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  #1  
Old 09-16-2003, 11:57 PM
Spo123
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1983 300d question

Today I test drove an '83 300d..........298k miles.....somked a bit......not really dark smoke.....ac works........NO RUST, used to be a california car......minimal records except for the $375 brake work done recently.
Drives very tight and straight.
However, there is a bit of unnerving VIBRATION through the drivetrain.......transmission shifts smoothly and into reverse and back into drive within 2 or 3 seconds when cold.
The differential seems to NOT have been opened any time recently for the addition of more or even a change of fluid.
Interior a little ratty.....seats good and firm....door panels good, broken passanger map pocket and broken rear netting plastic surround.
Started well without the glow cycle which woks properly, even though the glow plugs happen to have corrosion at the contacts.(need cleaning)
Appears to have original Blisteins......all stock condition......some clearcoat peeling on the trunk area.....could use interior carpets....sunroof functions well.....
Dry trunk area etc.......in the BOSTON AREA...ie; no rust!!!
I am concerned about the vibration in the driveline......perhaps the driveshaft was disassembled at some point and NOT punch marked first.
Any thoughts would be appreciated. Especially the VIBRATION, which seems to SMOOTH OUT SOME under hard acceleration.
Asking price is $2,200 b.o.
I talked to the owner of PERHAPS $1,700.
Thanx, spo.

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Old 09-17-2003, 02:49 AM
ForcedInduction
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$2200 seams reasonable. That's what I got con... talked into paying for my TD
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Old 09-17-2003, 07:43 AM
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Typical price on a good used driveshaft assembly is about $100.

But of course there can be other causes. It could be as simple as a worn-out flex disk, etc.

Ken300D
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  #4  
Old 09-17-2003, 09:45 AM
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I don't believe an out of balance driveshaft will smooth out upon acceleration.
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  #5  
Old 09-17-2003, 12:26 PM
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I recently did my flex-discs on my '93. Eliminated the unnerving vibration (front disc was very trashed) and had the dirveshaft in pieces. I did not worry about alignment, and the shaft parts seem to be balanced independently.

No more driveline worries (for the moment).
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Old 09-17-2003, 12:36 PM
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It could also be differential or transmission mounts. Worn diff mounts caused vibration in my 87 300D at highway speeds. Now it's smooth.
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Old 09-17-2003, 09:32 PM
Spo123
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Question another thought

First,
Thanx for the responses. After posting, I did a search, and the responses to SIMILAR questions were to consider the 1/2 shafts...........I did notice NO TORN OR LEAKING BOOTS.
....a worn CENTER BEARING was mentioned....
....worn FLEX DISC(s)....

I am aware of the bearing and discs, and was not able to get that far under the vehicle to inspect.

What is the concensus concerning the single UNIVERSAL JOINT.
Of all the postings that I have read over the years, NOT ONCE has anyone mentioned this item.

The differential mount was the first thing that came to mind, however, I was not thinking of the transmission mount.

If I make an offer, I will bring a set of ramps and inspect the underside with more detail.

Jim, the vibration did smooth out some...........however, the vibration was definately noticible and bothersome even while under heavy load.
Again, thanx for the feedback, and lets keep thoes diesels humming!!!!

Best wishes always,
Spo out.


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Old 09-18-2003, 07:28 AM
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My experience with an out of balance driveshaft was everything was fine up till around 40 mph then the vibration started and stayed there till I dropped back below around 40 mph.
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Old 09-18-2003, 09:06 AM
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The universal joint has meen mentioned, but you really have to dig for info on that. If it goes, it is a huge problem. My experience with that was on a W124 1987 300E. The U joint wore out and I ended up replacing the driveshaft with a used one that was not much better. The problem is that the U joint is straked in and very few places seem to know how to replace them. There's one place in The Star that advertises rebuilding your driveshaft with a greaseable U joint, but they're pretty expensive.
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  #10  
Old 09-18-2003, 11:55 AM
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Driveshaft Vibration Saga (long)

I've been struggling with a 'buzzy' driveline in Marlene for about the last 4 months.

After I bought her in late Februaury, I noticed a gradual increase in vibration. It seemed to have 'harmonics' or speeds at which it was bad and others where it was practically unnoticeable.

Hard acceleration passing through 20mph was the worst with the 55 to 68 mph region a close second.

Replacing both flex disks had absolutely no effect on reducing the high speed vibration. However, replacing the center shaft support and bearing eliminated the bad vibration experienced at 20 mph. After comparing the two parts, it was apparent that the rubber in the old support was much softer than the replacement part. My theory was that at some speeds and loads, the old worn rubber support was allowing the shaft to "orbit" rather than spin axially.

While the drive shaft was out of the car when I was replacing the support bearing, I noticed that the universal joint had noticeably
less resistance to angular displacement (play) when it was relatively straight. In deflecting the joint, you could almost feel a 'step' where the joint would become firm. Obviously, at 200,000+ miles, the u-joint had worn out and the vibration I was experiencing came from the excessive play in the joint.

I was reluctant to go straight out and buy a replacement/rebuilt driveshaft because:
1) I wanted to rebuild the existing shaft and incorporate a rebuildable u-joint with a grease fitting.
2) At some point in the not to distant future, I plan to install a manual transmission in this car and will be needing shaft work then so, any stuff done now needed to be cost effective.

Consequently, I set out to find a local driveshaft rebuilder that would be willing to take on this job.

Through the Forum, I'd already found out about the Atlanta area shop and places in Ft Worth and Las Vegas but, I wanted to do business locally (Austin-CenTex area) if at all possible.

After many calls, I can say unequivically that there are no shops in Austin that can deal with a Benz driveshaft. The flex disks are the big problem in chucking a shaft into the local machines and no shops here have invested in the necessary adapters to hold a Benz shaft. Evidently, most people simply replace bad shafts rather than rebuild them. That fact did not help me one bit because I was eventually going to need a custom length shaft and, it would need to be balanced too.

Convinced that a town with a bigger industrial base would have a shop capable of dealing with and fabricating specialized driveline components, I set out looking on the internet for driveline shops in San Antonio and Houston.

In the end, the good 'ol Yellow Pages was the answer; I found Thrash Drive Shaft in San Antonio, Texas.
Thrash Drive Shaft Inc
4838 West Ave
San Antonio, TX 78213
Phone: (210) 342-6622

I was in the Alamo city last week and had the opportunity to go visit with Thrash's shop foreman, Billy about my manual transmission/driveshaft project and my desire to have a rebildable u-joint.

Basically, he says that there's no advantage to retrofitting the joint so that it's greaseable/rebuildable. They used to do that same thing to Benz shafts and discovered that about 50% of the conversions would eventually get enough play in the joint to cause unacceptable vibration in the car. In addition, the cost for the necessary machining was expensive in relationship to buying a rebuilt shaft. He thinks that, for my project, I'll be much better off getting a remanufactured (also unrebuildable) shaft from their supplier in California and then letting Thrash perform whatever modifications I need to get it to the right length.

The price for a reman shaft that fits my 300TD is $315 + core. Shipping to San Antonio is included.

I consider replacment to be the right solution as opposed to the machining work and expense required to install rebuildable joints in the existing MBZ shaft.

My time recently has been consumed with getting TO's car ready for the NY trip and I havn't done anything about my driveshaft problem. Until I start the manual swap-out I'm limiting Marlene to short trips around town; extended highway travel will be in Lilly.

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Last edited by R Leo; 09-18-2003 at 12:04 PM.
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