Car has been running like a champ, have replaced the belts, and now going after the radiator hoses. The radiator has a capped nipple for an expansion tank that gave up the ghost, resulting in a tow home when it began to get too hot. The buddy doing the tow was concerned about how low the exhaust was hanging, it turned out it was on with one hanger and not much else. A center patch clamp had vanished in the last 2k miles.
After surveying the past repairs and welds and patches, I am picking up a new system from the manifold back. Down pipe came in from Germany, and with the replacement radiator hoses to be down, it's going to be a busy weekend.
Had to take it round the block sans exhaust, and as my son put it, sounds a little throaty!

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95 E300D gave away
77 300D, 227k, station car
83 300CD 370k, body gone away to the rust gods, engine is in a Yota pickup, going strong
89 190E 2.6- 335k, no more
79 VW FI Bus- 154k summer driver
59 VW Beetle ragtop- 175k
12 VW Jetta- 250k
74 MG Midget-78k