Well, the 116 SD's PWN me Something about them, I'm a car guy from waaay back. Owned some weird *****. English Ford anyone, Renault, Saab, VW's... you get the picture. VW's came close but not like this.

Anyway...

I just drove about 600 miles in my 2nd 300. Flew down to check it out, ALMOST came home without it but settled on a price I could live with. 70-80 mph on I75 for 500 miles. SWEET! Probably got around 25mpg even with a few "Italian tune-ups"

The good:

Less than 100,000 miles.
OUTSTANDING interior.
Tach and clock work.
It's an early '80 with no EGR.
No sunroof. (Holes don't belong in the tops of driven cars. It took some experience before I actually believed that...)
Has the original keys, owners manual, first-aid kit, Becker radio in the trunk, some cool vintage MB dealer promo stuff. May have the tool kit, I haven't really poked around all the stuff in the trunk, there are some extra taillights, belts etc. back there.
When I test drove it she was blowing cold AC. Has a red ACC servo if that means anything. My other SD has an all black one.
The power locks DID work. (More on that )
The cruise control sort of works. It'll accelerate but doesn't seem to "lock" I didn't really fool with it much...
Garnish molding gleams.
Steering is good and tight.
The light lenses are in super clear shape.
Rubbers are in fine shape.
No "whitening" at the corners of the glass.

The bad:

The temp gauge doesn't work. (I kept a close eye on coolant/hoses during the trip.) Pull that stunt with a 603

It decided that it didn't want to shut off about 100 miles into the trip It runs rough like it "wants" to stop but it doesn't.

The power door locks quit working.

The ACC decided that I needed defrost/heat ONLY after I fiddled with the buttons I drove halfway up the state of Fla. like that until I had a heat stroke and pulled the blower fuse before losing consciousness... regained consciousness and continued trip...

She has some cancer I have a welder and have done heavy body work. (Replaced quarter panels on a '70 Chevelle once. Swore it would have to be something REALLY SPECIAL before doing anything like that again...)

No dash lights.

Has some bad negative camber in the front.

Can't adjust the drivers seat and the d-ring is broken The height adjustment works fine. Go figure...

So, I'm thinking a vacuum line came loose somewhere and wreaked havoc on my system. I checked all the stuff near the MC and around the engine bay and didn't see anything. Any advice on where to start?

I'll post some pics later.

If you're still reading this, thanks for listening

Overall, I think (HOPE) I have a solid foundation for a nice resto project.

cool.
pics?

__________________
John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
1987 300TD
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

Cruise is typical. D-ring on seat adjuster can be replaced. Servo issues--typical. Search on my user name and 'servo manual' to find a link to the online manual. If your vacuum assist on the brakes is ok, it could be a bad shut off actuator. Get on that before it sucks oil into your whole vacuum system. Could also be vacuum leaks in the ACC system. Shut off that system to exclude those vacuum problems and see if they engine shuts down.

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Thanks! I checked the shut-off valve and didn't see any oil in the line. I'll check it with the mit-y-vac and go from there.

Sounds like a nice car overall. Everything you list falls into the category of 116 headaches... so fix that stuff and you're off to the races (at least as far as my memory of my '79 SD goes).

Big yell out on the clean windows. Truly a bonus on those cars.

I disagree with you about the sunroof, tho

Check the driver's footwell underneath the dead pedal and behind/around the driver's seat rear mounting points for rust.

Red servo MAY mean it's out of 107 but someone else will need to confirm that.

Defrost-only mode is a separate, fail-safe circuit that operates independent of the rest of the cc system.

__________________


Mac
2002 e320 4matic estate│1985 300d│1980 300td
Previous: 1979 & 1982 & 1983 300sd │ 1982 240d

“Let's take a drive into the middle of nowhere with a packet of Marlboro lights and talk about our lives.” ― Joseph Heller, Catch-22

VWs - puke!

Not even on the same planet as a W116 diesel!

Need pics!

have a look see at all the vac lines, mine suddenly didn't shut off and at a glance under the ..bonnet, for all i know the vac lines and tons of the little shaped short rubber connectors were original -age hardened and visibly fissure (tons) cracked (like a messy spider web).

bought a section of new vacuum tubing, cut pieces to length and replaced most of it and the prob went away

good place to start

i'd also deal with the temp gauge pronto, a 240d dude told me that he didn't notice an overheat right away while driving, ended up losing compression and replacing the engine

Mine has pretty old looking black hose connectors. Some are 3 way, some are 4 way. I'll check the parts store for some.

Stupid question but where is the temp. sending unit? I'm guessing it's the one on the water neck?

Oh yea, I took her in for tires and an alignment today (The old tires were like new except for BAD dry rot ) All the front end components are in tip top shape except for a bent tie-rod end sleeve which had the alignment out of whack. Looks like the PO ran over something...

I ordered the parts and am considering it good news! I went ahead and got new tires and he aligned it as close as he could get it and it is a super driving machine

BOTH rear sway bar end links are kaput so I have a set on order as well. New shocks and I'll consider the suspension well sorted.

Brakes and rotors are in good shape as well. *whew*