For $1000 you can't go wrong if it runs and drives decent!

Cheapest 300SD I picked up was an 82.. sat out in a corn field for a few years when the car was no longer used by thier daughter.. they said it ran fine when they parked it. I went out, put in a new battery, new glow plugs and it fired right up! Ran/Drove great with 260k.. picked it up for $300.