Mercedes Benz E300 vs. E320 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

#1 12-10-2004, 11:09 PM

I just in the last few weeks finished completely restoring a 300E. It is completely flawless. I am in the process of marketing it, and would like to invest in another project car. I would appreciate some feed back as to whether the diesel is the better car or not? I am impressed with the statistics on the new 6 cylinder E320 CDI, but will the 1997 diesels compare with them or not? I know they will be more noisy, but are they a better investment in the long run over the Mercedes gas model for the same year? Thank you much, and the feed back in this forum has let me restore 2 mercedes' without even purchasing a repair manual. I am not for sure why Mercedes is the only one with this kind of forum!

michakaveli · #2 12-11-2004, 12:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rebe

I just in the last few weeks finished completely restoring a 300E. It is completely flawless. I am in the process of marketing it, and would like to invest in another project car. I would appreciate some feed back as to whether the diesel is the better car or not? I am impressed with the statistics on the new 6 cylinder E320 CDI, but will the 1997 diesels compare with them or not? I know they will be more noisy, but are they a better investment in the long run over the Mercedes gas model for the same year? Thank you much, and the feed back in this forum has let me restore 2 mercedes' without even purchasing a repair manual. I am not for sure why Mercedes is the only one with this kind of forum!

Technically either one is a good choice for long term. I've read and seen '97 E300's with 300K miles and one on eBay with about 221K. In addition I have heard of E320 in the high 100 to low 200K range. The E320 has a lot more power than the E300 '96 and '97 model year. '98 & '99 has the turbo added to the diesel which make it indeed an entirely different car.

If you do a lot of highway driving or a diesel nut I say the E300 is the way to go. Do a search on this forum and you will learn a lot about the E300. The E300 is a fun car overall to own. Granted it's no speed demon but you get used to it and enjoy the great car it is. And whenver you're in the mood, entering free-way onramps and listening to the diesel purrr at 5,000rpm is awesome in itself. My $0.02

#3 12-11-2004, 08:03 AM

I read an article recently. It said, "Mercedes diesel strong silent type." According to the info it's supposed to run 150+ mph, and gets nearly 40 mpg on the road. They claim you can't hear it run!! It's, also, supposed to kick-butt against any of Mercedes' gas engines for that model. If this is true that diesel must be awesome. I am not for sure, but I heard once Mercedes Benz invented the diesel engine originally.

michakaveli · #4 12-11-2004, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rebe

I read an article recently. It said, "Mercedes diesel strong silent type." According to the info it's supposed to run 150+ mph, and gets nearly 40 mpg on the road. They claim you can't hear it run!! It's, also, supposed to kick-butt against any of Mercedes' gas engines for that model. If this is true that diesel must be awesome. I am not for sure, but I heard once Mercedes Benz invented the diesel engine originally.

Sounds like the E400 CDI and the mileage is in imperial gallons. UK units

chazola · #5 12-11-2004, 11:56 AM

Quote:

I am not for sure, but I heard once Mercedes Benz invented the diesel engine originally.

Not quite- that'll be Mr Rudolf Diesel. He was German though...

braverichard · #6 12-26-2004, 05:51 AM

While Daimler-Benz AG didn't quite invent the diesel engine, it has done more for it than anyone else has (well, actually, Daimler-Benz has done more for all automobiles than anyone has

). The first diesel-powered passenger car was the 1936 Mercedes-Benz 260D. The first turbocharged car was the 1976 Mercedes-Benz 300SD. The world's first electronic direct injection system for diesel engines was developed jointly by Mercedes-Benz and Bosch and it is the infamous Common Rail Direct-Injection system (CDI).