Yes, can you believe this??? Yesterday my son called me to tell me that the speedometer, fuel gauge,temp. gauge ,oil pressure gauge, and tachometer all stopped working as he was driving. The car in question is my 86 300sdl. As he was only 3 blocks from the house, I told him to drive home and I would look at it later. Guess what I found. Fuse number 6 was cracked in it's holder. Can you believe that this fuse lasted only 26 years?????? What is this world coming to when a 26 year old fuse fails?

Seriously, 26 years is pretty darn good for a fuse to last. I highly doubt that the replacement fuse will last 26 years, judging by it's quality.
As long as my 26 year old #14 head lasts 26 more years, I will be happy!

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John
1986 300sdl
1985 380se

Keep that cooling system in check and the head ought to last just as long

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$60 OM617 Blank Exhaust Flanges
$110 OM606 Blank Exhaust Flanges
No merc at the moment

I agree. I replaced the radiator, thermostat, and all hoses this spring. Runs nice and cool. All of the above were 26 years old also. I must also say, I only have 127,900 miles on the car.

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John
1986 300sdl
1985 380se

Do yourself a favor and order from Phil the proper ceramic and copper fuses for your car. Get enough to redo the whole box as preventative maintenance. It is the cheapest thing you can do to prevent a whole host of electrical problems. Also verify you have the proper color fuse in each pocket, per the card in the lid, sometimes prior owners over fuse the circuits.

Check the fuse holder tabs, if they are oxidized clean them but not with anything abrasive. Abrasives strip the plating and you will have a worse problem.

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The OM 642/722.9 powered family
Still going strong
2014 ML350 Bluetec (wife's DD)
2013 E350 Bluetec (my DD)

both my kids cars went to junkyard in 2023
2008 ML320 CDI (Older son’s DD) fatal transmission failure, water soaked/fried rear SAM, numerous other issues, just too far gone to save (165k miles)
2008 E320 Bluetec (Younger son's DD) injector failed open and diluted oil with diesel, spun main bearings (240k miles)

1998 E300DT sold to TimFreeh
1987 300TD sold to vstech

Thanks for the info. I actually have official, real, Mercedes Benz fuses, from a dealer. They came in the official MB box. They just do not look like the quality that Mercedes installed in 1986. My original fuses actually have the MB Star on them. As with all manufacturers, I will bet that these are outsourced from some supplier and put in a fancy little MB box. My terminals are all nice and clean. I attributed this failure to plain old metal fatigue, combined with crappy NE Louisiana roads.

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John
1986 300sdl
1985 380se

I can`t imagine a part being so short lived. take it right back to the dealer and have them replace all those bad parts. they will fix you right up.

Congratulations on 26 yrs of ownership and longivity on your SDL.


I had a similar problem with my Datsun Diesel PU. was blowing some coolant from the top of the radiator, and seemed like the top of the tank was leaking along the seam. couldn`t find a radiator on line for a Diesel but plenty of gassers.

Kept the overflow tank filled and added coolant now and then, so finally decided to dig deeper, and discovered the 29yrold (at that time) radiator cap rubber seal was cracked and deteriorated. can you believe they originally install such a low quality cap?

Is the original radiator and now up to 31yrs. I have always used distilled water/coolant, and looking in the top, the tubes are clean. have replaced hoses etc, but the cap was overlooked.

Charlie

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there were three HP ratings on the OM616...

1) Not much power
2) Even less power
3) Not nearly enough power!! 240D w/auto

Anyone that thinks a 240D is slow drives too fast.

80 240D Naturally Exasperated, 4-Spd 388k DD 150mph spedo 3:58 Diff

We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works

Just tell him to drive over some bumps....

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Did you just pass my 740 at 200 kmh in a 300SD?????

1978 300SD 'Phil' - 1,315,853 Miles And Counting - 1, 317,885 as of 12/27/2012 - 1,333,000 as of 05/10/2013, 1,337,850 as of July 15, 2013, 1,339,000 as of August 13, 2013



100,000 miles since June 2005 Overhaul - Sold January 25th, 2014 After 1,344,246 Miles & 20 Years of Ownership