From owner-diesel-benz-digest@digest.net Mon May 2 14:19:18 2011 From: diesel-benz-digest diesel-benz-digest Monday, May 2 2011 Volume 01 : Number 3429 Forum for Discussion of Diesel Mercedes Benz Automobiles Derick Amburgey Digest Coordinator Contents: [db] indicators of quality when buying a used car [db] the use of Perkins Diesels Diesel Benz Digest Home Page: http://www.digest.net/diesel-benz/ Send submissions to diesel-benz-digest@digest.net Send administrative requests to diesel-benz-digest-request@digest.net To unsubscribe, include the word unsubscribe by itself in the body of the message, unless you are sending the request from a different address than the one that appears on the list. Include the word help in a message to stag-digest-request to get a list of other majordomo commands. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 1 May 2011 12:06:29 -0700 (PDT) From: john Subject: [db] indicators of quality when buying a used car just glancing through craigslist... some of the ads are amusing... if not disturbing... looking for another early '90s 124 series 300D like we used to have with low miles... we miss the economy, ride and quality of the mercedes... sure, the rav4 isn't bad, reliable reasonably economical and all that... but it's not the same... I can see where people would love them, if they had never experienced a Jeep or a Mercedes... :) no rush to replace the rav4, but I've been assigned as a look out... the issue is that there was a serious quality dip in mercedes benz involving certain engines and models and years... in particular the 3.5L Turbo Diesel was a shop queen, a horrific example of engineering gone bad... placed in some of the most elegant and beautiful vehicles ever created, but amazingly expensive to service... here's some examples: reading some of the titles of ads alone is providing some amusement... Apr 28 - Mercedes Benz Diesel 300 SD - $6995 ($35,000 In Phil Smart Reciepts) cars & trucks - by dealer pic Apr 28 - 1992 Mercedes-Benz 300SD LUXURY SEDAN **DIESEL** INCREDIBLE CAR !! - $6999 (OVER $35k IN SERVICE RECORDS !!) cars & trucks - by dealer img May 1 - 1992 Mercedes-Benz 300 SD LUXURY ***DIESEL*** IMMACULATE CONDITION - $6999 (2 OWNER / $38k IN MAINTAINENCE RECIEPTS ) cars & trucks - by dealer img ok, sure, it's the same car... the dealer can't seem to determine if it's $35 or $38k, oh, wait, he must have spent another $3k between 28 apr and 1 may... ok, makes sense... ;) Dealers are kind of funny in a quirky sort of way... every now and then you will run into a gearhead... but rarely... they usually don't provide any history of the vehicle... digging into the ads for the '96-'03 range (w210 models which have mixed reviews, w140s with the 3.5L are bad news) you'll see some interesting comments: 30 - very rare 1996 Mercedes Benz E300 Diesel - $7950 (Auburn ) cars & trucks - by owner img $7950 OBO. The car is a 8.5/10 very nice, clean. It has a diesel 3.0 inline 6 cylinder engine that does 25-27 city mpg and 30-36 highway mpg. thats really good considering how big and heavy it is. The car has 150k + on it witch for a diesel is like 75k. its a auto tranny runs good maintained regularly. only con i can think of is the speedometer works on and off for the past few months. its the abs modual. NOTE: *** the speedometer works "on and off"... it's the ABS module... *** oh, really... actually it's likely the biodegradeable underhood wiring that costs $1800 at least to replace... or the 1997 - Mercedes Benz E300D : $8600. OBO 3.0 liter engine - strong and simple - Non Turbocharged All receipts available / *** $9K worth of work done in last 3 years *** Very dependable: Great car for commuting - 25-30 mpg city and 35 -40 mpg hwy Comfortable and safe with Front and Side airbags for Driver & Passenger / power seats & windows NOTE: if you've done $9k worth of work in the last 3 years how in the sam hill can you consider this DEPENDABLE???? Looking forward to my '83 J10 stepside with the SD33T and parts of the drivetrain out of a CJ-10A. Have an extra SD33T, if I could score another RV-TF727/np208 setup with flex plate I might just build a Diesel XJ or a CJ/TJ/YJ... In the meantime, going to continue looking for another Mercedes Diesel sedan for my wife. If anyone is interested in a low mileage mint condition Rav4 let me know... I paid top book value for it, but considering it's care and family ownership it was worth it. I really like that it has a limited slip diff in it... and leather seats... BTW, does anyone know what power seat bases from Toyota would work with those seats? the manual adjustments don't provide the ability to raise the front of the seat/lower the back where it is comfortable. back to the funny page for me... :) john ----- - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -o|||||o- Snohomish, Washington - where Jeeps don't rust, they mold http://AMSOIL.com/redirect.cgi?zo=283461 http://JohnMeister.com HTTP://WAGONEERS.COM http://fotomeister.us - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 2 May 2011 14:18:37 -0700 (PDT) From: john Subject: [db] the use of Perkins Diesels http://www.allpar.com/mopar/perkins.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perkins_Engines_Company_Limited it's interesting that a big Dodge truck weighing 6,800lbs with a Perkins Diesel will get better mileage than a Full Size Jeep.... or most XJs or WJs... and some Mercedes Diesels... from: http://www.sweptline.com/hist/bigtrucks.html Aaron Arnold of Boerne, Texas, owns this one of a kind Perkins Diesel powered W-300. The truck is the only Perkins Diesel powered W-300 known to exist and one of a rare few W-300 Crew Cab Trucks. Although originally equipped to haul horses, the truck now has a Utiline bed on the rear of the chassis (see photos below). This unique truck has the following specifications: * 354 ci Six Cylinder Perkins Diesel Engine, English built (Eng. # 8044081) * 146" wheelbase * NP 420 Transmission with special bellhousing * NP 201 Twin-Stick Transfer Case * Dana 70 Front and Rear Differentials (4.88:1 gears) * Dual Rear Wheels * MU-2A Braden PTO Winch (10,000lb capacity) * Dual Batteries * Dash mounted Throttle Pull Handle * Mechanical Tachometer with hours meter * Medium Duty Truck Steering Wheel * Full Length Running Boards * Power Brakes with Vacuum Pump and reserve tank * Diesel Fender Emblems under Dodge Emblems (same script) * Cold Weather Start decal, pull knob and ether bottle on firewall * Pull to Stop Engine decal with knob * Use Diesel Fuel Only decal along with 20 gallon tank behind seat * Chrysler Perkins Industrial Diesel decal on valve cover * Bostrom Viking T-bar seats (possibly a dealer installed option) * Interesting Statistics: PW-300 Curb Weight: 6,860lbs * Gas Mileage: 17-18 at 65 mph * Engine Oil Capacity: 16.5 quarts ----- - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -o|||||o- Snohomish, Washington - where Jeeps don't rust, they mold http://AMSOIL.com/redirect.cgi?zo=283461 http://JohnMeister.com HTTP://WAGONEERS.COM http://fotomeister.us - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ On Mon, 2 May 2011, Ernesto Silva wrote: # Yep, it's not an agile vehicle, it's more like a tractor, je je, but I love # old tractors!!! As it has some break issues I haven't tested it on the # highway, I believe it can reach 120Kmph at maximun. # # Here the P4-203 (general use in 1 to 2 tons old cars and trucks, small # tractors, etc), the P4-236 (same use as 203 but with more power) and the # P6-354 (used in 4 to 6 tons trucks I believe) are the most common ones. # # Ernesto Silva - Montevideo, '64 Wagoneer. # ------------------------------ End of diesel-benz-digest V1 #3429 **********************************