.....Mercedes.

Well I ended up being able to get a transmission for FREE, long story on that one.

Anyways, I swapped out the tranny, did a diesel purge, installed nozzles from Greazzer, new glow plugs, borrowed a glow plug reamer from DieselKraut, air filter, primary and secondary filter fuel filters, shocks front and rear, all tie rod ends, steering damper, rear axles, belts, hose by oil filter, oil filter, oil, gear lube etc. etc.

Drove it hard last night for 60 miles, 80 mph for 10 minutes, 90 mph for 3 minutes. Solid as a rock, engine has very little to no blow-by.

I settled with using a straight 40 weight oil for the transmission fluid. My sources say that up until about 1977-78, gear oil was used and the change to ATF done for cold climates and then used across the board. My choice was to go somewhere in between the two. I am familiar with the 71 series of Detroit Diesel engines and the same 40 weight oil for the motor is used in the Twin Disc reverse gears. Seems like a good compromise as the tranny is content. Love the sound of the gears when delivering power, and when engine braking they sound good too.

The car is now fit for a cross country trip.

Total invested to date is just a tad under 2k, not bad for a car that will not need a battery to start and has zero electronics to keep running correctly.
I really "LIKE" that aspect. Not to mention it's a '84 300D Euro.