educate a 124 chassis novice, 1991 300D basketcase
 

This car popped up on craigslist as a parts offer, but its so close to complete, and he wanted so little money for the whole car if I got it out of his sight fast, that I had to have it, even as a lark just to see how 124s are.

Im completely out of my comfort zone with this car, so kinda excited!

It has about 230k on it, definitely sitting for an extended time, and the reason it was parked was that it broke the woodruff key for the harmonic balancer and spun the pulley.

Both the crank and pulley have a little damage, but I think I can fix it if I enlarge to a different woodruff key possibly. The car does start, and does run ok.

basically, 124 experts, start yelling out things I need to check out or replace! :D

(I need a bumper and mirrors)

how it looks now-

http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...ps2d504417.jpg
http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...ps97ef89cd.jpg

The car looks pretty rough. If the front damper assembly is installed by the manufacturer in the same way as the 617 diesel is, you would be way ahead of the deal by getting it to the junkyard fast!

Most of that is just dirt. Apart from a dent, and two small rust areas, the body is pretty clean. Hood is peeling though.

The damper is splined with the woodruff key, and held by one large bolt looks like

The color on that car looks like Almandine Red.

Start with the basics (after you fix the balancer) in the order of safety

Brakes - if it has been sitting this long I would proactively replace the brake hoses and flush the brake system. Dot3 fluid, use a Motive bleeder to avoid overstroking the MC piston. Of course inspect the pads and rotors while you are there bleeding the brakes. I would not drive the car on the street until this is done in any case.

Suspension front and rear - check everything front (ball joints, LCA bushings, tie rods) and rear (links, subframe mounts, LCA bushings, wheel bearings). Remember especially in the front these parts are how you maintain control.

edit: Check to see if the vacuum pump has been replaced. If it's the original then plan to change it immediately you are on borrowed time (literally, it throws ball bearings into the timing chain).

Driveline - flex disks and carrier bearing. Condition of CV boots and rear axles.

Mounts - engine and transmission

Fuel system - Startron in the tank to get rid of the nasties. Diesel Purge. Fresh Filters. Check and consider replacing the 3 fuel supply hoses and the return hose. Also consider replacing the rubber hoses from the end of the tank hard lines to the fuel heater valve (supply) and filter (return).

Change the oil and air filters. Flush power steering and replace filter.

Turbo boost - clean out the boost sensing hose from manifold port to dump valve to ALDA. The boost should build starting about 2.5-3k and be a glorious smooth rush of power. :D

Once you get over all that and it runs and drives safe you can start thinking about cosmetics. That is if you still have any money left and your wife is still speaking to you. BTDT :eek:

- bumper and mirror - should be able to score one from a 1st gen 124 at the yard no problem
- headlight wiper flipping the bird - well maybe I would at least try to get that horizontal first. It would bug me to no end.:)

Good luck with it. 124s are light years ahead of the 123. There are tons of 124 owners here who have brought them back from the brink. My wagon was in slightly better shape than yours. 1.5 years and $8k later I have a car that I have no qualms putting my kids in to drive and feels better than any mid-2k's tin can car on the road.

It appears to be the 2.5 Turbo. I may not be correct, but I believe the parts you need if used, can be had from any of the aluminum head engines (2.2, 2.5, 3.0). My bro' has a '91 300D with the 2.5 Turbo, and they are great cars. They are a little more refined than the 123 you are used to, but not much more difficult to work on. There are many threads here on common problems, but I only have a couple of "usual suspects" that I have experience with. The tensioner shock will rattle if the bushing is bad. You can tell by pushing on the eye of the shock while it is idling. The noise will go away with pressure on it if it is bad. It is very easy to replace. No need to remove the pulley, just remove the lower bolt with it inside the cone of the pulley (you will understand what I am talking about when/if you do it). The injectors are different than the 617/616 injectors you are used to, but Greezer can rebuild them if necessary. Make sure all the plastic straps are intact (breakage is common) on all the injector lines, because the lines will break if not properly supported. You have hydraulic lifters (actually buckets), so no valve adjustments are needed. Have fun with this new project, and enjoy it.....Rich

Nice score! Did you notice that you need a bumper and mirrors?

I know nothing about the OM60X or the W124, but here is a link I remembered shertex posting before and that I actually managed to find (!). Don't know if it's helpful or not. I'm not sure if the thing about the fan clutch affects the OM602 as well as the OM603.

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/2297320-post4.html

The 124 is the Best chassis MB ever made!
The 91 2.5t has the worst engine mgt of the 90-93 2.5t, but still potentially a great car.
I have an 01 w/525,000 miles on it and the trans finally went out, piece of crap! lol
Good luck, the 230k is just broken in.
My 124 with over a half million miles on it handles and rides better then most late model cars sold IMO.

DD

On this engine the pulley and the balancer are bolted to the hub, the hub is held in position on the crank by the Woodruff Key and in place by the large center bolt .

check your hub where the crank shaft seal rides for wear, if it has any groove or other wear it will tear up the new seal prematurely if there is wear from the seal and damage to the keyway you might want to just get a replacement hub about $80-100. If you just need to repair the seal area that can be done with a $35 sleeve Timken KWK99177 available through AutoZone or NAPA

Doesn't look like anyone mentioned it yet but the vacuum pump should be one of the first thing that get attention at that mileage.

Oh yeah forgot about the dreaded vacuum pump in my list above. Went back and added that.

The tow truck guy called it "passion purple". I think I like the name almandine red better. :D

Either way, not a fan of the color in its current state, may change my mind though when I get to cleaning

Great info guys, thanks!

Ive got a definite list of things to check from you all started up, right now the fan clutch and pulley are removed, so a lot of stuff can be looked at easier

So this is the model with the dreaded vacuum pump ive read so much about? ill have to pull that off and look at it

I replace the front seal on my '87 300TD, and the hub was grooved. I simply pushed the seal deeper into the front case, so it rides on a smooth part of the hub. I've only put a couple hundred miles on it, so I cannot report on longevity of this repair, but wanted to put it out there.

If the cover is crimped on, replace it with new. If the cover is held in place with screws, it is the "new improved" version and will not drop parts into the timing chain area which can break the chain and destroy the engine.

Separate note, you may get lucky with repairing the front balancer, simply replace the hub with new and get a used balancer.

The final torque is some really high number, you'll need the locking tool to hold the crank. You may want to get it all assembled, then take to a good indie for the final torque of the front hub.

Congratulations. That car looks like it has a lot of potential. Never judge it till you give it a good buff and wax, some of the cars I thought were worse than they were always turned out the best.

Judging by the trunk lid it looks like it's been rear-ended at some point. The sticker is in the incorrect place. Then again, who cares if you got it cheap. I had my 2.5 and I still do but it got slightly rear-ended and I have to replace and fix some of the metal with my junker parts 260E.

The 2.5 is an awesome motor. They ain't no slouch when they run right. First thing I did was the Vacuum Pump and rebuilt the Injectors. Mine is close to yours in mileage, so I suggest HIGHLY you replace the pump and rebuild injectors if they haven't been replaced. Especially that pump, mine was on its last leg when I bought it. Run some Biocide in it too when you get the chance and clean out the gunk.

I'm jealous by the way, my 300D is Spruce Green. I always wanted a Almandine Red W124. Just out of curiosity, what was the price when you say it was cheap?