Thanks for all of the ideas, I'll have to check them out in more detail.

The AC works but I don't recall her saying she was using it or not.

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1987 300SDL 167k
1992 Volvo 740 140k
1990 Volvo 740 250k
1989 Volvo 240 269k

Anyone want to trade an old Volvo for an '87 300sdl?

After reading all the posts, I had a thought so take it for what it is worth. Did the car set for a period of time before she bought it? I have had trouble with critters crawling in the air intake and doing all sorts of mess in there.I have also had on an old International farm truck, soybeans in the exhaust all the way to the exhaust valves. also what about a rusted return line? it would only leak a small amount and at 78 mph might sweep it right off. I had lost a half a tank of fuel on the barn floor when she set in there last winter. I had to replace both lines.

I'll ask her the history on it again but I don't recall that it sat before she got it.

I'll be looking through the entire intake system anyhow so I'll watchout for critters/nests.

Maybe I can run something up the exhaust pipe, how did you check that?

It wasn't a Banana was it?

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1987 300SDL 167k
1992 Volvo 740 140k
1990 Volvo 740 250k
1989 Volvo 240 269k

Anyone want to trade an old Volvo for an '87 300sdl?

I had an old Chevy truck once that had been sitting for years, and the muffler and exhaust were packed with bell beans by the local rodents. Didn't run so well, and it left a trail of smoking beans on the road for a couple of weeks until they cleared out. Smelled like a coffee roaster...

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1976 Mercedes 240D, unknown mileage
1977 Mercedes 240D, 225k
1992 Dodge/Cummins 4WD, 284k
1990 Subaru Legacy wagon, 330k
1991 Subaru Legacy wagon, 225k

The manual transmission has far better standing start, and acceleration power than the automatic.

The joker is a W108 chassis "190Db Ponton" Diesel on a used car lot.
The window sticker says 0-60_____ yes.

http://www.mbzponton.org/

http://www.google.com/search?q=ponton+diesel&rls=com.microsoft:en-us&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1&rlz=

Manual trans...slipping clutch?

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1981 240D 143k 4 spd manual -SOLD

2004 VW Jetta TDI 5 speed 300k -still driven daily

nah, that's a lack of power problem. No way would she get up to 78 with a slipping clutch. Return line seems probable.

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1983 240D 3.0T 4-speed manual, now sold

1989 Subaru GL Wagon 5-speed Touring Edition

A 240D doesn't make enough power to slip the clutch.

If its not leaking fuel then its most likely slipping odo as she has power etc. Testing the odo is easy enough, get on the interstate mark the mileage at the mile marker and drive 30 miles or so.

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http://superturbodiesel.com/images/sig.04.10.jpg
1995 E420 Schwarz
1995 E300 Weiss
#1987 300D Sturmmachine
#1991 300D Nearly Perfect
#1994 E320 Cabriolet
#1995 E320 Touring
#1985 300D Sedan
OBK #42

It is.

There is a little spring set-up that controls that throttle plate. Please make sure it isn't binding, defgective, clogged or missing. That happened to me before with an older model 190D (OM 621) that wasn't working for the same reason.

Good luck!

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Strelnik
Invest in America: Buy a Congressman!

1950 170SD
1951 Citroen 11BN
1953 Citroen 11BNF limo
1953 220a project
1959 180D
1960 190D
1960 Borgward Isabella TS 2dr
1983 240D daily driver
1983 380SL
1990 350SDL daily driver alt
3 x Citroen DS21M, down from 5
3 x Citroen 2CV, down from 6