Everybody thought I was crazy when I brought my first Mercedes home. It is a 1980 240D, 4 speed. Trans shifts a little rough so I picked up a spare, a 1979 240D, 4 speed. The 69 220D was too cute to pass up.

So I decided it was time to get my wife a Mercedes. This time I brought home a 82 300SD.

Uh oh!
I got it up on the car hauler and it is a totally different beast. This one looks kind of scary. Real pretty on top. As clean as any 25 year old car I have come across, but lots of oil underneath. Inside is just short of excelent. Some wear and fading, but not bad, in fact quite good for the age. Not a crack on the dash. I will start with the oil cooler after I clean everything. That is where I have found leaks in the past.

Wildcat oil drillers used to say "If you want to find oil, look where it has been found before."

Anyway I'm afraid I might have bitten off more than I can chew. The 240D cost me more to keep running than I paid for it, the first couple months. But it settled down quick and has been purring steadily for two years. Or putt, puttering as others hear it.

__________________
69 220D not running
79 240D parts car
80 240D Beater runs everyday
81 300TD temp disabled cooling problem
82 300SD sweet

The sd is really a different car than the 240d. The sd is such a comfortable car to drive that it'll be hard for you to get back in the 240. Its nice have something like 60 extra horses there too.

__________________
"spreading a trail of obnoxious where ever we go"
1981 300sd w/ 341,500 miles

http://www.wecrash.com/pics/ddda_banner.gif

How much extra weight for those 60 ponies to carry?

How much extra body roll? Increased turning radius?

The big one...

How many silly extra motors, tracks, vacuum pods, cracks and crevices to clean/maintain?

I really want the SD, REALLY want the SD... But I am afraid of the extra expense and complexity of the beastie, I am pretty much the only person that rides in my cars, and if I have company, it is only 1 or 2 people. The SD really is not for me, but it calls to my heart for some reason.

A white one with blue interior or a coffee w/ cream colored one with the chocolate brown interior.

mmmm brown interior

__________________
http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i1...Untitled-1.jpg

many many more things to maintain on a 126. most are well thought out and many are very similar to a 240 but just lots more of it. on an old car it is kindof a never ending thing.

the 240 is a sweetheart. simple and tough. sweet handling and cheap to operate. no frills though.

tom w

__________________
[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

115/123 240D =



126 300SD, 300SDL & 350SDL =



Nuff said?

__________________
Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

KLATTA, KLATTA


There is a W123 300CD out there, and it's calling you !!! Yes, *YOU*!!! Are you going to answer??!!

__________________
1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

Yes I hear it calling!
But they are all calling
the 220 in Nevada
the 240 in Ontario
if I heard a fintail diesel I would surley navigate onto the rocks
I have been looking for a 300td for almost 2 years

It's like the loan companies that get your address. You get 20 offers to refi every day. They are starving. People have stopped buying houses.

but I have not stopped buying Mercedes'

__________________
69 220D not running
79 240D parts car
80 240D Beater runs everyday
81 300TD temp disabled cooling problem
82 300SD sweet

yes, too complicated. You should sell it to me cheap ASAP

__________________
'82 300SD - 361K mi - "Blue"

"Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgement."

listen, look, .........and duck.

I hear you. I never saw myself driving MBs.
I bought my first two years ago to "play" with biodiesel. The VW was too small, The old GMs not reliable enough, The Volvos, and BMWs too hard to find a good diesel. So I bought a 85 300D.
Now I have 3 plus a parts car. My newest a 116 body 79 300SD.
The 300SD is really the best of both worlds. Still an S class big body benz, but turns tighter and out handles the smaller 123s. As simple as the 123 turbos, and with more room to work on them. Manual seats, manual adjusting mirrors, etc. Oddly though I find the 123 to have more leg room.
My .02

__________________
1959 Gravely LI, 1963 Gravely L8, 1973 Gravely C12
1982 380SL
1978 450 SEL 6.9 euro restoration at 63% and climbing
1987 300 D
2005 CDI European Delivery
2006 CDI Handed down to daughter
2007 GL CDI. Wifes

It's no addiction, I can stop any time!
(see sig for current MBZ count)

__________________
Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

I think the SD is a very nice car! When I got mine a month ago, it was my first MB and my first diesel, but I'm starting to get into it, and I'm enjoying my ownership experience so far and naturally planning a few key DIY repair in the near future. I also have a '87 Saab 900 in my stable, and I must say it's probably more difficult to work on the Saab than on the Benz from my experiences so far. The Saab is a much smaller car and more tightly packed and can be a pain to get to things. On the SD, however, there's quite a bit more room to operate, which I am finding much more enjoyable!

I only have four Mercedes', my wife and daughter have five mustangs and two asses. Plus a registered paint. Don't blame me for the price of gas. My '42 ford is the only thing I drive regularly that uses the stuff. The mustangs run fine on bio fuel, and the Mercedes' should do fine on Krispy Kreme juice.

Now to get home and start knocking on resteraunt counters

all I need is a fintail diesel and I'll be happy,
A couple more 220d's wouldn't hurt anything, they're small, and so cute.

__________________
69 220D not running
79 240D parts car
80 240D Beater runs everyday
81 300TD temp disabled cooling problem
82 300SD sweet