know much about cars. (or anything else) The car came with all the original paperwork including the window sticker and had only been serviced at the dealer.
The only things wrong with this car is the power antenna (it came with a new one in the box) the radio was locked from the last time the battery was changed (came with a spare Becker unit and another Mercedes branded unit with a 6-disc changer from a newer car) the thermometer and clock didn't work in the dash, and there was an oil leak from the front crank seal. All this was fine to me and the oil leak helped me talk him WAY down.
So the first thing we do is take it on a 250 mile road trip to meet her parents in Nashville TN. Everything went fine and the car did well on the trip there. I personally didn't enjoy the car because of the close proximity to the road and the unusually high RPMs for a diesel. I heard it go through all 4 gears so I wasn't real worried about that. We were pulling up to a restaurant and I pulled too close to the curb. It made a thump as I came forward and a scrape as I backed off. I wasn't worried as I do this in most cars since I am used to the clearance of my truck.
I wasn't even going to look but my father-in-law walked around the front of the car. "It's leaking water or something" he says "bull" I says "no, really" he says.
Long story short: we spent the rest of the evening and the next day looking for a radiator. No luck so I rented a truck and trailer and drug it home. I removed the radiator and found that the last time the fan shroud was was off they didn't get it back in the little slots and the tab was resting right against the fins. When I curbed it I hit the lower radiator support and shoved the tab through 2 of the fins. I took it to the local shop but they said they couldn't do anything since the damage was right next to the plastic. I bought a Behr replacement and stuck it on.
I have really hated the car since then and I avoided it when possible. I
When I put in the new radiator I just used a universal antifreeze and now I hear that non-Mercedes coolant will destroy the engine. How true is this. My wife drives the car everyday and has probably put 7,000-8,000 miles on it.
She said that the air conditioner stopped working. I immediately saw that the compressor wasn't running so I checked the system pressure and it was zero (the car had been converted to 134A by the dealer). I shorted the pressure switch and the compressor came on. I pulled down the system and it did come up 1-2" over several hours. I thought this was acceptible so I put in some 134A and tripped the pressure switch so I could get her running until I could chase the leak. The compressor came on but it won't build pressure. The compressor looks like every other A/C compressor that I have seen so why does it cost $600?
There seems to be a lot of valve noise in this car. I never thought about it but a guy at the gas station said he used to have one and it was a LOT quieter than this one. It sounds like a Peterbuilt at idle. I did use conventional Delvac oil ,but I have only changed it once. I am sure the dealer used the right oil and it sounds the same as always. Where should I start?
In addition to my other questions, what trouble should I expect to have with this car? I haven't checked what head I have but all the dealer recalls have been done so it might be newer. It doesn't seem that anyone here thinks this car is a lemon but I need some convincing. I keep reading about vacuum lines, wiring, heads, oil leaks, sunroof, I have had a GMC for 200K miles and the only time it has been in for repair was the 2 recalls (one for the tailgate cables and the other for the gas gage).
Should I sell it? I really don't have the desire to work on this thing all the time. What would I expect to ask for this car once I fix all the current problems? What would I ask for it now? Any offers?
Sorry about the novel.

ultralight · #2 08-11-2008, 04:20 PM

Let me make it clear that I know that the radiator thing was a freak and that my particular car hasn't had a lot of problems yet, but there is a lot of embarrassment and emotional baggage that comes with having to spend $800 renting a truck and then spending $450 for parts to fix a car a week after buying it. Also, all of my American/Japanese vehicles have been rock-solid and easy/cheap to repair.

My fog lights are yellow, is this normal?

zeke · #3 08-11-2008, 04:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ultralight

My fog lights are yellow, is this normal?

yes, but white is also normal. Your choice.

I'll let others with more experience with the w124 chime in on the reliability. One of the members here told me a year is a good trajectory. It takes about a year to figure out these cars and get all the little bugs worked out. They are European, so parts will always be more than domestic parts.....but, they tend to last a lot longer!

bbboomer · #4 08-11-2008, 04:34 PM

I think you should sell me your problem.

jcyuhn · #5 08-11-2008, 04:45 PM

The engine noise is normal. The hydraulic tappets on the om603 tend to get a bit noisy. Switching to a synthetic oil may quiet things down over time. The knock may also be the diesel injectors. They can be cleaned by running an injector cleaning solution through the engine. The solution is fed directly out of the can into the fuel lines underhood - it's quite easy.

I'd be hard pressed to call any car that has provided daily service for 21 years straight a lemon. Do you know anybody that is driving Japanese or American iron that old? I didn't think so.

Mercedes antifreeze has some advantages, but regular old green stuff won't ruin the engine, not by a long run. Zerex G-05 is the preferred stuff for this car. Just change it when you get around to it. MB recommends a 3 year change interval.

The a/c compressor is a fairly common Nippondeno unit, but with the addition of an RPM sensor on the back. The sensor permits comparing compressor RPM to engine speed. If there's a difference - i.e. the compressor siezes - the electronics shut down the compressor to save the serpentine belt. Lots of info on this setup can be found in old threads here. A bad compressor and a big leak at the same time strikes me as unlikely. What do you mean by not building pressure - how much charge was in the system, and what were the numbers?

