Need some help, want a newer diesel

[dwayneb]

Thinking about getting my wife a late model Mercedes diesel. What was the last year that a Mercedes diesel was available here before the new CDI's? Also, what was the first year that the CDI's were available? Anybody got any opinions as to which is the better car to buy, the CDI or non-CDI? Open to any and all suggestions.

Thanks!

[TheDon]

the E300D is a good car. I would go for a turbodiesel just for the extra power. Only thing is the glowplugs sometimes snap off in the head.. I have driven a E300D turbodiesel.. They are very nice .. very nice.

I have also driven an E320CDI which is far superior in alot of aspects.

The latest models with the V-6 bluetec are great as well. But im guessing your not going for something dealer fresh

[TMAllison]

99 E300 turbo was the last one before the 05(?) E320 CDI's got here.

The former is a W210, the latter a W211 body.

[suburbanviking]

I am in a similar situation. I have been daily driving an 85 300TDT euro with 300K miles. I like it because:

- it is simple, proven technology
- fairly reliable (especially considering it's age and mileage)
- it is something I can wrench on and fix (short of a total block teardown or tranny rebuild)
- it gives me a platform to experiment with biodiesel and/or WVO

It has grown on me and I enjoy driving it. Unfortunately, it's not a looker. The paint is oxidized and the interior has seen better days. I am working on the inside -- fixing the seats, replacing carpet, troubleshooting door locks, etc. The motor is good as are most other parts of the car. She runs daily and I don't worry about it. Combine that with what I paid and I have little to lose.

However, my wife thinks I look homeless in it. So I have been contemplating an 84/85 300SD, 86/87 300SDL, 95 E300D and 97-99 E300TD. I admit that I wouldn't mind the updated interior, but I really do like the peace of mind that comes with the 617 motor.

Does anyone have any input as to a reliable but more updated diesel Benz that I don't have to take to the stealership every time I need something beyond an oil change?

Thanks in advance for your comments,
.....Dan

[GRIESL]

Originally Posted by suburbanviking

I am in a similar situation. I have been daily driving an 85 300TDT euro with 300K miles. I like it because:

- it is simple, proven technology
- fairly reliable (especially considering it's age and mileage)
- it is something I can wrench on and fix (short of a total block teardown or tranny rebuild)
- it gives me a platform to experiment with biodiesel and/or WVO

It has grown on me and I enjoy driving it. Unfortunately, it's not a looker. The paint is oxidized and the interior has seen better days. I am working on the inside -- fixing the seats, replacing carpet, troubleshooting door locks, etc. The motor is good as are most other parts of the car. She runs daily and I don't worry about it. Combine that with what I paid and I have little to lose.

However, my wife thinks I look homeless in it. So I have been contemplating an 84/85 300SD, 86/87 300SDL, 95 E300D and 97-99 E300TD. I admit that I wouldn't mind the updated interior, but I really do like the peace of mind that comes with the 617 motor.

Does anyone have any input as to a reliable but more updated diesel Benz that I don't have to take to the stealership every time I need something beyond an oil change?

Thanks in advance for your comments,
.....Dan

Dude, we are living parallel lives. My original plan was that after I could prove to myself (and my wife) that I could make good b100, then I would upgrade to the 95 e300d (special edition if I could find one--found a great one, but I wasn't ready to pull the trigger), but my 300d has grown on me, and me on it. I like the SDL, but my wife calls that the UN dignitary car (you know, the ones with the little flags on the fenders), so no go there. But if you get into the modern models, 95 and up, then you're giving up all that is wonderful about these old Benzes. I also wonder how well the later models deal with biofuel. I've heard that the IDI motors are the best for bio--even better than VW TDI's. I'm curious what others have to say on this thread.

[suburbanviking]

Parallel lives indeed. We have been employing similar strategies. Although I think you are further along in your bio path than I am. Where are you located? I am eager to find someone in the greater KY-IN-Cinci area that I can watch produce bio. My problem now is scaling up. I have produced no more than several liters at a time. And the colder winter months are also a challenge for me. I was at least picking up WVO but the winter cold put a stop to that.

The UN car comment is funny. Ideally, I will get a nice diesel Benz to replace my wife's Tahoe but it'll have to be nice, safe, big and reliable. Any tips on how you have been working on your wife?

Feel free to share any tips -- bio-conversion or wife-conversion related.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

[WINGAS]

Didnt do a boatload of "due dillignce", but the 95 caught my eye. Mechanical injection, easy to wrench on, etc. I like the 124 body style. Also, in my porfession, I can't look like a homelessdude, so my publicist ( wife!)had final say. She liked "Lil' Blackie" enough. Prefer the 124 rear end to newer ones. But prefer the later more "nostalgic" headlamp treatment.

Underspent on the car for a high milage, but good looking one. GOt the usual wire harness redo, injector redo, etc.

I must say, so far, it isnt a bad example for a newbie to cut his teeth on, maintenance -wise. This one needed a bunch of mechanical work, so far.

Up here in winter wonderland, I'm not sure wifey would deal with a diesel in winter. None came with 4-matics, that I know of.But, there has been a very nice green 99 on Ebay, out of Jersey, that looks decent.That one, I'd buy for my gal. ( Why I pulled the trigger on an older, 200K, over this one, I'll never know! ) Btw, she calls the SDL's "pimpmobiles".

I'd also like to hear others opinions.

