1980 Mercedes-Benz 300-Series

Sedan

5cylinder

Automatic

11612012024887

Clear

Diesel

AMAZING CONDITION 1980 Mercedes-Benz 300SDCALIFORNIA COLLECTOR CAR LOW 135k MILESALL ORIGINAL118 PICTURES! MAKE ME AN OFFER! The 1980 300SD Turbodiesel is perhaps the most un-Diesel-like Diesel passenger car ever built. In wheelbase, in appearance, in its plush interior fittings, the 300SD Turbodiesel is all but indistinguishable from the most senior gasoline-powered Mercedes-Benz sedans-raising the once humble Diesel to virtual parity with some of the world's most elegant automobiles. But the 300SD Turbodiesel signifies in more ways than one that the Diesel has finally arrived. It is almost equally indistinguishable from its gasoline-powered counterparts in performance as well. The Turbodiesel's 5-cylinder engine is turbocharged-an engineering master-stroke that blends the most desirable traits of a gasoline and a Diesel engine into one, toppling the barrier that divided gasoline and Diesel advocates into opposing camps for decades. In reconciling the demands of both gasoline and Diesel engine advocates within one and the same automobile, the 300SD turbodiesel stands as the most significant Diesel passenger car of the modern era-not just a new kind of Diesel, but a timely new kind of car. The secret: turbocharging.. The basis of the Turbodiesel's vivid performance is that five-cylinder, 3-liter Diesel engine pioneered by the 300D sedan-now turbocharged and thus transformed. Turbocharging boosts maximum power by 45% and maximum torque by a stunning 42%. For 1980, these advances are further enhanced by a 9% increase in horsepower. The glorious result: acceleration, passing verve and cruising reserves that may put many gasoline-powered cars on the defensive. Yet the Turbodiesel, for all its performance gains, still clings to its Diesel heritage - still devoid of spark plugs to replace and carburetors to adjust, all but immune to conventional tune-ups. And not only does it still sip the cheapest automotive fuel sold in America(not anymore!), it actually sips it at a slower rate. This is pure engineering logic: so handily did turbocharging solve the Diesel need for power that it feed the engineers to specify a more economical rear axle ratio-in effect, gearing the car to go further on the power produced by a given gallon of fuel. The Diesel turbocharging trail blazed by Mercedes-Benz with the 300SD may some day be followed by others; precedent shows that what Mercedes-Benz pioneers, others often adopt eventually. But no Diesel engine will ever share the privilege of propelling a car quite like this. It is the unique combination of that engine and this automobile which truly sets the Turbodiesel apart. In this turbocharged Diesel as in no other, you glide over the road on a suspension that is neither spongy nor harsh but designed to provide both ride comfort and road holding, in equal measure. The keys is the independent suspension of all four wheels, allowing each wheel to individually react to the road surface. As befits the most elegant Diesel Mercedes-Benz has ever built, the 300sd Turbodiesel rests on the longest wheelbase of any Diesel car produced by the company in modern times. Yet its turning circle is a tight 38 feet. And its crisp steering lets you nip through city traffic. Few cars large or small can rival the precision of the Turbodiesel's controls. It is almost two tons of driving instrument-finely balanced, sharply tuned, deeply satisfying to thread through a series of hairpin bends or to pilot downtown on that familiar trip to the office. What makes this possible is very basic and very Mercedes-Benz-fastidious engineering. For example, each shock absorber is gas pressurized to help cushion even minor ripples. Zero-offset steering is meant to prevent even gaping potholes from deflecting the front wheels off a true forward line. The automatic transmission provides not three but four speeds - and the option of shifting for yourself if you prefer. And each brake is a fade-resistant disc 11 inches in diameter, front and rear. You and your fellow passengers in the Turbodiesel are a coddled minority. You are surrounded by deep padding and by velour carpeting, carefully fitted underfoot. You feed cradled in firmly upholstered seats front and rear - with built-in arm rests, front and rear. Rear seat hip room is a mere half-inch shy of five full feet, and you can stretch out in more than three feet of front leg room. The trunk lid yawns open to reveal 14.96 cubic feet of useful luggage space - an old-fashioned virtue that this thoroughly advanced car has not overlooked. Standard interior fittings include an ingenious bi-level climate control system, electronic window lifts, AM/FM stereo radio, and automatic cruise control. Just as Mercedes-Benz doesn't take any handy engine and turn it into a Diesel, Mercedes-Benz didn't take just any Diesel engine and turn it into a Turbodiesel. They based this power plant on that three-liter, five-cylinder 300D design introduced in 1975 - and then so diligently revised it that fewer and half its working parts are interchangeable with the original. Relying on no power-draining mechanical drive, the 300SD's turbocharger harnesses the energy of the engine's own exhaust gases to power two vaned wheels-a turbine wheel and a compressor impeller-rotating on a common shaft that can revolve at over 100,000 revolutions per minute. Spinning around on that shaft, the compressor impeller draws in and compresses air and then feeds it through the intake manifold to the cylinders. The cylinders are supercharged with more air and simultaneously more fuel. Result: more power, more efficiently produced. No extra noise, no extra operating maintenance (Indeed, required turbocharger operating maintenance is nil.) Turbocharging boosts the Turbodiesel's horsepower rating well into three figures - no mean achievement fora n engine of only three liters or 183.0 cubic inches in displacement. But another number testifies even better to the incredible efficiency of this engine: it produces .656 horsepower per cubic inch of displacement-the best ratio of power to engine size of any Diesel passenger car engine in the world. This breakthrough has hardly been rush to the market. Mercedes-Benz placed