Where do I start? Back in the 2012 I started managing a small hotel called the O. Henry. Chip Holton, the painter, had this 1983 300td wagon. At first site I fell in love with it and started begging him to let me have it. After a year of constant motivation her told me he was debating a sell. He parked in in December of last year for me. Up until last week it has been sitting waiting for me. When I picked it up I could already tell I would have my hands full but who cares when you are in the honeymoon stage with a new car. Originally when me and Chip made this deal I was going to buy the car for my lady, but after 6 months of delay we got her a Ford Focus and made Emma the project car. The plan is to get her as clean as possible and mechanically sound to drive her to Florida, Texas, or some mountain top (we haven't decided where yet) for our honeymoon after our wedding in 2016. So enough talk here are some car facts:

Emma was originally purchased at Asrot Imported Car, Inc. 418 Walnut Street. Sewickley , Pennsylvania 15143. (All the stamps in the maintenance history book is pretty freaking cool!) I am the 4th owner. The original guy lived in Bluefield, WV; the next in Charlotte,NC; after that Winston-Salem, NC; now finally me in Greensboro, NC. Surprisingly, the car has little rust. Very little after each wheel in the bottom fender. And a lot of work. Keep reading if you want.

Engine:
Transmission:

Lights: Hella
Interior:
Exterior:

Maintenance Records:
4/18/83 - 571 miles. Inspection
7/23/84 - 5303 miles. Lubrication Service
7/25/85 - 10448 miles. Lubrication Service
1/7/86 - 13195 miles. Maintenance Service
7/14/87 - 21707 miles. Lubrication Service
7/11/90 - 35057 miles. Maintenance Service
10/22/92 - 45332 miles. Maintenance Service
2/9/94 - 52736 miles. Lubrication Service
12/28/94 - 60568 miles. Maintenance Service
Some date in 1995 - 64385 miles. Lubrication Service
3/15/96 - 67322 miles. Lubrication Service
12/16/96 -72017 - General and Lubrication Service, Engine Maintenance, and Safety Inspection
4/17/97 - 74971 miles. Renew Brake Fluid and Maintenance Service
2/6/98 - 74971 miles. Lubrication Service
6/10/98 - 80161 miles. Lubrication Service, Oil Change. Rotate Tires
12/16/98 - 90342 miles. Maintenance Service.
8/4/99 - 99700 miles. Oil Change
12/9/99 - 105k miles. Maintenance Service
3/20/2000 - 110k miles. Replace hydraulic hose, repair heater, caliper rebuild, valve adjustment, front rotors replaced, brake fluid flush.
Then... Chip the guy I brought it from never kept with any maintenance he did. Sadly.

He did tell me he re built the motor a little before 300k miles. The car now has 430K miles and lots of life left with a little TLC.

Before the story continues here is my daily, Roxanne. 2007 VW GTI.


Day One.













As you can see Chip wasn't the most cleanliest person in the world. He used it for a truck for all his art supplies and ladders sooooo yeah. During the 6 month wait I had time to research as much as I could about the 300td from Mercedes Source, Peachparts, Benzworld and others. The bug had hit me early so in January I had already placed orders for:
- Power Steering Filter
- Power Steering Fluid
- Evacuator
- Oil Filter
- Oil
- Voltage Regulator
- Vacuum Tester
- Oil Filter O-Rings
- Fuel Filter O-Rings
- Air Filter
- Diesel Purge
- Fuel Filter
- Pre-Filter
- Transmission Filter and Gasket
- Valve Cover Gasket
- Meguiars Clay Bar
- Miracle Paint Kit
- Exhaust Manifold Gasket
- Copper Fuses
- Strip Fuses
- Glow Plugs

And the clean up begins. After the first wash the color of the car went from black to blue


Annnnnndddd then my exhaust hangers broke so those are now ordered. I took all the seats out but the drivers seat. All the others are in the house awaiting a little spa treatment. Taking the seats out made it alot easier to clean the carpets and console.

Before:


After Cleaning:


The metal bridges on the voltage regulator was way out of wack!!!



These things were in there for who knows how long. After seeing these I checked the coolant, DIRTY AND LOW! There is practically now ATF or Hydraulic Fluid in the car which concerns me a little. The car does have a slight jerk shifting 1st to 2nd. (Lets pray) I found out that all Crown Honda employees get 50% off of products from NAPA so I replaced some fuel lines as well.... There is a empty bottle of wiper fluid and lots of things just not connected.





Heres my number 2 priority that I plan to tackle this month. This Oil leak is steady and no fun. My number one priority are engine mounts.


Overall this is going to be fun. Just found out the SLS still works, the sunroof works, and I also somehow got the air to blow. Unfortunately its not blowing cold yet but thats to come. I also found out that all Crown Honda emplyoees get 50% off of products from NAPA so I replaced some fuel lines as well....

And now I need a little help. What is this hose thats just hanging?