The 300D and 300E had "cachet" value, so, as mentioned above, US drivers wouldn't want to step down from their 300D to a 250D...thus, the 300D 2.5.

The same applies in Europe today. The SL500 had prestige, so when Mercedes rolled out the 5.5L DOHC V8 a year ago, it stayed the SL500 in Europe while becoming the SL550 here--even though they were both 5.5L.

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99 E300 TD -- sold
01 540i 6 spd