1975 300D- Limo? ...and other questions

[phoenix02]

Hello,

I just acquired a '75 300D. I was wondering if there was something special about it- it has no center arm rest in the front, no seat belts in the rear- and no mounting points on the rear parcel shelf for the belt reel, and a black canvas landau top. it's definately factory, as there's chrome molded all around it.

Is this a Town Car/ Executive Limo? Also, is there any significance to the Landau, as I've never seen a W115 with this?

Anyone know the speed on these guys? I top out on the freeway at 65 and when I'm starting from a dead stop, even if I floor it, the engine slowly spools up and it takes about 30 seconds to get to 60. Also, is there a secret to getting the tranny into lower gears? It's a bear to push it and I'm afraid I'll break the linkage trying to get it into 2nd or low down south of drive, and it also doesn't stay engaged. Any ideas?

Also, sometime the steering gets to feeling like it's manual instead of power. any idea what would be casuing this?

1975 300D buttercup yellow w/ black landau top and biscuit brown interior.
odo stuck at 17xxx miles, climate controlls won't move, power windows, no compressor or condenser for air conditioning (if there was ever one?), glow plug relay bypassed for a manual switch...

Any ideas of value?

Thanks alot for any ideas or help- she's my first Benz. I hope I got a good deal. I guess time shall tell.

[t walgamuth]

could you post a pic?

it sounds like a very unusual car. not factory i think. probably a conversion by a shop which does them.

the shifter may need lube.

if the rear end ratio is the normal 369 it should go about 83 to 85 if running properly and not too tired. but if it has a 390 gear in the rear then top speed would be proportionatley less.

i would get under it and look the front end parts over really good for anything that is binding up. also check to see if you have fluid in the power steering resorvour (if you dont find a res you might not have power steering).

the manual glow is not a problem, you will work it out with experience how long to glow it.

value is dependant on condition and desirablility. if your conversion has been done properly it can add value to the car. or not if not done well.

good luck

tom w

[phoenix02]

Thanks for the info- I'll get some pix up as soon as I can.

I bought it for my wife to use as a commuter car from Victorville to Claremont- about 50 miles each way- 5 days a week. I'm hoping it's reliable enough for that. If it breaks down every now and then, I have an '83 Diesel GMC Suburban as a backup.

Is there any way I can adjust the timing or air/ fuel ratio? There's white smoke coming out the exhaust (just a little) and when I floor it, the motor spools up, it's not even close to an imediate response. I was thinking that these were both maybe caused by timing or the A/F ratio. do you have any ideas or should I post this question over in the Diesel section?

The mounts are there for the fog lights, but they've been removed in favor of regular square ones mounted under the bumper- would it be hard or me to find the round originals and remount them?

Finally and most importantly, how do these do on hills when properly tuned? coming home from work, my wife would have to go through the Cajon pass, which is very steep and normally has traffic on it. Will the car be able to handle stop and go on a steep grade, or must I sell her and look elsewhere?

I wanted a diesel so I could play with WVO and for the mileage.

-MIchael

[Wodnek]

I have a 78 300D, same drive train, I think. It has no problem getting to 80mph and will very slowly climb from 80 to 90, topping at about 92. Sounds like it needs an Itallian tune up. You have to figure out the shifting issues though first. It should have enough power in the hills to be a reliable commuter, expect to be passed on the steep grades though.

[cth350]

look at the chassis number. a factory 300D LWB would be a 123.132. A 240D LWB is a 115.119. They are rather uncommon these days. Dan Penoff had a 250LWB (long wheel base) that was in great condition that he reluctantly sold last year and had a very hard time getting the price up near 5,000$. I don't know what the final price on the car was.

The last 300D LWB I saw advertised sold for 750$. I don't recall its condition.

As for yours, take it one system at a time. Usually steering, brakes, suspension, drive train (in other words safety first). The spare parts are plentiful. For a service manual, you can find the 123 chassis books used on ebay or buy the CD from mercedes.

There's a fully searchable archive here at this site, not to mention a few hundred arm-chair mechanics that can help you get the job done.

-CTH

[Tomguy]

I'm not really familiar with diesels, but white smoke I would assume might be a sign of a coolant leak like on a gasser. You might want to ask in the diesel forum about it. It might be nothing. I know they smoke a lot, I just thought it was usually black

[t walgamuth]

dribbling injectors will smoke light blue, easily confused with white.

if it is steam it will smell sweet and will vaporize quickly. if it is unburned fuel it will linger and blow away eventually.

tom w