Will my 300cd explode if I fill the primary filter with new Dexron ATF when I change it out? Or I should I buy some Power Service to put in the filter when changing it out instead?

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1980 240d
1999 SL500

I have read that many people use ATF for that purpose. I generally re-use the diesel that's already in the old filter and top it off as needed with what ever's handy in the garage. I see no point in spending extra money on additives if all you're doing is getting the air out of a filter.

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"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970

Why not fill it with diesel fuel?

I recently got a small jar of fuel during a fillup for that express purpose.

I don't have a suitable container for diesel fuel and the stuff reeks. If I spill some on my hands my steering wheel would dissolve and the smell would stay for days, etc.

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1980 240d
1999 SL500

Good idea, Brian. I use an empty 1 qt. oil bottle, tightly capped and in a plastic bag. It lives in the trunk and could be useful if I ever have to change filters on the road.

__________________

"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970

I use a small glass jar.

No, your steering wheel will not dissolve..........just wipe your hands with a paper towel which, I'm sure, you have in your trunk.

No, the smell won't stay for days.........just wash your hands with Go-jo which, I'm sure, you have in your bathroom.

NO, fresh ATF will not harm your injection pump or engine.





Have a great day.

__________________
ASE Master Mechanic
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Prototype R&D/testing:
Thermal & Aerodynamic System Engineering (TASE) Senior vehicle instrumentation technician.
Noise Vibration and Harshness (NVH).
Dynamometer.
Heat exchanger durability.
HV-A/C Climate Control.
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Technical Quality Auditor.
Automotive Technical Writer

1985 300SD
1983 300D
1984 190D
2003 Volvo V70
2002 Honda Civic

https://www.boldegoist.com/

100% right.

Nothing should be put in the fuel tank except Diesel and/or Biodiesel. The Germans spent millions of Marks designing and developing these engines. If they felt it was safe to use something else as a fuel, they would have listed it in the owners or service manuals.

From what I've seen the only things they list are Diesel, B5 and (in very cold weather) small amounts of g@soline or kerosene as anti-gel. I have yet to see engine oil, gear oil, ATF, brake fluid, rendered fat, grease, vegetable oil, coolant or used oils on any of their literature.

I use clean ATF for filling my filters to prime the engine. I will NOT use the fuel from the old filter, nor trust a jar in my trunk dispensed from a fuel nozzle at a station. The ATF is filtered, very well, and a suitable fuel for the engine for priming, stuff poured out of the filter will likely contain the very contaminants you're trying to keep out of the engine.

I won't run my car on ATF, that doesn't seem like a good idea, but the filter holds about a pint, which is fairly quickly dilluted and burned, not a big risk to the engine at all and IMO better to run for several seconds on a good fluid like this than to crank for minutes.

__________________

Gone to the dark side

- Jeff

Nobody should. You might as well not even change the filter if you're going to pour fuel from the old one into the new.

I carry a 2-gallon jerrycan of Diesel in my trunk for emergency fuel and I use fuel from it when changing filters. If you're worried about fuel smell on your hands you should go to the parts store and get a box of these to keep in your trunk:

^^
I never start a car project without my gloves. Seems I always tend to pull off my mechanic's gloves to pick something up etc., having the nitrile gloves under them saves a lot of hand-washing.

__________________

Gone to the dark side

- Jeff

Slight hijack:

Driving down the highway today, started to smell french fries, looked around ahead of me for a diesel and sure enough, a diesel rabbit pickup burning WVO.

I'm afraid of the stuff, and don't burn enough fuel to feel it's worth the effort, but I think everyone ahead of me in traffic should be burning WVO.

__________________

Gone to the dark side

- Jeff

i have to agree completely with oldiesel. mabey in an emergency or antigel. but it never gets that cold were i live so not even for that. and as for emergency, unless someone stole the 3 gal can i have in the trunk, ATF, Motor oil, or anything other than diesel #2 is going in that tank.

and as someone said earlier, ya your engine will run quieter, as it self destructs

it will be like a hostage being tortured with duct tape over their mouth, much quieter that way, same amount of damage

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Current
2006 E320 CDI, 57K bought at 67K "Liesl"
1986 190E 2.3-16, 198K bought at 56K "Brigitta"
1987 300TD (Chuggin Along), 292K "Friedrich"
1995 E320 Wagon, 200K "Louisa"

Past
1987 300SDL, (sold) 125K, bought for 1$ "Kurt"

Seems the opinions vary from "I burn ATF all the time, no problems" to "it will be certain death for your engine." We didn't hear any "ATF destroyed my engine" stories, though.

In the future I think I'll stick to nice safe topics like oil and oil filters.

__________________

"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970

How much new/used ATF/motor oil/canola/voodoo juice you can put in your tank is a function many many different factors, including which engine you have, what condition it is in currently, and what condition you want it to be in.

617s will take almost anything. That engine is like the W201 cars: 'massively overengineered'. Other engines may be more picky about their feed.

Any engine made in the last ~15 years is designed to burn two things; diesel and ASTM biodiesel. Put something else in, and you flirt with large repair bills. In the interest of increasing performance and reducing emissions, the margins are a lot smaller these days.

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1983 300SD 467,000 km - 473 champagnermetallic

location: 34°5' N 106°53' W (Socorro NM, USA)