My 85 CA 300D engine failed at 330K. Some say the trap oxidizer can cause that. Not sure how and the catalyst looked intact, plus not sure sure how bits could work up into the engine. It looks like chunks came off the piston sides. Anyway, I have an 83 engine in it now w/ normal exhaust & turbo. Rust shouldn't be much concern in Oakland. My two 300D's show none at all. Not requirng AC is great because the Harrison R4 compressors are known to fail (both mine did). Replace it with a Sanden, w/ several bracket kits to choose from (RollGuy's here). I have read of most 6 cyl engines getting fatal head cracks. I think mostly wagons, but don't recall if diesels or the years, so read up. 300D's are showing up in junkyards regularly now, so used parts are getting cheap. Engines are extremely expensive to fix, unless you buy a used one. Re price, I paid $2500 for my 1985 12 yrs ago and $400 for my 1984 4 yrs ago. I bought the later for the engine, but fixed the cracked K-member and my son now drives it. Car looks nice too. Try to beat that deal.

That 85 is leaking a lot of oil, in my eyes.....it may very wheel be the front seal.....I would stay away, specially needing new tires.....the front end may have been rebuilt with uro parts too.....meaning it would have issues son requiring rebuilding....

The 1980 looks nice, including the original radio......but I must suggest the evil servo unit.....yesterday, even though mine is fully working.....I highly contemplating removing it.....the auto feature just doesn't pump out the heat like it should, causing me to use the deforest mode to get heat.....

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The 85 has dry rotted tires, that would give you some negotiating leverage.
The oil leakage could be the front seal and or 30 years of accumulated oil and dirt. Most people do not keep their engines clean. If it is the seal not too terribly hard to replace.

The metallic paint isn`t a long lived paint, and it is at the end of it`s life.
This is a kali 85 model, can tell by the Air Filter behind the L/F headlight. the filter element is around $50, compared to the one on top of the Federal engines, $18.

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

have you considered the 87 wagon?
there's one in vancouver (Surrey) on the craigslist alert thread... it looks promising.

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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!

Yeah I like the 87 wagons. I'm a little afraid of them, because it seems like most of the 87s for sale around here have head problems. Vancouver is a little far for me to travel to in order to check out a vehicle, but I think I could take the train there if it felt like the right deal. These two are a little pricey, but I've been thinking about at least going over to take a look at them:

1987 Mercedes 300TD diesel wagon with #22 head

1987 Mercedes 300TD Diesel Wagon with rebuilt head, sale or trade

There's also a low miles 1980 wagon that I'm hopefully going to take a look at this weekend. I'll post the link here hoping that no one else is going to jump in and steal it:
1980 300TD Mercedes Diesel Wagon 147k original miles

The 80 will not have the Turbo, so, if you have mountain driving it will be slow. Also highway speeds are tricky. #22 head raises value about $2K .
The 87's are the finest wagons to own and drive. And IF you maintain the entire cooling system they will outlast you.

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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!

If only the motor mounts were really the only issue on this one:

1985 Mercedes-Benz 300TD biodiesel wagon. Mechanic's Special.

I might go over and take a look at it anyways...

I think that would be a good deal, he has had a lot done to it....that would cost a pretty penny.....new transmission is always very nice.....a lot of the stuff he mentions is minor and easy fix....salvage title is never good but at that price doesn't mean much...

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So on Saturday I went to SF and bought a wagon.

The PO had the car from 2006 and kept an insane amount of paperwork/records. I even have the printout of the original craigslist ad when he bought it.

He also did a LOT of work over the last few years. I'm still trying to organize it all, but here's at least a partial list (bear with me, part of this is to help me organize it all):

178k (2006) - Replaced Trap Oxidizer from MB Recall. There was a seized bolt or something and it looks like a technician broke something so they replaced the exhaust manifold as well

178k (2006) - Replaced all fuel lines with Viton

178k (2006) - New Wiper motor

179k (2006) - Rear pads, rear rotors

179k (2006) - New Alternator

179k (2006) - An ugly ugly paint job

(2006) - New Radiator

183k (2007) - Replaced Tie rods, steering stabilizer shocks, steering gear box, sway bar bushings, drive shaft couples, and shift linkage bushing.

186k (2008) - Replaced front pads and rotor, replaced turbo.

189k (2009) - Replaced Transmission, starter, rear axle, and glow plugs

(2007) - New Drive Shaft

195k (2010) - Front pads, machine front rotors, new front calipers, changed door vacuum element and door vacuum switch (?)

195k (2010) - Replaced master cylinder

(2010) - New Muffler

(2008) - Fancy stereo with sub under drivers seat and fancy speakers in the back.

(2011) - New MTP H8 Battery

203k (2012) - New Glow Plugs, new front pads, new blower motor

204k (2012) - New Water pump

205k (2012) - 2 new tires

208k (2013) - 2 new tires

Not to mention all the records he kept of various services

It starts up smoothly, very little blowby, and no white smoke out of the tailpipe very quickly after starting. It has the sunroof and third row of seats.

The car definitely has some issues though:
- It has a few small spots of rust on the body panels. None as far as I could tell near the jack points, and he had previously done a repair under the battery tray.
- There seems to be a vacuum issue. It either doesn't shut down or does with a big complaint. Also, I can't tell if the door locks are sticky, or if there's a vacuum thing causing them to do strange things.
- The PO mentioned that water seems to make its way into onto the rear floor.
- It definitely needs new motor mounts - it shakes at idle, and it's obvious that the engine is sitting low (also, you can tell the the PO spilled a lot of biodiesel on them when he was replacing filters).

All in all, I think for the price, I'm pretty happy with the deal. After taking care of these things I'm hoping that I'll end up at about the price point I wanted.

Can anyone tell me how many hours I should expect a shop to charge to do the motor mounts? I'm thinking about taking it on myself, but don't have a floor jack or jack stands at the moment and wondering whether it's worth it.

I'll add some pictures later today.

congrats on the buy! sounds like you have a vacuum leak or two. also clear out the sunroof drains. motor mounts i suspect are pretty easy but will let someone who has done the job comment.

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'77 240D, 504H, OM617.952, etc.