[dwayneb]

I have been making bio since last July and have used nearly 400 gallons in my 83 Ranger diesel, 83 300d and now in my 85 190d. I can't tell any difference in performance and the only "conversion" that I have done is to replace the inline filters. I have only had ONE filter clog since July. If I get a CDI, I don't think I would use the bio until my warranty runs out.

[GRIESL]

Originally Posted by suburbanviking

Parallel lives indeed. We have been employing similar strategies. Although I think you are further along in your bio path than I am. Where are you located? I am eager to find someone in the greater KY-IN-Cinci area that I can watch produce bio. My problem now is scaling up. I have produced no more than several liters at a time. And the colder winter months are also a challenge for me. I was at least picking up WVO but the winter cold put a stop to that.

The UN car comment is funny. Ideally, I will get a nice diesel Benz to replace my wife's Tahoe but it'll have to be nice, safe, big and reliable. Any tips on how you have been working on your wife?

Feel free to share any tips -- bio-conversion or wife-conversion related.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

If you're ever in SW VA, drop me a line and I'll show you my getup. It's a 55gal drum with a cone and feet welded on the bottom with a 2 inch gate valve. All pumps and motors are pnuematic run by an Ingersoll compressor. Cold is a huge challenge. My last batch turned to apple butter, but unlike the mountain apple butter they sell 'round here, mine's toxic. What a PITA. So after distilling the alcohol out of it (yep, in the mountains you learn a little about 'distilling'), we're going to pay the Jiffy Lube guy $30 to suck it out and haul it away. Yet I digress. My wife won't join me in my diesel biofuel venture in a million years. Every once in a while, I'll show her a Sprinter on Ebay and say, you know, honey, you'd be the envy of every desperate wife at the preschool pickup and the soccer field with this baby! Not a chance. She would consider jumping in a newer Benz (95 or later), but not as her daily driver. She's a diaper wagon kind of gal.

If you're wife's driving a Tahoe, you may want to look for a PwrStrk Excursion or Diesel Suburban. I've heard the diesel Jeep Liberty is junk.

Sorry to somewhat hijack the thread for a moment. Now, 'nuff about me, I want to hear what others have to say about later model Benz's.

[Bio300TDTdriver]

If I didn't have my money pit wagon I would be looking at this car on EBay (yes I know it's EBay). http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&sspagename=ADME%3AL%3ARTQ%3AUS%3A1&viewitem=&item=180101037107
I would be a little weary of burning B99 in a CDI; although a couple folks on here are doing it. Just no long term results yet.

Chris

[WINGAS]

Yes, I noticed that car. Hey, EBAY is what it is, but if you live up here, you simply do not have any local grease cars. I mean none. One 91 SDL sold here locally in the last six months. ONE. AT least in the swap sheet,auto trader and local paper.

So for some of us, the national marketplace of Ebay is almost the only way to get any selection. BTW, I;d use the wholesaler out of Philly/NJ, I bought mine from again. He has access to a lots of grease cars at auction.

My lady doesnt like the smell/ ?? Whereas I, on the other hand, dig the smell of diesel. How we've been married for 16 yrs I'll never know.

But, since there is no market for used MBz up here, she might just send my Ebay seller her "spec sheet" and have him fish one out of the Philly auction.

This guy is a straight shooter. Now, he didnt know there was a bad injector in my 95, so no grease car pro, but Mike has access to the auctions.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=007&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWN%3AIT&viewitem=&item=170084736942&rd=1&rd=1


Tell him " 427trips" sent ya. ( my Ebay handle).

[Jim B.]

A well kept, good condition '95 W124 diesel is a significant change from the '83 300D, with the advantages of airbags and ABS on them, but still with the superb build quality and durability and longevity of the 123 models, and the '95 had the further advantage as being the last year of the model run, so they had the latest interior upgrades, and typically the problems are well sorted by the end of the model run, making the '85 a good bet.

Naturally the wiring harness and airconditioning system should be in good condition before you jump on the car, and the particular car needs to be rust free and collision free also.

The W210 models dating from 1996 up had significant rust issues, ( and search "Spring perch" for another serious issue), and the build quality slipped significantly in the E class since then, and though some of these cars were good ones, many were not - it's a real gamble. Add to that, it's thought the quality even today has begun to improve, it's not thought to have recovered to the 1995 level, yet. Plus the computer and electronics on the 1996 up E class are more complicated and likely to cause trouble than the 1995 and earlier E class.

Perhaps your wife, and you, could be happy with a really nice clean W124 '95 diesel? In many ways it's a "step up" from the W123, yet while retaining most of the virtues that make the W123 models. Either in gas or diesel, they are excellent cars. Equip it with euro lights, and you will be set for a LONG time.

[WINGAS]

Euro lights, eh? I have to look into those.

His wife is driving an 02-03 gasser, be a hard step down!

Here's a 99 Mike has in stock. Price seems a bit rich ???

http://www.importautoworldnj.com/webtemplate.aspx?iid=90746


FYI. ( I'm not paid by this dude, just including the link for an FYI. )

[suburbanviking]

Any other newer diesel comments?

[GRIESL]

Originally Posted by suburbanviking

Any other newer diesel comments?

A guy just bought a 92 I think it was 2.5 turbo for 3200--what a freekin steal. And his wife said it was something like one of the nicest cars she's ridden in. I'll be saving my pennies for one of those. Somebody said they're one of the fastest MB diesels out there. 0-60 in 10 secs I think and getting 32 mpg. Not bad.