Hello. I am thinking of purchasing a 1990 300D. It has 220,000 miles. My main questions are;

-what problems should I look out for/expect with this car?
-Is this an enjoyable car to drive with enough power?
-What is a fair price to pay for it? It is in excellent condition.

Thanks for the advice in advance!

also, how difficult is it to update the front to look like a newer 300 with Euro headlights, S600 grille ?

thanks for the help!

hey take a chill dude people are eating , or whatever. 1st thing do you already own or have ever owned a diesel vehicle?
it's not going to accelerate like a ferrari but for most of us here the performance is fine.

how much does the seller want for it? are there any records of maintenence?

give some more info so folks here can give an intelligent reply.
oh and a warm welcome to the forum

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1984 300D Turbo - 231k....totalled 11/30/07 RIP

Dude..... I hate to tell you this but people have little things called JOBSS... it's not like we sit here just to answer your questions upon demand.

BTW...... there is also a [SEARCH] button you can use to pull up all you ever wanted to know about the 300 but was to lazy to look

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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

Thanks! The price is $3500 firm. No rust. Good paint. No accidents according to Carfax. All maintenance records.

buy it and be happy.

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1984 300D Turbo - 231k....totalled 11/30/07 RIP

1) Make sure the A/C is working, preferably still with R-12, and don't ever convert to R-134a. Check the cruise control, sunroof, window motors, seat motors, etc. Shouldn't leak or consume any fluids.

2) It's an awesome car to drive (all W124's are) but it's not fast or powerful. It is fuel efficient at 30-36mpg though. If you're willing to spend lots of time & money you can get more power with an intercooler from Mosselman, etc.

3) Check on autotrader.com, kbb.com, NADA.com, and compare pricing. If it's REALLY mint with full records, etc it may be over $10k.

4) Depends if you just want to do the grille ($200-$250) and Euro lights ($300-$500), or if you want the full 1994-95 W124 facelift with new hood, grille, lights, etc (probably $1-$2k with paint). For Euro lights, call Paul at PUMA (www.puma-access.com), they have the best deal I know of for real Hella Euros.


HTH,

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Dave
Boise, ID
Check out my website photos, documents, and movies!

I currently drive a VW Passat VR6 5 speed. I do not want it for speed but it must be reliable. I've had Rabbit diesels before and they weren't slow. I can't really checkthe A/C or anything since it is on Ebay. Thanks. They say only thing wrong with it is a dash light is burned out. A Pontiac/GMC dealer is selling it.

Thank you.

ok compared to the rabbit..well there is no comparison. once you go benz you'll never go back! take it from me, i also had a diesel rabbit ('79)


i would just try to see if the a/c works considering you're in fla. and then as said b4.. get it !

good luck.

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1984 300D Turbo - 231k....totalled 11/30/07 RIP

would a 1990 300D have a R134 or R12 A/C? Why is it not good idea to convert it to R134a if it is R12?

omg, i'm going to let someone else answer this... but in a nutshell if the car has r-12 converting it would make it way less efficient, especially since you live in fla and need a/c to work perfectly and at the highest possible efficiency for most of the year and for sure in your hot/humid summers.
i have no idea what that particular car came with from the factory.

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1984 300D Turbo - 231k....totalled 11/30/07 RIP

my 91 has R12. I would assume the 90 had R12 too.

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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

MB's had R-12 from the factory up until about 1992 or 1993. I forget exactly what year they switched. I know 1990 definitely has R-12 and 1994 has R-134a, but in between I'm not sure.

Most places that do 134a conversions don't do them "correctly" because the proper conversion is expensive and time consuming (requires compressor removal and complete oil flush). Similarly, converting back is a huge job - compressor removal, complete oil flush, and re-fill with the old oil & refrigerant. It's not the refrigerant that's the main problem, it's the oils that are totally incompatible (R-12 needs mineral oil, 134a needs PAG or POE oil).

There is NO comparison between a Mercedes 124 chassis and ANY Volkswagen. You need to drive a few different MB's for comparison though, some may ride lousy because they need work, and you won't know it's not "normal" if you don't have something to compare to.

Acceleration: That car should get 0-60 in about 12 seconds on level ground, near sea level, assuming an accurate speedometer and stopwatch are used. If it's slower than ~14 seconds, something is wrong, it can either be a free OR expensive fix...

I dare you to go to VW Vortex's forums and say that out loud.

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One more Radar Lover gone...
1982 VW Caddy diesel 406K 1.9L AAZ
1994 E320 195K