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1983 Mercedes Benz 300td Turbo Diesel Wagon Runs Drives Stops on 2040-cars

Year:1983 Mileage:293420
Location:

Lyons, Colorado, United States

Lyons, Colorado, United States

Some more photos will be available here:

I've owned and driven this car for 8 years. It has been a very reliable utility vehicle. 

The car starts reliably (needs to be plugged-in when it is very cold here), drives strong and brakes work. The transmission has not been a problem for me and continues to work well. It may need some band adjustment or some vacuum system maintenance to shift as smooth as intended. Some of the shifts are a little bit stiff but my guess is that this causes less wear on the bands than slow, smooth shifts. My opinion is that it is a comfortable riding car and feels solid to drive. 

The car is old and worn. The basic necessities for safe driving are in order. The lights work (headlights, brake, turn signals, etc) as well as wipers, windshield washer. The tires are an average-grade Michelin. They are 7 1/2 years old and have about 20,000 miles. I'd guess that the tread is about 50%. 

Heater motor has failed. It is very easy to replace. There is voltage to the motor. It probably needs brushes or else replace the whole thing with a good used motor here on eBay for about $50. Otherwise, heat works but, as is typical, no air from the center dash vents. AC needs a charge and probably a slow leak fixed and then it may work. I charged it myself a few years ago and it worked for one season.

There are very slow leaks of some of the fluids. I have to top up about twice a year the brake and power-steering fluids. It needs about 1/2 to 1 quart of engine oil between changes.I haven't ever found the transmission or hydraulic suspension fluids to be low. 

The most important mechanical problem at this time is that the motor mounts are shot. The vibration inside the car is strong and annoying at idle. When driving or revving the engine just a little, it smooths-out and feels normal. But, I think this really needs to be fixed. A shop in Boulder quoted $315. I've decided I'm not going to invest any more into this car. The buyer may chose to do the job himself for pretty low cost parts. 

There is a MB dealer service sticker indicating that the odometer was replaced at 29,653 miles (it's barely legible but I've always just remembered it was about 30,000 so I add that much to the indicated mileage). Today it reads 263,767 so I believe the actual mileage is 293,420. I cannot guarantee this. 

I do have extensive or perhaps complete service records back to 100,174 miles. I bought the car from the original owner but she only had records from after her divorce (1993). I typed-up all of those records into a spreadsheet so that I could more easily access the history. I can email you that spreadsheet if you like.

The only major mechanical work that I know was done is that the transmission was replaced at 101,777 miles. And, the timing chain was replaced. The rest of the records are for routing maintenance  (oil changes, fluids etc) or periodic/miscellaneous (belts, hoses, periodic brakes, tires, grease bearings). 

The rear hydraulic suspension works. The rear shocks were replaced quite a while ago ('99 and 2000) at about 200k miles. My understanding is that there is a check-valve to hold the pressure in the shocks when the engine is off. Sometimes the rear sags after a few hours after shutting-off the engine. This hasn't happened lately (maybe temperature dependent). Still, it pumps right up and works when you start the engine and  seems to not leak hydraulic fluid. 

I have periodically run the car on 20% and 100% bio-diesel when I can get it in Boulder. Otherwise, I run regular diesel. It can get 28 MPG in the summer if you're careful not to accelerate briskly (turbo will pull strong and consume more fuel). 

Power locks DO work including the rear hatch and I think the fuel door too. It's a vacuum-powered system so you can only lock and then unlock a few times after shutting off the engine. The vacuum does diminish after a while and so it won't unlock the other doors if left for several days.

Driver window and rear passenger-side window currently do not operate. They were intermittent in the past and I changed some of the switches at some point to improve but eventually the stopped altogether. I think the problem is wiring or maybe the motors. Windshield leaks a very little bit during strong rain. Sunroof opens an closes fine and I don't detect any leaking.

Someone welded a piece of Harley Davidson tailpipe into this car's exhaust pipe to repair a break.

Obviously there are many cosmetic flaws, rust (including some holes at the the rear wheel arches and perhaps elsewhere), missing trim, scratches, dings and small dents, etc. 

Please study the photos and ask any questions. I'm glad to have to come see the car in Lyons, CO drive and inspect. If you want it shipped, I can deliver to a local shipper if you make all the arrangements. 

I intend to keep the roof rack. 

