what to do? 92' 300SD

[dieseldork]

I really need some advice from someone who knows more about Mercedes than I. I am looking at buying a 1992 300sd and am concered with the 3.5L motor. I know there have been reports of problems in the 350 series with this motor but is this the same motor and did MB do anything in 92 to fix the problems they were having with the 89' 90' 91 model 350 sdl. The car runs great, but it should with less than 50k on this 10 year old car. I could only find one posting of problems with this model year on mercedesproblems.com. All advice is welcome. Thanks!!!!!!!

[slowmoe]

Dieseldork,

Welcome to the forum. You will be able to find a ton of information form this forum on this topic by using the search function.

Although I do not own one of these cars, there are several here that do. I will tell you what I have come to understand. First, many of these engines never need to be rebuilt. For those that do, it is not uncommon for them to travel several thousands of miles beforehand. The most common indicators of a bad engine being increased oil consumption and smoking. Secondly, I understand that although MB has never formally recognized a design flaw, they did "update" the engine componentry in the '95 model year. Finally, it looks like repair or replacement of this engine can run you several thousand dollars.

If you are serious about this car, do youself a favor and have it thoroughly examined by a specialist familiar with this model's problems. A little mony upfront can save you thousands here!! Also, you might want to check and see if this engine has already been rebuilt.

Well, that has exhausted my small reservoir of knowledge on this one. Lots of Luck!!!!