w123 needs work....

Mmmkay so, I've found locally on CL a 1981 MB 300D that "ran when parked" six years ago. It doesn't say what trans this car has, but it needs a master cylinder. Good thing about working at a parts house is I can check on parts availability as I shop :)

Master cylinder is available, as is certain things like filters, brakes, wipers, etc. My question is, are these things hard to work on? According to my research, a 300D in '81 is a non-turbo model. How easy/hard is it to convert to the Turbo hardware? I'm interested in the economy more than the performance, but at the same time I don't want a huge slow pig either.

Not planning on a Driftwagen, but some input on any previous experience would help. The only german car experience I have is working on my friend's Merkur(s) and another buddy's Mk1 GTI. Both of which are turds.

1981 might be a turbo diesel or it might not be (there is no special designation for these to show they've got a turbo, the TD is the diesel station wagon) so you've got lift the hood and check.

Non-turbo ones go on forever (the old joke is that the only things on earth surviving nuclear armageddon are going to be cockroaches and Mercedes W123 diesels), but they tend to get overtaken by continental drift. The turbos can be a little fragile (IIRC the have a reputation of cracking heads if you drive them foot-to-the-floor down German autobahns for a few hours) but that's fragile by Mercedes Diesel standards, not standards on this board.

They're about as easy to work on as a 70s/80s pickup truck, not much if anything in the way of electronics and well engineered. There's a reason they were extremely popular in Germany as taxis and then got exported to Africa.

Oddly enough I'm contemplating the purchase of a W116 300SD or W126 300SD (same engine, bigger body) as a fuel-saving commutermobile...

Just purchased an 85 W123 off board member Sonic myself. Great cars. Vacuum issues are usually the root of all evil since the vacuum system controls almost everything and runs everywhere.

Check out http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/index.php for a good owner forum with lots of technical info.

Superturbodiesel has good info if you to make it go faster. One of the moderators is a bit of a D-bag but there is good info there.

93EXCivic wrote: Superturbodiesel has good info if you to make it go faster. One of the moderators is a bunch of a D-bag but there is good info there.

agreed, with all of the above. Sorry left that one out.

There is a huge diesel following and mercedes made diesels in cubic proportions to their other models so parts are out there. If the w123 cars are anything like the r107 the build quality is very good but some parts are expensive. There are millions of w123 diesels out there so if something is dead just buy a good used part and be done with it.

"Needs master cylinder" implies that the car is a 4 speed manual. Mercedes built a very solid automatic transmission so don't be afraid of a well serviced automatic.

Given that good running diesels are cheap and plentiful one that has sat for an extended period is a parts car worth no more than 500$. This doesn't mean the car is junk just that if you buy it as a parts car you won't be in deep.

I hear the non-metallic paint cars have a dip paint job but I don't know for sure. Mercedes of this era rust something fierce so more protection is better.

Also check out Benzworld and remember there is nothing more expensive than a cheap mercedes. If the car isn't registered and needs extensive work I'd hold my chips tight!

You can get running ones for as little as $750 around where I live, so a ran when parked one would have to be near free to be worth it.

benzbaron wrote: I hear the non-metallic paint cars have a dip paint job but I don't know for sure. Mercedes of this era rust something fierce so more protection is better.

Yep, with W123 you want one as late as possible as their rust protection is better. Early W123s are pretty much extinct in Germany and collectors actually pay a premium for them now.