These old diesels are fetching surprising amounts of money these days, so if you really want to get rid of it, perhaps you should.

captainmonk · #6 08-11-2008, 04:56 PM

no one should own a 20 year old car and not expect regular upkeep
that said mostly on here we discuss problems we have
not the 6 months we drove trouble free
there are also tinkers here that like making work for themselves
when they are done they can come fix my car

ultralight · #7 08-11-2008, 05:08 PM

Quote:

A bad compressor and a big leak at the same time strikes me as unlikely. What do you mean by not building pressure - how much charge was in the system, and what were the numbers?

My wife only drives 5 miles to work and she leaves the windows down unless it's really hot; so the A/C may never have worked. I put 75 PSI in the low side and had 75 PSI in the high side.

ultralight · #8 08-11-2008, 05:28 PM

How much engine noise is "normal"?
What should I know before pressure washing the engine bay?

JackG · #9 08-11-2008, 05:56 PM

At the risk of ticking you off, here is my .02

1) There is nothing inexpensive about a cheap car.
It has been said here many time before, The most
expensive Benz is a cheap one.

2) There will always be Maint. on an older car.
If you don't do it yourself, this will be a VERY
expensive car.

3) If you do not have a love for these cars, if
that clackity clack is not music to your ears, you
bought the wrong car.

4) if you bought the wrong car, sell it and move on, there
is someone out there who will love to have it and see that
it is taken care of properly.

5) Chances are very good you will NOT recover all you have put into
it, Lick your wounds and move on. If you want a value, check
on Ebay to see what the reals sales are getting.
Don't forget to look through the completed auctions and
ignore those cars that are "selling" for big bucks but seem to be back on
every other week........just shill bidding

ultralight · #10 08-11-2008, 06:16 PM

Quote:

At the risk of ticking you off

Not me.
This car, truly, looks like it is 1 or 2 years old max. The only visible flaw is the oil under the hood and all the stuff sticking to it. If I stuck it in my front yard today with the price I paid for it I would probably sell it tonight. I consider myself very lucky to have found a car in this shape for this kind of money. It was in a gated community of multi-million dollar vacation homes and if it had been anywhere else it would have went for 2 or 3 times what I paid. It looks better than her '05 Jeep but with lots more "bugs".
I am unlikely to fall in love with this car and I am just weighing the option of fixing and selling it or fixing and re-fixing it. Any way I would be money ahead. I like diesel engines and I drove one for years so that is not a problem. My wife gets tired of the looks she gets when she pulls up to the Diesel pump, though. "clackity-clackity-clack" "no wonder it sounds like crap, look; she's putting diesel in it!" It sounds like an old farm tractor until you give it a little throttle.
Reading through the posts, I'm scared to death about that head, though. And all that vacuum stuff.
I can't find anything on tricking the rpm sensor in the A/C compressor so I could use a more common pump.

TMAllison · #11 08-11-2008, 06:31 PM

Take it to a local independent MB shop expirienced with diesels and have them listen to it to determine if it is noisy, or if it is all in your head. Its subjective, and can't really be defined here.

It may be that it needs inj's re-balanced or possibly some new nozzles too.

rkohut · #12 08-11-2008, 06:31 PM

There seem to be many individuals from GA on this forum so perhaps you may find many interested potential buyers.

Then you could look for a 21 year old American or Japanese car.

yellowbenz · #13 08-11-2008, 06:47 PM

Mobil 1 has been credited with quieting noisy hydraulic lifters on these cars. When they stick, the sound is not the music of a diesel engine. It's more like a death rattle. This should cure your wife's issues with filling up at the gas station. Let a shop fix the a/c. Really, you sound like you'll not be happy until the car is a distant memory so I think selling is probably not a bad option.

arkie · #14 08-11-2008, 06:57 PM

To the OP - if you will never develop a love of this car then you should probably sell it. It takes the love of a particular automobile to whip it into shape, especially an older Benz. 124 chassis diesels have their own issues, and at the risk of a verbal lashing here, are definitely more troublesome than their 123 chassis counterparts when they do have issues. I will say that overall, MB parts are not too bad. There are some things that are exceedingly high, but the the stuff for the bread-and-butter common Mercedes cars are within reason.

In the OP's defense, it is not uncommon to purchase a domestic pickup and keep it 20 years or more and not have continual issues. My dad bought a 1984 Chevrolet Silverado brand new, and drove it everyday for the first 13 years and 140K miles without issue other than the HEI coil dying and a couple fuel pumps (weak spot on mid-80s 2-bolt main small blocks). He still has the truck today - we put a 350HO engine in it and he still drives it every now and then.

ultralight · #15 08-12-2008, 04:12 AM

Quote:

it is not uncommon to purchase a domestic pickup and keep it 20 years or more and not have continual issues.

And that's exactly where I'm coming from.
I checked the car and I do have the #14 head. The 'ol squeeze test came up negative. I checked the other problem areas and the passenger rear window doesn't work anymore. I know it worked when we bought it. Just for reference, what percentage of this type of car here is in this mechanical condition; what with the oil leak (the dealer noticed it 20,000 miles ago and the PO declined to fix it; maybe leaks 1/3 cup in 3000mi), window, antenna, clock&thermo, and A/C? Is it above or below normal, by how much?