I'm looking at a relatively cheap '95 E300 diesel. Body in great condition, interior showing usual signs of wear that the late w124's typically have (stupid headliner sag)

I've experience with OM606 N/A motors, but I've not experienced these exact issues. This one has 188k Miles

Engine cranks over more than it should for initial start-up, probably lousy glow plugs. Blow-by oil cap test passes with flying colors, so I'm inclined to believe that the lower engine is quite healthy, at least in respect to compression.

Engine idles poorly, but upon revving, smooths out perfectly. Most likely injectors - but, I didn't notice any smoke. Secondly, according to the owner, the engine loses coolant over time. I don't know exactly how much, but enough to be noticeable after a day or so of driving.

- Fuel thermostat rotted through, which introduced fuel into the coolant. This was fixed with a fabricated block-off plate

- Coolant appears to be green and the wrong type. I'm inclined to believe this caused the fuel thermostat issue, and it may have caused other unseen issues inside the cylinder head

-Owner claims the head gasket is blown, which is a common yet sometimes flawed diagnoses, especially on an engine that is known to be very robust and under 200k miles. Are these head gaskets known to fail? I was under the impression that this is highly unlikely.

Question: Is this cylinder head known to crack? If the fuel thermostat rotted out, does that mean something else within the head has most likely rotted through as well?

No oil in coolant, no fuel in coolant. No coolant in oil pan from checking dipstick. No coolant in upper cylinder head area.

I'm undecided if I want to potentially open a can of worms with this previously abused engine. But subtracting the engine from the sale, it MIGHT be worth it for a pristine w124 with near-perfect paint.
Price $1500

Any thoughts, opinions, advice?
Thanks!

Look at passenger side, rear of cylinder head/block junction and you should see a residue streak from where it is leaking.

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Jim

The head is aluminum. You arent going to see it crack the way a cast iron head might.

Sounds like it was overheated, but could just be a gasket.

Seems more like a $500 car if everything else is perfect, as you are going to drop several thou into suspension rubber components if they havent been done already, plus the vacuum pods for the AC and the evaporator core while the dash is out yada yada.

Nice cars though. Worth keeping them one the road imho.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

As Jim mentioned, the head gasket tends to leak coolant on this engine. If you look behind the rear exhaust manifold and see white deposits on the block, you have a normal NA 606, that will take a bit of radiator stop leak to solve the problem. While this could cause the coolant loss, it does not cause the idling problem.

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'97 E 300 D

Poor idle is an indication of low compression. I'd switch injectors around and see if the miss follows the injector.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Thanks for the responses, all.

Did I mention that the trans slips in reverse? Lol blah. I think I will pass on this - I adore the ‘95 e300, but it’s just not worth it right now. As one of you mentioned, a rolling chassis would be worth about $500, not $1500