1978 Mercedes-Benz 300-Series

Sedan

5 - Cyl.

Automatic

12313012091045

Diesel

Beautiful old classic Mercedes 300D diesel 5 cylinder. This is a 3-owner vehicle. The previous owner had it for ten years and took excellent car of it with regular fluid changes and tune ups. When he purchased it, it had 59,000 miles. It now has 140000. Very low miles for this type of vehicle, which apparently can go for many hundreds of thousands of miles. The person he bought it from bought it from the original owner and had it for about 3 years. It runs excellent and the transmission shifts smoothly. The body is straight ( it has had no accidents), and the paint is the original deep cream color. The original rims are in great shape and the Michelin tires have about 80-85 % tread. I just purchased the vehicle and drove it from the west side of Phoenix to Mesa. I got it up to 85 mph on the freeway, and it was very smooth on the freeway (no shaking, shuddering, veering). The temperature gauge did get up to about 200. I called the owner and asked about it and was told that the gauge is not accurate. He had had an external gauge hooked up to it at some point to check it, and said the car never overheated with a different gauge. Here are some negatives: the AC and heat work, but only with the top defrost button. The lower buttons do not work. The original seats have also been replaced with gray leather seats, and the armrest is very worn and cracked. There are also three cracks in the dash (has fitted carpet to cover them). The paint looks great, but on close inspection, there are some dings and scratches. It also does not start right up when it's cold. It needs a few turns of the key for the glow plugs to warm up. Once it's warm, it idles smoothly and starts right up. The driver's door trim is raggedy. The cruise control has been disconnected and the high beam lights aren't working. The antennae is up but the automatic button doesn't work. Back seat belts were never installed (I have them in the trunk) Positives: The car runs very well and shifts smoothly. The previous owner recently changed the belts and hoses and put new brakes in. I put a new battery in yesterday because the old one was bad. The tires are in good condition with a lot of tread. I was also told it does not use oil, and I see no leaks. Has a spare with tons of tread and with a matching rim. There is no rust, surface or otherwise, anywhere on or under the car. All of the rubber seems to be in very good shape. Interior door panels are in very good condition. All electric windows work except rear driver's side which only goes down about 3 inches. This is a great looking car that could be a daily driver (over 30 mpg on freeway), or simply used as a collector car.