Question about w124 diesels
 

I have been looking for one for awhile a nice 94 or 95 e300 diesel w124. Which motor do they use? OM603? I cant seem to find anything; are they rare to find with diesels? What do the diesel models sell for? Just asking...Thanks in advance.

The engine is the OM606.910. Both should be NA.

What?
 

N/A as in Naturally Aspirated?

Yes.

Only the 1987 300D used the OM603, the rest used a 2.5 liter engine. (Not sure what the designation is though)

Is the OM 606 slow? Or is the bigger displacement enough to compensate? Is the OM606 prone to rod bending and overheating like some of the 603 series engines?

I drove a 1997 300D that had a 606...without the turbo charger the performance is adequate but it certainly won't wow you....

Nah,Turtle like performance
 

Ian,

You'd hate this kind of acceleration?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJ54sjAjNdg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xz94tbBF8-E&feature=related

1."Slightly" modified OM606
2.stock Om606

The NA versions are what you would expect - not incredible acceleration, but adequate. If you are used to driving a gasser or a turbo it will be a noticeable difference to you. Once you get up to speed they cruise quite nicely and are capable of speeds up to about 125-130.

I have gotten use to mine and it doesn't bother me. Although, to make the '95 feel faster, I went out and bought a 240D. ;)

I have never heard that the 606 is susceptible to rod bending or overheating. There are other issues, but those aren't among them.

I love my '95 Ian. It would have allot more kick if it had the turbo, but it is about the same as a turbo OM617. Very smooth and have plenty of power to move the W124 chassis.
I imagine the turbo version in the W210 would really be a fun engine to own, but I just could never get used to that back end of the W210, nor do I want to deal with the fault codes and limp mode issues.
Even the W124 with the 2.5 turbo is a very good car, but I just prefer the improvements made to the '95.....

There's a nice one for sale in San Diego, a 1991 w124 2.5 turbo. Regardless, the dealer/seller is asking a lot of money...$12,000. 79,000 miles, one owner. They've had it for over a year now, maybe they should lower the price a bit.

Please elaborate...
 

Sounds great! What are some of the issues you have hinted about? I am toying with the idea for now...I would need to find a nice example before I made any move...

I would like something in between number one and number two :rolleyes:

just picked up a 93 300D 2.5
 

Cost me $4k. Is around what they book at. Has 148k on it. Picked it up at the repair shop. They redid the brakes, oil change and the injector return lines, total they spent $600 on it. Has a good maint hist. Looks like all I will need to do is put in a new vac pump and be good to go for a bit. The one in it is fine but from what I read its time to change it before it goes bad. It is my understanding that there were not all that many of these turbo diesels brought in to the U.S. I read somewhere 300 in 93 true or not I dont know. Mine is white, sunroof, nice tan interior, Arizona car. Car looks and runs great for $4k. And as I said Kelly Blue Book has em at about $4k. Good luck

For the 606.910, they include: (1) the dreaded biodegradable wiring harness (the plastic covering on the wires cracks and falls apart prematurely - costs about $400 to buy a new one and then you have to actually replace the thing); (2) the AC evaporator (I don't recall the issue there - mine was replaced before I bought it); and (3) the potential for stuck glow plugs when it comes time to change them out. You will find plenty of posts about the last one. I actually just replaced all six plugs in mine last weeks. I decided to try getting them out without the use of penetrating oil or any of the other tips offered, although I wasn't going to exert much force to try and get them to move (for fear of breaking one off). Anyway, they all came out - no problem.

'94-'95 E300D issues
 

After working on several '94 & '95 w124 diesels, these are the things to watch for IMHO:

1. Siezed glow plugs. Be vewwwy careful about this
2. oil leak on right side of head at #1 cylinder
3. coolant leak on right side of head at rear of engine
4. sagging 5 link rear suspension. Particularly wheel carrier bushings
5. Crumbling biodegradable wiring harness insulation. Not as critical as on the gassers but still a concern

Pretty much the must check list. Check to see if the timing chain has been replaced if it's over 150k. If these issues are good, they are a sweet car with just regular maintenance.