Thank you members for your input. I have a 2002 Jetta TDI, 5 speed and am hooked on diesel. Have been looking for a 300D or SD but the 240D seems to offer good fuel economy and basic transportation with unprecidented style (plus it is slightly less expensive). If the car can cruise at 75 mph in the interstate, I don't care how long it takes to get there. The reliablility is the most important thing.

I have located a 240D on ebay. It is in Houston. Carfax shows two owners. Salesman has no maintenance records. Lower miles for the age. Anyone care to comment.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=6329&item=2473327948&rd=1

Eric, I think you should drive one of these before you bid on it. My 300d is a dog compared to your VW, I have not driven a 240 but I know they are slower.
I don't want to dissaude you because I think these things ooze style, and they are everlasting cars with some care, but they are louder and slower than your Jetta.
See if you can find a 240 to drive, and think hard about a 300 turbo, the extra 50ish horsepower will make a world of difference, especially on hills. Even the 15 or so horse of a non-turbo 300d would make a difference. Whatever one you get, it will need some work, just count on that and keep it in mind for your purchase price. The rest of the guys (and gals) here will attest to that. Maybe we can even work out something on my 300d, I have not been driving it much since I got the SDL. -Andy

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andy t
'78 300d
'95 volvo 850, wagon
'86 300sdl - engine out, maybe I'll have it rolling by June

whole bunch o' bicycles

The 240D is a wonderful car and will surve you well. It is extremlly comfortable and I can strech out my 6'5" frame and cruise down the road. It is quiter on the road then our Jetta and the trunk will sleep two adults and one child. You just have to learn how to drive car.

I'm second owner and mine has 145,000 miles with everything orginal and working, even the clock.

From my original window sticker: $23,800.00

Paint & upholstery option
anthracite gray metallic & henna red MB tex $673.00

Electric sun roof 829.00
Electric windows 711.00
Froged Light Allot wheels 537.00

Total Retail Price $26,550.00

Estemated MPG 27 annual fuel cost of $832 @ $1.50 gal

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'10 Chrysler T&C Stow-N-Go White. Grandpa's ride.

'13 Chrysler 200 Touring Candy Red. Grandma's ride.

Age and cunning will always over come youth and vigor.

Like everyone else said you should drive one first, but you may not have a chance. I bought my 240D on Ebay too and I didn't look at it beforehand because it was out of state, though I had driven one before. You shouldn't be asking how fast they are, instead you should ask how slow they are. They are slow, but not terribly so. Mine is quite peppy actually, but it's no match for a TDI. Keep in mind they have no tach, so shifting may seem a little weird at first, but there are marks on the speedometer and you'll get used to it. I usually cruise in mine at about 70 mph and it's comfortable, though quite noisy but I like that. I think as long as you keep in mind that these cars are slow and that any of them will require some initial maintenance (usually a few hundred bucks in parts) you'll love it.

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2004 VW Jetta TDI (manual)

Past MB's: '96 E300D, '83 240D, '82 300D, '87 300D, '87 420SEL

Thank you all for the great advice. I found a 240D on cars.com in Louisville. I will be heading out there after work to drive it. I have driven an '84 300SD and it seemed about as quiet as my TDI. There was turbo lag but but after the turbo spooled up the acceleration was about as good or better than the VW.

I have been out to Germanstar.net to price some parts and they don't seem too incredibly expensive. I am planning on plunking down several hundred dollars in basic maintenance/parts regardless of what I end up with.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Factory top speed spec is 83mph (with little 175R14 factory sized tires). If you run 205R14's you have a taller final ratio so you actually go a little faster but the speedo still reads the same. Mine goes all day long at 83mph with the only issue being that it is a little noisy from the engine singing at about 4100 rpm.

I drive mine mostly in town and never have a problem with holding anyone up or merging onto freeways. If you simply drive it floored through the gears (not what is done in most other cars) it has quite respectable acceleration for normal use. Automatic trannies are probably a different story however from what I hear.

Great cars.

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2008 GL320CDI 6K
1970 280SL 112K
1982 240D 210K (Sold)
1973 220D 220K (Sold)
1967 200D 160K (Sold)
1992 400E 139K (Sold)
1988 300E 148K (Sold)
1987 300D 257K (Sold)
1991 300E 108K (Sold)
1987 300E 131K (Sold)
1978 300D TMU (Sold)
1980 300D TMU (Sold)
MBCA Member

the 240d is slower than the 78 rabbit I had. The rabbit is a lot lighter and now is in the junk yard. the 240d is still running!!

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71 220D 169K wrecked
83 240D 118K sweet 4 speed
91 350SDL (one of the 60% good engines) 156K
84 300d (loaner to my sister) 189K
79 300SD (partswagen)
86 420SEL partswagen
70 220d (partswagen)
68 280s GASSER!!! under construction now
85 300sd 310K miles winter beater car retired
93 300d 2.5 turbo 168K wife's car
83 280SL euro 5 speed 155K
69 250S newest project 54K

Mine must be special, I can take it to 100 in less than 1 minute. Just shift at the dots. Maybe it has an euro engine. I also notice my egr is just for show.

I drove the 240D. It was an automatic. The acceleration was not too bad in town if you floored it alot. On the freeway it took a long time to get to 70 mph. It started to shake quite a bit at about 60 mph, plus the engine became rather noisy.

One concern, the car did not want to start after three cycles of glow. The temp was 37 degrees Fahernheit. It had a new battery. Could it be bad glow plugs?

I would consider a purchase of a 240D with a better suspension. I love the W123 style, the manual windows, and the absence of a sun roof. . .simplicity yet very classy.

Now, on to find the right car. . .

Could be bad glow plugs. Did the light work? There are two kinds of glow plugs; serial and parallel. The parallel ones are far superior and can be retrofitted to the earlier engines with the serial plugs.

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1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Sounds like it needs a valve adjustment. And now that you brought up the simple and small engine cars, I want a 190D 2.2 with no sunroof, and manual crank windows. I'm only 19, currently driving a 87 300D, but thinking its overly complicated. I would drive a W123 300D, but i'm not that much of a fan for the W123 styling.

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Jason

00 Subaru Legacy (fun wagon)
96 Nissan Sentra (disavowed)
82 300SD (garage queen, will run again hopefully)
87 300DT (Gone: 10/15/2010)

There is a diesel Jetta for sale here in my home town for 18grand. Guess I should say its a newer one.

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"If anyone knows other lessons I need to learn, please tell me. I'm tired of learning them the hard way".
by JerryBro

The Glow Plug Wait: This waiting period is a moment of silence to pay honor to Rudolph Diesel. The longer you own your diesel the more honor you will give him". by SD Blue

My normal daily life; either SNAFUed- Situation Normal... All Fouled Up, or FUBARed- Fouled Up Beyond All Repair

62 UNIMOG Camper w/617 Turbo, 85 300SD daily driver- both powered by blended UCO fuels

You can compare one to a turtle, both are slow but both can survive a long time.

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DJ


84 300D Turbodiesel 190K with 4 speed manual sold in 03/2012

The headlights did work. The dash lights did not work as well as the right turn signal light. Seemed to have some electrical trouble. Would the lack of a valve adjustment be cause of the car not wanting to start in the cold?

The most common reason for not being able to start a diesel engine is not giving the glow plugs enough time to do their job. The glow plug light is often unreliable and should be ignored.

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2004 VW Jetta TDI (manual)

Past MB's: '96 E300D, '83 240D, '82 300D, '87 300D, '87 420SEL