Hi Folks,
I'm new to this board and am impressed by the depth of knowledge that all of you have. I do most of the work on my vehicles and have previously owned a diesel Jetta - so I am familar with diesel maintenance and the benefits of owning a diesel. I'm interested in owning an older MB as I like the styling, aspects of the diesel and the lack of sensors and electronics "stuff" that you find many newer cars.

I'm going to look at a 1977 Mercedes 300d that I am interested in purchasing. The vehicle has 170,000 miles - pw, ps, ac, auto. trans and is a 2 owner vehicle. The floors have been repaired in 96 and the car has some surface rust. (This is all according to the owner - I haven't seen the car yet)

Since I've never owned a MB before I'm a bit worried about what I need to be checking and looking for prior to buying this car. What specific areas or parts do I need to look at? Are there any "weak links" in this year? I've searched the archives and found a bit of info. but would appreciate any help this forum could provide.
Thanks in advance for your help!

Aivars Berzins

PS I'm located on the east coast of Canada and the car price is $3500 Can.