Story has alot of twist so Ill start from the facts Ive learned from abit of an untruthful beginning.An add placed for a 1982 300d reads motor good ,trannie good ,Tires new ,low mileage. An hr and 20 min.drive out and I cant find but only 2 facts right about the car and that is the tires are good and the possible low mileage might be a fact .Interior shot ,motor has 2 freeze plugs out of the block ,frt in collision has the oil and collant leaking .The add did give some parts needed ,tlc ,but with a non running motor you cant value the motor then the trans. The real twist is I believe the low mileage detail and have become torn If I should return to give it a chance for start.It will turn over but feel fuel seems to be the issue from the primer pump feeling flat ,I can fix the freeze plugs temporary and try to pull it out of slumber then get a better accessment .The real pressure is the guy has a time limit ,hate those,feels like its the possible the right car if pampered back to health but wrong seller ,if you know what I mean.I do like a challenge ,this one would look nice with a rare metal flake blue exterior in good shape but leather shot.

It can be assessed, and priced, only on the cosmetics. Per your description, it is a cosmetically damaged car that does not have an operational drivetrain. It is a roller.
For a very low price, buy.

Run away.....

I'd pay scrap value and expect to put in another engine. There's no good reason to pull freeze plugs unless the block froze.

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$60 OM617 Blank Exhaust Flanges
$110 OM606 Blank Exhaust Flanges
No merc at the moment

Sounds like a $250 car to me.

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'80 300SD - '83 240D - '00 E55 AMG - '02 G500

The seller lied and is pressuring you. Sounds like a craigslist flake. A used engine costs ~$700. They can't be rebuilt affordably. Well, you can buy a professionally rebuilt engine, but $8500. Then you would have a non-descript, non-collectible car that gets mediocre mileage and is fairly expensive to maintain. Sorry to bring you down, but a 1982 300D only has value if in pristine condition, and then maybe $3000 worth.

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1984 & 1985 CA 300D's
1964 & 65 Mopar's - Valiant, Dart, Newport
1996 & 2002 Chrysler minivans

run run run- you probably know 20% of the issues as of now.

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'85 300D, 'Lance',250k, ... winter beater (100k on franken-Frybrid 3 Valve Kit)
'82 300D, 'Tex', 228k body / 170k engine ... summer car
'83 300TD Cali Wagon 210k, wife's car

I've bought too many jalopies in the past, and this is one. Car is a $250 parts car.

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Only diesels in this driveway.
2005 E320 CDI 243k Black/Black
2008 Chevy 3500HD Duramax 340k
2004 Chevy 2500HD Duramax 220k

If I wanted a project, I'd offer him scrap value. I take cash and a trailer but only give him the cash once the car is loaded onto the trailer. Then, cash in exchange for clean title that matches his ID. I had one kid try to sell his car that was technically in his parents' name. Daddy had to sign for the deal to be finished.

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85SD 240K & stopped counting painted, putting bac together. 84SD 180,000. sold to a neighbor and member here but I forget his handle. The 84 is much improved from when I had it. 85TD beginning to repair to DD status. Lots of stuff to do.

Next time I go to sell a car it will be through a dealer consignment car lot. The last car I sold, some serious criminal types come to look at it and to case my dwelling. I thought some of them were going to stick a gun in my face and demand the keys.

Do you have a copy of the ad and pics so we can view?

Here might be the solution ,if the motor is good I still might move forward. The unanswered question is at what price.He text me to express that he would call another buyer off and call the car sold if I wanted to go ahead and confirm I wanted it .I wouldnt take the car without confirming the health of the motor was my reply .I thought it over and replied later that I will come back out but will have to do a compression test on all cylinders to feel better about the motor ,if those numbers are low than I wont have any reason to want the car.Now ,that said if the numbers are very good and the car is everything he says as a one owner car I will buy and store locally and make the car drivable over the next few weeks for a drive home ,If mixed compression numbers but runable Illl probably make an offer, at least thats the plan.

We need a copy of the ad !!!

i just bought a W123 so it's on my mind - dont forget to

- evaluate blowby
- check for oil in the coolant and vice versa
- valve adjustment before comp check (#s can look too good if the valves are tight IIRC)
- visually check cam lobes during valve adjustment check
- comp check
- check the turbo shaft for end and side play
- check air cleaner for signs of excessive oil

optional:
- sniff trans fluid for signs of burnt
- pull trans pan for signs of metal


its a lot of time and it can be awkward while the owner watches, but its worth it!

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'85 300D, 'Lance',250k, ... winter beater (100k on franken-Frybrid 3 Valve Kit)
'82 300D, 'Tex', 228k body / 170k engine ... summer car
'83 300TD Cali Wagon 210k, wife's car

Do not walk away. Run.

If you want to buy yourself a headache, offer scrap price at most.

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Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 400,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 22,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.