1987 Mercedes-Benz

300SDL Sedan

Automatic

WDBCB25D5HA323401

Diesel

1987 300SDL. Transportation choice of aristocrats and the well-heeled. This one was the proverbial barn find. I was looking high and low for a perfect 300SDL for about 6 months last year to serve as my daily driver. I scoured Ebay and Craigslist religiously. I stumbled across this one which was owned previously by an old farmer in the middle of Kansas. This car sat in a barn for 10 years, only coming out for occasional rides into town. This was verified by me due to mouse evidence (which has long since been cleaned up!). At some point the car was repainted prior to the gent in Kansas (he bought it off a guy in Texas). They did a really nice job. Show quality, probably not but I'm pretty particular and this was well done. I don't know a lot about it but given the condition of the car, I believe the miles to be accurate. External color is a goldish grey/taupe metallic with tan leather. Seats are comfy and not a rip or tear to be found. Dash has no cracks. It has been my daily driver since last December. Not a spot of rust and everything is in order. Sunroof, windows, power antenna, cruise, electronic telescoping steering wheel, ABS, everything works. Runs perfectly. OM603 motor with turbo that spools nicely. If you put your foot into it it'll squawk the tires from first to second. Rides out on the freeway at 90MPH up hill and dale with no problem (I usually keep it around 75 though!) I would not hesitate to drive it across the country tomorrow. Average about 20 MPG around town and 28 on the highway.I'm a 46 year old CPA and father of two so believe me, this car has not been molested in any way. It is completely factory original although the Injection pump appears to have been replaced at some point in the past 10 years as there is a sticker on it. The only reason I'm selling it is I need a vehicle to hold 6 kids for daily 50 mile round-trip car-pooling to school that was not contemplated when I got the SDL. Man vs. wife - the wife wins. You know the drill. So, we've found a Suburban and I need to make room in the driveway. It breaks my heart as I do love this car but take comfort that hopefully someone else out there will appreciate it as much as I have. Things I've done in the past 6 months: New sound system (speakers and head unit) - the old one was toast. New Kumho Exacta XL tires all around with new aluminum rims (even the spare is the same rim) New rear brakes and calipers (was told fronts are absolutely fine) Things I'd do if I were hanging on to it: Front crank seal is weepy. Just a tiny bit. I did acquire the part and will include it with the sale. AC blows nice and cold at highway speeds but is a little wimpy in stop and go - so a recharge is probably in order. There is the traditional W126 "clunk" up front which means it's probably time to show the front-end some love. It runs out fine now and is only noticeable when you egress into a bump but in the near future I would spend some time on that. Rear left door hinge does stick a bit and the door opens about 70% of the way. Not problematic at all for passengers (they probably didn't notice). Needs a new hinge strap (cheap at the dealer) but I haven't had time to deal with it. Does it have character nicks and blemishes? Yes. This car is over 23 years old so if you're looking for perfection, I'd say head down to the MB dealer and plunk down $50K on a new one. If you want a really great example of classic MB engineering that isn't all ratted out - this is your car. Do your due diligence and ask as many questions as you want. Car is outside of Detroit, MI if you want to come see it in person. I can help you with shipping as the terminal is not too far from my house. Will absolutely work with the winner to help facilitate the shipping part. Car is sold as is-where is with no warranty expressed or implied. It is listed locally so I reserve the right to end the auction early. Please bid only if you intend to complete the transaction. Dreamers and scammers, please don't waste our collective time. On Aug-22-10 at 08:47:30 PDT, seller added the following information: A couple of things I forgot that I have done include upgrading the brake lamps via this kit: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MERCEDES-W126-126-BRAKE-LIGHT-UPGRADE-S-CLASS-/300443799072?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories and I also removed the headlamp wipers as one was shot and frankly they do not work and are a car wash hazard. Used factory parts for non USA versions to replace where the headlamp wipers were. On Aug-24-10 at 04:51:36 PDT, seller added the following information: For some reason some of the questions people are asking I do not get the choice to post the answers up here for everyone else's benefit. Not too sure why that is so here's a compilation of questions that in the spirit of due diligience and transparency other inquiring minds might want to know. Q: Is there any rust anywhere on the car... underneath... suspension ...brake lines... trunk floor viewed from the underside...etc ? A: There is no rust visible in the trunk from the inside that's for certain. I'll have to climb underneath but the guy that did my rear brakes a couple of months ago remarked how clean it was underneath. I'll take some pictures and post them up. Q: How's the engine, trans and drivetrain? A: The car is almost 24 years old but it only has 107,000 miles on it so all things considered, for this accountant, they seem fine to me. This is my 3rd diesel Benz, first with the OM603 motor. It is far quicker and quieter than the previous 5cyl TD. Doing the "loosen the oil cap while the car is running and see if it dances" blow-by test, it passes with flying colors. It scoots pretty good for a car that weighs as much as a Suburban. Especially in the morning, when you floor it it will chirp the tires shifting from first to second. Gotta love diesel torque! The trans shifts thru all the gears fine and since the car in my judgement has 107,000 orig on it, I assume the trans is orig also. If you know anything about these old Benz's is that EVERYTHING is controlled by vacuum. The transmissions in these are notorious for hard-shifting, especially when cold, and this one is no exception. They do have an aftermarket shift kit available that supposedly softens the shift points but it is fine for me and knowing that these cars all do it, I just accept it as a character point. Car drives out wonderfully and at about 85C temp wise. I have never had an issue with overheating, especially in the dog days of summer that we've had recently. Outside temp >95F with a million perecent humidity and the AC on full blast, never got above 90C for me. There is a slight vibration in the rear that occurs from 50MPH to 60MPH then goes away. The bulk of my driving is City so I really never paid any attention to it. I've taken my family on several trips in the old girl and beside being a comfy land yacht with a MASSIVE trunk, it'll run fully loaded all day at >80MPH on the freeway and hum. The oil pressure runs at 3bar when in motion and at idle between 1.5 and 2 bar. This is normal. I've changed the oil twice since I've had her and will do so again before the next buyer takes her away. I'll include the extra filters, etc. that I bought since I won't be needing them anymore. Q: What's your resereve price? A: High enough to make sure no one steals a really nice car that I do not want to give away. On Aug-25-10 at 17:58:59 PDT, seller added the following information: I feel like this has morphed into a blog! But in the interest of keeping things lively around here... I spoke with the good folks over at InspectMyRide and they explained what is they do and why they only have 3 Ebay transactions. They are new apparently and to be honest I didn't do anything to put that link up on this sale (I don't think!). It is apparently a new offering. At any rate, it is kind of like calling Time Warner or Comcast to come out and service your cable or any other tech support line. Took me about a half hour total on the phone for someone to explain what it is they do for $79.95, that they were fully insured and that an inspector would call me back today to schedule the appointment tomorrow. I was asked for a morning (between 9 & noon) and afternoon (1 to 5pm). I said morning as I have meetings in the afternoon tomorrow. As it goes, they seem like a great service and I guess for $80 it's worth someone local to come out and take a look at the car. But no one ever called me back so not sure what happened there. So, based on what I was told, they seem like a good deal and if you're so inclined, drop them a line and schedule an appointment. I do have 2 really interested parties locally so this thing may not make it to the end. But as they say...it ain't over til... Thanks for looking and check back for more intel as the situation warrants.