i was daydreaming of a winter road trip down south this year (NY to NOLA), but wondering if its really realistic at all. but today, as i went up a hill on a 55mph road at 25mph i wondered if some of the places i would want to visit would even be possible to get at in the 240D. like some parts of north carolina (near asheville) that are probably in the area of 2100+ feet in elevation. anyone have experience/thoughts?

A 240d will go anywhere any other car will go, it will just do it much much slower in some cases. You sure its running optimally? 25mph on a 55mph hill sounds a bit extreme....

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I agree a 240 should have no trouble with North Carolina if running correctly. Will the car run 83 mph on level ground?

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

does sound a little weak to me, check throttle linkages, fuel filters, all the normal stuff. My fuel tank strainer was a real mess, so plugged up that it did not let me use the last 3-4 gallons of fuel.

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1977 240D turbo

is it an auto 240? if so, could be an adjustment issue. A friend of mine had the same problem, but it was the car would never downshift, and would lug up the hill. It should deliver decent power, and downshift when you floor it on a grade.

I drove my 240 over the rockies, no problem. Even over 5000-7000 elevation, it was gutless, but game.

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I live in WV and drive mine on mountainous roads all the time. Even on three mile long 5-7% grades I still manage to crest at 50 mph. Topping out at 25mph is a bit extreme. Follow the advice of the posters above and get your car sorted.

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1974 240D "Boldie" 170K.- New timing chain/freshly rebuilt IP/replaced valve seals/injectors/upgraded stereo/new Bilsteins with Yokohamas/fresh paint and rocker panels plus lots of welds.

I used to take my 4 speed 240 up to Flagstaff now and then. A steady climb on the interstate from 3500 ft. at home to 7200 ft. There was a noticeable loss of power and it would start to puff a bit of black smoke at about the 5000ft. level, but I could always finish coming into Flagstaff at about 50 or more.

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84 Euro 240D 4spd. 220.5k sold
04 Honda Element AWD
1985 F150 XLT 4x4, 351W with 270k miles, hay hauler
1997 Suzuki Sidekick 4x4
1993 Toyota 4wd Pickup 226K and counting

I just drove over Hwy 50, elv 7440 at echo summit, down through South Shore (Tahoe) and on to Carson City, Nv. around 4500ft on the valley floor.

Little slow on some of the higher elevations, getting down to around 40mph. at 4500ft running around all week, she did ok, seemed about normal the way it always runs.

Came back home new years eve going over Hwy 88 back to Calif, (Carson Pass) which drops us down into Stockton, Ca. the summit is 8000ft, and on several steep grades I just down shifted into 3rd, and was in the 40mph range. but this is usually for a short distance.

This is on a 80 240D with a 4-spd stick and with 331K.

These cars will go just about any place today as they did when they were new. Go for it.

Charlie

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there were three HP ratings on the OM616...

1) Not much power
2) Even less power
3) Not nearly enough power!! 240D w/auto

Anyone that thinks a 240D is slow drives too fast.

80 240D Naturally Exasperated, 4-Spd 388k DD 150mph spedo 3:58 Diff

We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works

hmmm. well i live near the foothills of the catskills mountains in ny. first week driving it i was often creeping up hills. now i know the roads and the car well enough to know when i need to start picking up momentum in order to make it up a hill. i've never tried to go '83 mph on the flats' cause i can't afford the speeding ticket but have no problem geting to 70mph. the car is automatic by the way

the other day i was in jersey though at 'high point' which is the highest spot in the area (and in the appalachians). i was on the shoulder in first gear going a few miles an hour by the time i got to the top. car smelled a little rough by the top.

fuel filter is new, but when you say 'check the throttle linkages' what am i checking them for?


p.s.
side note is that last time i tried to get to asheville nc is was on a '70's Puch Moped that I was attempting to ride cross country. Made it as far as the foothills of Asheville before it seized up and walked away with my bags on my back! I think my 240D is a serious upgrade from the Moped!

I've had no problems going over the Mountains in Oregon (4500ft or so) with my 240. Definitely the slow guy going up the hills though, 40-45mph. The car will make it but don't be in a hurry, cause you're never going to pull 55mph up a big hill.

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huh. yeah based on all these stories its definately not performing like it should. rare that i get up a hill still in 4th gear, and round here its just hills. ok. i'll check fuel strainer to see if its clogged, and throttle linkages (what am i checking for). might take me a day or so then i'll report back. thanks

You want to confirm that pushing the pedal to the floor sets the injection pump at wide open throttle. Have someone floor the pedal without engaging the kickdown switch (you'll feel a click). See if you can move the throttle linkage in the engine bay any further. There shouldn't be any further travel in the throttle linkage.

Sixto
87 300D

Check the condition of your timing chain, too.

How heavy will you be on the trip?

Sixto
87 300D

When I got my 300D, it felt like it had to guts whatsoever, and during the test drive it wouldnt even accelerate until i started playing with the kickdown switch. Made me nervous driving into highway traffic.

But after I bought it, I noticed there was a adjustment plate with a screw that was set wrong, I pushed it so that when I floored the throttle, it almost went to the full-throttle stop on the IP.

I guessed that I had maybe 30% IP actuation when I floored the throttle instead of the 90ish% I have now. I didn't feel like adjusting the linkages to get the extra 10%.

I drive it primarily 100 miles a day five days a week

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Current:
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Past: 1998 Chevy Cavalier ,2005 Saab 9-3 2.0T, 1996 Mazda Protege, 1974 Porsche 914 2.0, 1997 Land Rover Discovery 4.0L/5Speed, 1995 Jeep Wrangler

I used to own the "Pumpkin" . . .a '76 240D, 4-spd. I bought the car in the San Diego area and drove it to the Butte, MT area, where the altitude was 6,380 ft. I got 33 mpg, and it spit out black smoke (not too bad) taking off from a stop sign. I drove that car for three years, never hesitating to take it up or down any roads between Butte/Virginia City to Salt Lake City and back. The car handled hills just fine.

I think you need to check other things and find out what is holding it back. You can manually drop gears on your auto tranny to keep it from lugging, if it's not downshifting on its own. If that's not the problem, I would look at the other things that were mentioned.

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1983 300D, the "Avocado"
1976 240D, 4-spd the "Pumpkin", SOLD to Pierre
1984 190D, 2.2L, 5-spd, my intro to MBZ diesels, crashed into in 2002