1977 Mercedes-Benz 300-Series

300D Sedan

Automatic

12355465478

RWD

Diesel

This is a tolerably nice 1977 Mercedes 300D non-turbo that will make someone a decent daily driver. It could be restored, if someone wanted to put the effort into it. There is nothing seriously wrong with it; it just needs a lot of attention to little things. I acquired this car from a friend in Virginia who got it from the family of an old man after he died. The poor fella got glaucoma and couldn't drive, so he would go out to his garage and sit in the car with the engine running and fantasize that he was driving. I got it only a few weeks after my friend did because he hit a deer and wanted to unload it. At that time the car had less that 100,000 miles on it. I am guessing on the present mileage of the vehicle; I know I am within a few thousand. I am also guessing on the VIN number, as the title is in the car, and it is at a friend's house. I reassembled this car with a winch, a fence post, my dad, and 2 parts cars, and everything is almost exactly like it should be, with only a few minor incongruities. For one, the hood is a decidedly different color from the rest of the car, and if you want it to match, you'll have to paint one or both. I personally think my calico car is rather cool. I would suggest painting the entire car if you paint the hood, as the paint is decidedly showing its age. For another, there are bulges in the body behind the hood where the hood rammed into it when it was hit. Also, the hood alignment is a bit off; nothing that can't be fixed if someone cared to, and nothing serious. There is some rust on this car. I personally have never driven it in salt, and its condition has not changed much since I've owned it. I actually took these pictures in 2008, and the car's condition has not significantly deteriorated since then. There is a new rip in the passenger seat (in the seat,) but beyond that I am not aware of any new or worsened damage to the car. If someone wanted to make this car truly beautiful, some body work would be necessary. There is no structural rust on the car. However, the right rear floor pan is compromised (pictured.) All of the jack points are solid and usable. The engine has been replaced with a working engine from a car of the same year and mileage to within about 200 miles. It is not quite matching number, but it is very close. The old man's idling apparently wore the rings out because the engine had an unreasonable amount of piston blowby and very poor compression. It ran, but was very difficult to start, had no power, and used a lot of oil. This engine is by no means perfect, but it starts reliably and is reasonably powerful. It's still not a turbo model, though. It's not a dog, but it's nobody's race car. It will, however, run on just about anything that will burn, as long as it's not too thick or too volatile. That would be just about everything from kerosene to used vegetable oil, but if you're planning to run it on straight oil, you need to heat the fuel before it goes into the engine or it's too heavy and you can really gunk things up. Otherwise, cut them down with #1 diesel or kerosene to lower the viscosity. Now for the list of things I know are wrong with this car. The battery is toast, the right front brake has been grinding for awhile (these use a dual-piston caliper, and one of them is stuck, so the other wore out prematurely) the climate control system is unhappy, the fuel injectors are worn out, one of the oil cooler lines needs to be reseated (leaks a bit at the flare union) and virtually all of the cabin seals on the car leak. The windshield seal is especially bad, and a picture is included. The trunk does not close tightly, and leaks. The tires are tired, but would be OK for one more summer. They all hold air and are round, though the front ones have some odd wear from a vehicle they were on previously. The passenger front seat needs to be re-padded, as the horsehair-and-plastic filling has disintegrated and fallen on the floor. It is not a very comfortable seat unless you carry your own padding. The driver's seat has already been re-padded with foam and is comfortable. Some of the panels are off the under-dash to allow working on the climate control system, and some of them have broken. I do have tan replacements. The shifter cover is also loose, for the same reason. The kickdown switch under the accelerator doesn't work, so you have to downshift manually if you're in a hurry. Actually, it's a bit fun. The climate control system is rather complex. The pushbutton unit connects to an amplifier and a servo unit. The servo unit control the flow of coolant and vacuum, and the amplifier does something with the signals from temperature sensors to decide whether the cabin is too hot or too cold, and change flappers, A/C compressors, and coolant flow accordingly. I have had it working, and it worked very well, including the A/C. I think something shorted out in the pushbutton unit. I have another from a car that was wrecked in 1991 and stored since that will go with the vehicle. I simply have not gotten around to changing it out. The radiator is not the correct one for the car; it's better. I didn't have a radiator the correct size for the 3 liter engine, as my parts cars both had the 2.4 liter engine and this car's original radiator was destroyed by the deer. Initially, I did put the smaller radiator in it, but it was barely enough to keep the engine cool on a hot Virginia summer day, so I swapped a steering wheel for a radiator from a turbo 300D and retrofitted it into this one, complete with the high mount expansion tank. You can't overheat this thing unless you let the coolant get way too low, which is possible, as a few of the nipples on the servo have some powder corrosion and/or pits that need to be dealt with for a better seal. As a result of the cabin seal leakage and being stored outdoors for awhile, there are some patches of mold in the car. It's nothing that a little carpet cleaner and maybe some Hydroxyl treatment (call Mr. ServiceMaster about that) wouldn't take care of. There are also some other interior bummers, like the damage to the driver's seat and the sagging piece in the back. The carpet has partially fallen off the side lip of the front footwells due to age deterioration. I removed it completely from the one side, leaving just painted metal, and it looks much better that way. The power windows DO work, but the power locks I don't think work. Some of the soft plastic around the windows has shriveled, and some is missing. Where it is missing, the metal is factory painted to match the car, and actually looks quite nice. The trunk is dirty, but solid. It could be cleaned out fairly easily. I have tried to be painfully honest about this car, and as I think of more things to say about it, I will update this description. I have included pictures of all the damage I am aware of. Delivery is available for 75 cents a mile plus $30 for a temporary tag. Mileage will be charged one-way based on MapQuest's mileage statement for the trip. Please contact me with any questions.