Hello.

I am looking (to buy) at a 1983 240D with an odometer reading of 87000 mil. The engine looks mostly clean but I have noticed a bunch of greasy black build-up near the cylinder closest to the firewall right below the exhaust manifold pipe for that cylinder. All other area of the cylinder block looks clean.

Can someone explain to me what this buildup is caused by? and if it a reason for concern, is it possible that the cylinder head screws came loose?

Any and all comments will be appreciated.

Could be blowby on an Exhaust manifold gasket... or oil leak from head gasket leak...
You pretty sure the odometer is correct ?
How much are they asking for the car ?
Does it run well ?

Your best bet is to spend about $100 and have the car really checked out by an independant company.... not your potential mechanic... someone like lemonbusters... who do no repairs.... only test the cars... so no conflicts of interest... either overt...or subconscious...
They will do a compression test and lots of other tests......If they had gotten in there and cleaned that spot off then engine you would not even be thinking about it.... so mechanical tests are way more important than how it looks in the engine compartment...
Someone can keep the engine spotless.. but not use the correct oil... or change it often enough... and you get a false sense of value...

The "guy" is asking $2750 ($3500 CDN) uncertified/saftied. The car has absolutely no rust. When I looked at the injectors they looked little bit sweaty (i am not sure it that is an indication of anything).
This car is now in Canada but it must have come from the Constitutional Republic (not democracy) of the United States of America because all gages are imperial on it.

When I came over to see the car the car started ok, there was very little smoke, the smoke color was semi ash-gray and it disappeared very quickly. The started appeared not to "grab/spin" the flywheel once in the while. The clutch seems to grab very well and the suspension seems tight. I am not sure what else I should look for on a diesel?

The guy claims that the odometer just broke and only the trip odometer works.


Is it alot of work to fix the "exhaust blowby" or the "oil leak from head gasket leak."

This meaning of that statement depends on your meaning of "just broke." Just as in this week? Or just as in 8 years ago, which is not really too long on a 21 year old car. The odometer on mine read 79,000, and the owner claimed it had approximately 40,000 additional miles on it. But I didn't really care because the price was only $500.

For the kind of money you're talking about paying, definitely get a prepurchase inspection. They will advise you on what repairs are required and what they might cost.

__________________
Rick Miley
2014 Tesla Model S
2018 Tesla Model 3
2017 Nissan LEAF
Former MB: 99 E300, 86 190E 2.3, 87 300E, 80 240D, 82 204D Euro
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