My father just gave it to me. It's only got 110k on the clock. A white one. Moby. He's got a few of them. None running but this one is and won't stop even when you turn the key off.. Don't know what that is. He's great at keeping things running but it's a bit of trial and error. I don't want to make any mistakes with this gem. I want to keep it running for a long time.

I've always been the type of person that buys gas cars that have 40k+ on them and need the usual brakes, tires etc... This one will need the same.

The diesel world is all new to me. I have a best friend who makes bio so I could use some pointers there. New fuel lines needed?

Also, this thing has been sitting for a couple years. What is the list of fluids I should change in order of priority? Filters etc?? General specs and sources would be great. I live in Massachusetts.

Thanks!

Welcome to the site.
Welcome to the world of white '85 wagons.
Welcome to the search function. You should spend your first week there. Lots of info.
Your lack of turning off is a vacuum leak. Probably the most common malady of these old cars.
So, search, search, search......

Oh, and btw, if your 300TD isn't a wagon, I'll be back........

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Jimmy L.
'05 Acura TL 6MT
2001 ML430 My Spare

Gone:
'95 E300 188K "Batmobile" Texas Unfriendly Black
'85 300TD 235K "The Wagon" Texas Friendly White
'80 240D 154K "China" Scar engine installed
'81 300TD 240K "Smash"
'80 240D 230K "The Squash"
'81 240D 293K"Scar" Rear ended harder than Elton John

Learn the car before dealing with bio.

At the age of the car, likely rubber parts need to start to be dealt with in the suspension and other places.

Change all fluids as a good start. Including brake fluid and coolant.

__________________
Current Diesels:
1981 240D (73K)
1982 300CD (169k)
1985 190D (169k)
1991 350SD (116k)
1991 350SD (206k)
1991 300D (228k)
2008 ML320 CDI (199k)
1996 Dodge Ram CTD (442k)
1996 Dodge Ram CTD (267k)

Past Diesels:
1983 300D (228K), 1985 300D (233K), 1993 300D 2.5T (338k), 1993 300SD (291k)

Welcome aboard!

The best way to search that I've found is to go to google and goto advanced search. Type in www.peachparts.com in the box to search within a site or domain. Then type in your keyword search into the main search box. I.E. won't shut off. OR... vacuum troubleshooting. You can use the search on the site as well, but I've found this method works a little better.

__________________
RT


1984 300D---Sold
1995 E420 - 106K - Brilliant Silver Metallic/Orion Gray --- Sold
1984 300SD - 151K Manganese Brown Metallic/Mostly Black --- Sold
1982 240D - 79K - Manila Beige/Palomino---Sold

It's a whale of a wagon

That's a cool searching trick. I like the craigslist google search box too. Thanks.

you came to the right site, welcome.

check your window seals for leaks. Push against the windshield from the inside at the corners and look at the seal. if it gives, you might have a bad seal, which means leaks. Check carpets after a good rain.

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1985 300TD Turbo Diesel Wagon
273,000 miles

Funny you should say that. It has a cracked windshield that needs replacin. Can I trust the local window guy to put in the seal correctly?

I had no problem w/my local shop replacing the windshield...I used a shop that specializes in only auto glass. Most shops will use a serious amount of sealant unless you happen to give them a new seal to work with. (That's what I did) You may want to order a new gasket and then take the car in...if they don't use it you can return it but I suspect they will.

Good luck and welcom to Dieseldom! You'll probably get addicted like the rest of us!

When we actually meet ... my arch anti T nemesis... we will battle.


WITH KATANAS!

Oh and sell the car. You'll get too engrossed and obsessed with it that you'll find yourself dumping inordinate amounts of money trying to get it back to it's OE state. I call it chasing the smoking star. Except you'll never actually catch the star.

If you try and ignore the star then it will come and get!

Post some pictures! Your shutoff problem is vacum related. Buy a mityvac and search for the w123 interlock vacuum diagram. Print it out and tape it above your bed for good luck.

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-Typos courtesy of my mobile phone.

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on the purchase!

110,000 is unlikely since these cars are notorious for slow odometers, slipping odometers, broken speedometer cables and the like.

The shut off issue could be a simple as a line that has been pulled off the shut off valve. A common issue when doing an oil change. It is easy to catch one of the "oil filter lid ears" on the line and pull it apart or pull it off the shut off valve all together. Then again... You could have 2, 3 or 10 vacuum leaks in the system. Lots of info. on this if you search.

The brakes on this car can get expensive in a hurry if they are not maintained. If the car stops in a straight line and has good braking power, you got lucky. Flush the brake fluid ASAP if you don't know the history. The calipers are $$$ unless you buy rebuilds. The brake lines can be found for around $10 each at NAPA and the rest of the stuff is the same as most other cars. Pretty straight forward. If you replace the front rotors, you will need a dial indicator to set the preload on the bearings per the FSM. You can do it "the old fashioned way" if you take your time. But, you will get flamed for it around here.

Stay away from biodiesel until you have had some time with the car, know its problems and have had time to replace all the old fuel hose that is NOT going to like the biodiesel.

If it runs good, start with filters and an oil change (air, fuel, etc..) if you have no record of when they were last changed. You could also start replacing fuel hose a little at a time and replace the primer pump if it has the old style. The old style pump is notorious for leaking (sucking air). Look at the belts. If they are "checking" replace them. That would be a good start. Searching on these topics are good too. You can read for days about broken belts taking out the oil cooler hoses, micron ratings on fuel and oil filters, which oil to use, etc...

The search is your friend as mentioned above. A search will reveal a lot about windshields, installations, problem areas, etc.... I have read several instances where the chrome trim was mangled beyond repair upon installation.

Oh..... And put up some pics when you get the time!

__________________
AJ

1985 300D (SOLD)

Well then, just keep fuel in it and it should run a long time.

Welcome to the wonderful world of MB wagons. As mentioned, get a Mityvac and repeat after me,

"This is my Mityvac. There are many like it, but this one is mine. My Mityvac is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I master my life. My Mityvac, without me, is useless. Without my Mityvac, I am useless..."

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too many w123's
84 280 SL 5 speed

Congrats and there is much good advice so far.
You mention some common aliments which have been discussed at length.
I'll add using bio as your last priority, as it's corrosive to rubber, so you'll need to replace all those lines with viton if you're going to use it routinely.
Check the usual stuff as you talk about, rotors etc.

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83 SD

84 CD

Where in MA are you?

I can recommend a good glass guy and several shops around the state if you get into a bad spot with the car.

Dont put any bio in until you've got everything else sorted out.

Be patient, theres gonna be a lot of small stuff to fix, but once you get it sorted out the wagons are so cool.

-dd

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'85 300D, 'Lance',250k, ... winter beater (100k on franken-Frybrid 3 Valve Kit)
'82 300D, 'Tex', 228k body / 170k engine ... summer car
'83 300TD Cali Wagon 210k, wife's car

Make sure your tools are well organized and that you keep them that way. You'll be using them quite a bit.

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'85 300TD "Puff The Magic Wagon" - Rolling Resto
'19 Mazda CX-9 Signature - Wife's sled
'21 Morgan 3-Wheeler P101 Edition
'95 E300d - SOLD
'84 300TD "Brown Betty" - Miss this one
'81 240D "China Baby" - Farm grocery getter