the 300SD Turbodiesel engine in production only after 5 years of testing - and only after placing in in the reliability record books. Fitted with a modified version of this engine, a C-111-3 research car went out on April 30, 1978 and set nine world records, including one stint of 2,345 miles in twelve hours at an average speed of 195.39 MPH. For the entire record run, the engineers reported a fuel mileage figure of 14.7 mpg. Delving beneath the surface and learning about the inner car is a sure way to cement your confidence in the 300SD turbodiesel. For example, the body shell under that gleaming paintwork is a unitized structure of formidable strength. Its platform floor, side members and roof supports are welded together at over 6,000 points to form a rigid steel cage that surrounds the passenger area. Unsightly body seams are soldered in and smoothed to invisibility. The body and undercarriage are lavished with over 50 lbs of zinc phosphate, primer, and other coatings to help starve off corrosion before a drop of paint is applied. Special wax is sprayed into body recesses to help defy rust. Layers of bituminous foil help to insulate the interior of the car against noise. That rich-looking fillet of wood on the instrument panel and console is genuine wood veneer, hand rubbed to a satiny gloss. Aerodynamics were mobilized to help preserve the Turbodiesel driver's superb visibility - even in the rain and slush. Carefully angled and channeled moldings help divert the airsteam away from the side and rear windows, whisking rain and slush away in the process. The designers even considered the driver following along behind in foul weather. The Turbodiesel's taillights are aerodynamically devised to actually "whisk" themselves free of slush and mud as the car moves along - thus staying visible, longer. All told, there are 120 safety features built into the Turbodiesel. You may never need them all - but what reassurance, knowing they are there. (From MB 1980 brochure) This is the last year Mercedes produced the w116 body. This is one of the nicest I have ever owned. The original owner cherished this car since new.   Non-smoker, retired engineer sold this SD when he was in his 80s.  He did an outstanding job keeping this looking and running as close to new as possible.   Words cannot describe how nice this SD looks, feels, and runs. There is NO RUST, no accident history, no previous paintwork repairs, no issues. I have been putting a lot of miles on this SD in the past few months. Since I purchased it several years ago, it has spent most of its life in the garage. I am the second owner of this gorgeous 1980 300SD. I have put about 6k on it in the past few months using it as a daily driver. The get-up-and-go is just like a newer vehicle. The turbo really makes this car fly. The engine purrs, I love the way this one sounds. There are so many loud diesels that I've seen over the years, but this one is EXACTLY how they should be. Quiet, almost a buzzing type idle sound, not the "clank clank clank clank" commonly heard. The transmission runs off of the vacuum system, which operates flawlessly. Like the rest of the car, the drive train is outstanding. Inside and out, it is VERY presentable. The paint is glossy on every panel, free of any major blemishes. There are small chips around the body that have been touched up with Mercedes paint, which are all consistent with its age and miles. The interior looks like a 2 or 3 year old car, it is in such great shape. All the chrome trim pieces are so nice still. No dings, pitting, etc. There is no fading on the carpet or upholstery. Just about every other one I've seen has faded interior. It's also common in the w123s. I have always kept this SD garaged, as did the original owner. Garaging has kept this SD well preserved. The carpet is soft, and really looks great. The seats are leather with tex inserts, so the outside smooth part on the seats is leather, and the perforated middle parts are tex. You can see from the pictures that the front and rear seats are really nice looking. All the seats have been re-stuffed over time, the upholstery is original. There are a few little marks on the back of the seats, and some on the edge of the driver seat, and a few on the bottom side of the middle console, yes, it's a real car that has been used for the past 33+ years, it does have these small micro-blemishes. There is nothing major to pick at. No fading, no rips, no tears, no sagging seats, seat integrity is ironclad, all the gauges work, dash has NO CRACKS, wood is in great shape free of any cracks or warping. The only things that keep this from being a show car is that the seat belt does not fully retract back in, and that the glovebox has a SLIGHT sag on the right side. It's common, every other SD on ebay like mine has the same thing, look for yourself. The seatbelt slack and little glovebox sag don't really bother me, there is SO much more to look at and admire. The headliner still looks new. I seriously doubt you will find another SD in this overall condition. Let's summarize real quick: ALL ORIGINAL, Low miles, GREAT COLOR COMBO, California ONLY Mercedes kept in garage since new, original owner cherished the car for 27-28 years, no rust, no issues, strong drivetrain, everything works- all electrical all power, nothing needs attention. Not a midwest, or east coast car that has been eaten away from rust, Not a Southern California car that's been sitting in desert like conditions, dry and sucking the life out of cars, no fading, nothing really to pick at whatsoever. There are some little chips on the front end that have been touched up, as with the other little chips around the body mentioned before. The rear bumper has a small ding on the chrome, look at the pictures, it is smaller than a dime and is not very noticeable.   The air filter cover's finish is flaking, see pictures, could be refinished.   Tires are matching Michelins with equal tread life remaining. Brakes are in good shape with lots of life. No leaks, no issues, no stories. You can feel confident driving this SD anywhere. I am happy to pick you up from either SFO or Oakland airport. If you have any questions, please call 707 354 0209 anytime. Thank you for reading my ad, and hope to hear from you soon.