Thinking about looking at this one
 

Other than the usual things to check including rust, blowby, leaks, oil pressure, temperature etc., what else can you suggest about looking at this car? Seller claims no rust and very little startup smoke, he also claims the car has additional HP due to the european IP. I'm still confused about chassis numbers and configurations. Is this vehicle the same chassis/body as a 300d? Any suggestions, comments, opinions will be appreciated. Thanks!

http://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/cto/1395772099.html

Also, he does admit that both front seats need to be repadded. What's the recommendation on this? Can an upholstery shop do the work or is it better to find a pulled pair from a yard? Based on the cars I've looked at, I'm betting most of the pulls you'd find would need repadding too. The blue interior is my least favorite of all but wouldn't be a deal killer.

Seats are a normal problem, they can be re-padded.

I'd hit it.

Looks nice. If you are going to drive on the Hwy, daily, you may want to test drive it on the hwy. to see if it has the power U'd expect. They get noisy and lack power I've been told. My 300SD has plenty of power but it has a turbo.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_240D
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_W123

240D and 300D are same series, different engines and some accessories.

240D is the 2.4 liter 4 cylinder diesel, 300D is the 3.0 liter five cylinder. Depending on year, the 300D may have a turbo. So you've got a fair spread of power/performance from a 240D to a 300D (non-turbo) to a 300D (turbo).

German manufacturers used to be more clear/methodical in their naming or numbering convention. The number of the car meant something. I think BMW broke the trend in the early 90's when they changed the numbering system on their 3-series because the "smaller engine actually drove like a larger engine" or some such nonsense. A 318 used to mean 3 series, 1.8 liter; a 320 was a 2.0 liter; a 325 was a 2.5 liter; etc. They upscaled the 1.8 liter to be something like a 320 or a 325.

M-B appears to be more/less sticking to the engine displacement concept within a series, but not entirely.

Is that really a non-cracked dash???

If the price is good for you and the usual things check out, I'd jump on it. Do take it for a good test drive though. Make sure the tranny works well. Visually examine the suspension. Ask about maintenance.

A 240D with a stick will do fairly well; the auto versions tend to be a bit on the slow side. A blue interior with an uncracked dash would be a rare find indeed. I think the 240D was dropped in the USA after about 1982, wasn't it? That makes this Euro version unique, so make sure you can get parts. Manual a/c bonus!

Please forgive the late bump. The car is still available, in fact the guy tells me he's not getting any hits. How exactly would I "make sure I can get parts"? I'm going down to phx later this week or over the weekend.

Easy, walk into a parts store and ask for the part you want, only say it's for an '83 240D. That will get you the vast majority of service parts you will need. If you come up needing a bumper or a headlight, you will have a little more trouble, but there are ways.

Just to get an idea, I called AllPartsExpress after looking over their selection online. Looks like pretty good availability. He says "how can it be an 84, the 240d stopped in 83?" I told him it was a euro and he said you better go get it, that's a rare one. Looks like I'm definitely going south soon....

Definitely a euro. Lights are right, A/C, adjustable headlamp function, bumpers, etc. Rear tailights should be orange/amber on the side of the vehicle, but many times they're painted red when brought to the US. Neat car and it might be one of the faster 240D's you come across; but still slow.

get it. that's the perfect car, IMO. european, which looks better (just look at those deep amber corner lights!), with manual everything, which is easier to repair and more fun to drive. if you find you hate the slowness of the 240D, find a low miles turbo engine from a 300D and drop it in there. THEN you'll have the perfect 80's diesel mercedes.

for now, pick that one up!

I'd buy that
 

Unique car. If it were closer to me, I'd beat ya to it:D

X2. Put a couple pool noodles in and ride on.

No hits means time to haggle. If its as nice as it looks, and no blaring issues, I'd find SOMETHING wrong with it and offer 2k because of it.