Hi everyone, new guy here. I'm looking for a Mercedes diesel. found a possibility, a 1981 300D. Appears to be in good shape, except for "engine makes a racket, and lost power". price is $400. ive been a mechanic for 25 years, but never worked on MB. how bad are parts prices? looks like Haynes manual is available for this car, should i be afraid to go through the engine myself? i plan to do a WVO conversion on this car, i understand they work very well on Mercedes diesels. anyone here with a MB greasecar? thanks for any input. I'm Greg.

What's the milage? If it runs, $400 doesn't sound like a bad deal. The "racket" would be the only thing that would make me think otherwise. Parts are cheap, in my opinion, especially when compared to that of much newer vehicles. And the fact that you can run WVO makes it well worth the money.

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1989 300E 144K

There is a good chance you can restore power.
$400 does seem good.

Yes, easy to work on, easy and cheap to get parts.

Big fun.

Go back to your profile and add your city/state.
Helps to know where you are.

Any chance you could post a picture of the car ?

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80 300D 340K Owned 30 yrs
83 300SD 440K Owned 9 yrs - Daily Driver 150mi/day
02 Z71 Suburban 117,000
15 Toyota Prius 2600 miles
00 Harley Sportster 24k
09 Yamaha R6
03 Ninja 250

parts are not as cheap as a chebby by far, but they tend to last three times as long. if you buy one that has a lot of deferred maintenance which it sounds like you are considering, you will think that parts are very expensive til you get caught up.

but they are mechanic friendly, and you hardly ever break a bolt.

tom w

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[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.

thanks guys. im in Batavia, Il., west of Chicago about 30 miles. I've never owned a Benz yet. Currently have an AMC Ambassador, a 1971. Gotta get it in saleable shape to make room in the garage for my next project, which i hope will be a greasecar. the 300D im considering is in Houston. Thanks for the replies.

an amc? you will fit right in here with us diesel geeks!

tom w

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[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.