The left tail light lens has been replaced (some photos show it broken). One reverse light is broken. The other works. 

thanks

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Auto blog

Autoblog Podcast #384

Tue, Jun 10 2014

Episode #384 of the Autoblog podcast is here, and this week, Dan Roth, Steven Ewing and Chris Paukert talk about rumors that the Subaru WRX Concept styling may influence the next production model, the 2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06, and Chris' time with the 2015 Lincoln MKC. We start with what's in the garage and finish up with some of your questions, and for those of you who hung with us live on our UStream channel, thanks for taking the time. Check out the new rundown below with times for topics, and you can follow along down below with our Q&A. Thanks for listening! Autoblog Podcast #384: Topics: Long-term 2015 Subaru WRX introduction Subaru WRX Concept styling may see production 2015 Lincoln MKC 2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 In the Autoblog Garage: 2014 Mercedes-Benz E550 Cabriolet 2014 Volkswagen Jetta SEL 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Hosts: Dan Roth, Steven Ewing, Chris Paukert Runtime: 01:34:21 Rundown: Intro and Garage - 00:00 Long-term WRX intro - 27:20 WRX Concept - 37:10 Lincoln MKC - 47:49 Corvette Z06 - 01:07:18 Q&A - 01:16:18 Get the podcast: [UStream] Listen live on Mondays at 10 PM Eastern at UStream [iTunes] Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes [RSS] Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator [MP3] Download the MP3 directly Feedback: Email: Podcast at Autoblog dot com Review the show in iTunes Podcasts Rumormill Chevrolet Lincoln Mercedes-Benz Subaru subaru wrx concept

Lexus NX, BMW i3 to get Super Bowl commercials

Mon, Jan 19 2015

At this point last year, we'd been getting news on automotive-focused Super Bowl commercials for more than two months. The teasers hadn't come out yet, but manufacturers lined up for the super-expensive spots were making their intentions known. This year? Almost nada, until this week. BMW has said it will air a 60-second spot promoting the i3 during the first quarter of the game, the Munich firm returning to The Big Game after a four-year absence. BMW says, "Big ideas like the BMW i3 take a little getting used to, and the creative idea surrounding our spot will play on this analogy." We say that pitching a tiny range-extended hatchback during the beer-iest American sports orgy of the year should make for some neat commentary afterward. Lexus is putting its new NX crossover in the second Super Bowl commercial it's ever aired, eschewing the glitter of celebrities and glamor for a straight-shooting spot and the tagline, "Be seen, be heard, make some noise." Joining those two are Kia, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan and Toyota. The six confirmed carmakers are down from eleven last year, when car spots made up a quarter of the total ad time. The price to do business for 30 seconds this year: reportedly around $4.5 million, up a stacks from last year's $4 million. You can watch the Lexus commercial in the video above, and beneath that, the BMW press release below has a bit more information on its effort. BMW to Advertise All-Electric BMW i3 during Super Bowl XLIX. The all-electric BMW i3 is featured in a 60-second spot during Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday, February 1, 2015. Woodcliff Lake, NJ – January 15, 2015... Today, BMW announced plans to feature the all-electric BMW i3 in a 60-second spot during Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday, February 1, 2015. After a 4-year hiatus, BMW will be returning to the big game with a commercial during the first quarter. "As one in three Americans will tune in to watch the Super Bowl, we are thrilled to use this platform to educate viewers on the importance of electric mobility," said Trudy Hardy, Vice President of Marketing, BMW of North America. "Big ideas like the BMW i3 take a little getting used to, and the creative idea surrounding our spot will play on this analogy." BMW i is BMW's forward-looking and sustainable brand dedicated to solving many of the mobility challenges faced by the world's most densely populated cities. The BMW i3 is the first of the BMW i vehicles constructed from the ground up primarily of carbon fiber.

Dealers mobilize to protect their margins from automaker subscription services

Fri, Aug 24 2018

Six individual auto brands — Lincoln, Cadillac, Porsche, Mercedes, BMW and Volvo — have established or are trialing a vehicle subscription service in the U.S. Three third-party companies — Flexdrive, Clutch and Carma — run brand-agnostic subscription services. And three automakers — Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and General Motors — have also launched short-term rental services. Dealers, afraid of how these trends might affect their margins, are building political and lawmaking campaigns to protect their revenue streams. So far, three states are investigating automaker subscriptions, and Indiana has banned any such service until next year. It's certain that those three states are the first fronts in a long political and legal battle. Powerful dealer franchise laws mandate the existence of dealers and restrict how automakers are allowed to interact with customers to sell a vehicle. On top of that, Bob Reisner, CEO of Nassau Business Funding & Services, said, "Dealers and their associations are among the strongest political operators in many states. They as a group are difficult for state politicians to vote against." In California earlier this year, the state Assembly debated a bill with wide-ranging provisions to protect against what the California New Car Dealers Association called "inappropriate treatment of dealers by manufacturers." One of those provisions stipulated that subscription services need to go through dealers, but that item got stripped out when dealers and manufacturers agreed to discuss the matter further. In Indiana, Gov. Eric Holcomb signed a moratorium on all subscription programs by dealers or manufacturers until May 1, 2019, to give legislators more time to investigate. Dealers in New Jersey have taken their campaign to the state capitol, asking that the cars in subscription programs get a different classification for registration purposes. Automakers run the current subscription services and own the vehicles. Sign-ups and financial transactions happen online or through apps, leaving dealers to do little more than act as fulfillment centers to various degrees, with little legal recourse as to compensation amounts when they're called on to deliver or service a car. That's a bad base to build on for business owners who've sunk millions of dollars into their operations.