81' 300cd finally on the road with questions

[seadog]

i got the road safety inspection done on monday... i'm legally free to ride!!! thanks for all help.

a few operational questions for the forum:

steering suspension - at 50mph+ i still have a mild sway even after replacing, tie rod ends and idle arm bushings.
- rear end sounds like something is loose. not the muffler, lugs are tight, shocks are secure and spare tire is fastened down.

oil pressure at the gauge - at start up it pegs out at 3, and stays at 3 while driving. come to a stop and the needle drops and holds between 1 and 2 until i thottle up and it returns and stays at 3 until i get off the pedal. oil level is just below the top notch of dip stick when checked after driving and waiting 5 mins after shut down.

tranny shifts - when cold, shifts from 1-2 hard, heavy thottle it's softer. same thing occurs for shift 2-3. when hot these shifts feel much better. i'm not sure if it shifts from 3-4, the engine sounds like rpms are max'd out at and after 45mph. 4th gear should quiet things down... seems odd and abnormal to be so very loud!

temp gauge - after 40 mins of driving gauge needle has never exceeded 40c. i was looking for it reach and hold at about 80c. normal operating temp - no???

acceleration - seems dangerously slow! they say the non turbo is known to be oddly slow on acceleration. what is a ball park estimate on how many seconds from 0-60? 18 - 20?.

fuel gauge - hasn't moved after 30 miles of driving. i filled the tank before i layed the car up for what turned out to be a year. is it stuck or am i getting good fuel mileage?

i plan on changing oil and tranny fluid, filter/gasket over next couple of days.

there are others things i'll try take a look at down the line. Thanks all.

[47dodge]

normal idle when fully warmed up pressure should be about1.5 bar, maybe a little more on a fresh engine.

80c is normal temp,check thermostat

[seadog]

temp gauge move above 40c and more towards 80c during an extended driving period.

after 40 mins of driving temp never reached 80c. with warmer weather approaching wondering if waiting a month or two would be too risky?

im at ease on the oil pressure question. thanks.

[47dodge]

It should get to 80 in about five to ten minutes or so of driving. I would not wait, it is easy to change, and cheap. If you have an infrared thermometer you may want to verify the gauge is reading correctly.If not just change thermostat.

[myskyon]

regarding your fuel tank my level gauge takes about 70-80 miles before it starts to move after a fill up...though when my needle hits the line after R the car dies as there is no more fuel (my R light doesn't come one except when i first turn the key to on).
so you may need some more driving to get it to move...

and the temp issue sounds as though you don't have a thermostat installed. so i would buy a new one and change it out or install one if you don't have one installed...

my transmission shifts in the same manner except mine goes into 4th gear, at about 30mph, with light throttle... at 45mph in 4th gear I'm at 2000rpm in my 85 300d