Hello everyone, time for a new member to post!

So I have lurked, unregistered, since I first purchased my 300D last October.
1985 w123 Naturally aspirated Euro 300D that has:
A/C (not connected, never has been. Odd setup, feels like the compressor is on it's last leg when turned by hand)
Sunroof
Cruise Control (not working)


So, when I bought this Merc, I had really no idea what I was getting into, or what a decent price was for the vehicle.
I ended up paying $1000 for it. At the time, it turned over, but didn't run. It was dented, and completely trashed.
It's been about a year now, and I have been using it as my daily driver to and from high school. It's about 70 miles round trip, in a high altitude (I start at 6,000ft and have to go over a mountain). I've put about 15k on it.

I have been able to figure out most things fairly easily, though a few still escape me-- despite the wondrous help that the Haynes Manual provides... which isn't much. I have pretty much given up on that, and have only been using it for technical specifications (i.e. valve clearances and such).

So, unfortunately, the person who had this before me was a bit of a drinker. There is a dent in the rear end, center of both the trunk lid and the trunk itself. Most of the damage seems to be in the lid though, thankfully.
The next bit of damage, that is a bit more difficult to make out, is what I think is called the radiator support (not really sure). It is the piece that has the information plate, the radiator sits directly behind it, and the aux fan in front of it.
Looking down at it, the immediate problem would be that it is angled a bit downward, so the hood has to travel a bit further to latch.
The other problem that is more of a pain in the a-- I mean neck-- is the fact that it is about two inches shorter than the factory setup, which does not allow for me to fit the euro headlights in, nor does it allow for the proper adjustment of the hood.
While I am not yet concerned with aesthetics, meaning the back dent is not a problem, I am concerned with the front. Does anyone know of a cost-effective way to redo/fix the front end?

The next issues have to do with the automatic transmission. So, when shifting, the transmission takes an unusually long amount of time between shifts-- at least compared to past experience. This is much more prevalent when attempting to accelerate in a timely manner, probably because the rpm's are higher.
In my infinite knowledge as a sixteen year old teenager, I am assuming it has something to do with a governor in the transmission not being adjusted properly.

A third bit of concern is the lack of power. When getting on to the interstate, I tend to have a bit of a.. nervous hesitation? I don't really know, but I guess it is more of a personal problem than anything else, though I do know what causes it. I have a moderately steep incline, from which I am supposed merge into traffic moving at about 75mph, and by the time I reach the top of the hill, I am usually only going about 45-50mph (while the other cars will be up to speed).
I have not adjusted the injection delivery system at all, although it is set to a different spot than the factory tick mark (I believe it is advanced.. presumably to aid in cold starts?).

And my final problem, which relates back to the most recent two, is that the engine seems to run out of power fairly quickly. I have checked and adjusted my throttle linkage, but that hasn't helped much.

So, I have looked through what I could of the forums today, and I haven't found much information about these specific problems. Unfortunately, because of a certain nameless being *cough cough my dog cough*, my normal computer is not able to function, so I am using a school computer, which seems to have an issue with the search thingy.

Pictures will be coming tomorrow, probably! It is currently dark, and I need to pay a visit to the pressure washer before I take any pictures! My car, while painted white, is more of a tan/mud color right now than anything else!

Any subsequent posts will probably be a lot shorter, sorry about the length of this one!

Thanks in advance for any help!!
~hetiticth


P.S. Any cheap ways to increase performance would be appreciated!

P.P.S. I have a limited access to tools, though I can borrow most of what I need. Unfortunately, no access at all to any welding equipment.