I guess the ATF idea would work. My mechanic suggested using 1 quart of ATF every 4-5 tanks of fuel, to keep things clean. So I suppose it would work. Though I don't know how much smoke you would produce running on pure ATF. Whenever I plan on traveling to an area I am not familar with, I carry a 2 gal. jug of diesel fuel with me. Of course if you did run out of fuel, you know you can just call MB roadside assistance and they'll bring some, free of charge. This applies to ALL Mercedes in the US, regardless of age, mileage, or number of owmers. The number is 1-800-367-6372

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1999 MB SL500 (110,000 mi)
2004 Volvo V70 2.5T (220,000 mi)
2014 Tesla Model S 85 (136,000 mi)
MBCA member