Anyone have advice on these cars?

I have an '87 300DT and love it. Are the '98's as good an engine/tranny? I know the body's nicer...

you mean an E300D... ive driven one.. very nice cars. it was a 99 though

i have never worked on one but from what i have read they do have their issues , involving glow plugs snapping off in the head and such...

Yes, a '98 E300 turbodiesel. Thanks for the correction.

do a search on E300D, you'll find alot out about them, i would love one, if i had the money for service and maintence.. thats one car id leave to the pros because if they screw it up they better cover it

I have a '98 and really like it. It's really not that bad to work on and I have done practically all the work on it since I bought it. I was reluctant at first to work on it but after seeing what "pros" do I decided to do it myself. I bought mine with 115K on it in January '05 and have put 20K on it since then. It runs better now than it did when I first got it. Mileage is up to 30 MPG average with 34 on the highway and it uses virtually no oil between changes - for a car with 135K miles on it that is quite a feat.

But I did have some issues since buying it...none major, just annoying. MAF sensor ($135), turbo wastegate solenoid ($115), auxilliary fan ($175) and starter relay ($25) are all electronic glitches and are common. It also developed a very small leak at the thermostat housing so I replaced that along with the T-stat ($60). None of these issues was "life threatenting".

When I bought it I had all the glow plugs changed, all the fuel lines and filters changed and transmission serviced - that was before I did work myself and I would not hesitate to do any of those jobs now.

Now I just change the oil and filter and drive. Based upon what I paid for it in '05 and all I have spent on it I could probably sell it today and have driven it all that time and not lost a cent...that's worth something.

I guess my advice would be not to buy one unless you can do work on your own...if you pay a tech to fix those little annoying items each one can be equal to a car payment on a new car.

To me it's been reasonably reliable for an 8 year old car with over 100K miles on it and never left me stranded which is more than I can say for my wife's newer MBs

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Marty D.

2013 C300 4Matic
1984 BMW 733i
2013 Lincoln MKz

They are great cars, I wouldn't hesitate to purchase one.

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2016 Corvette Stingray 2LT
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

I've owed 123 and 124 turbos previously. The 96-99 E300 is by far the most comfortable and refined of the group. The 98-99 with the turbo have lots of power and are a pleasure to drive.

The cars have some issues as NHDOC stated. Most are known issues that can be handled yourself with help of the forum if you are inclined to do your own work. The exception might be spring perch failure whihc has affected some folks in salty winter regions.

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Terry Allison
N. Calif. & Boca Chica, Panama

09' E320 Bluetec 77k (USA)
09' Hyundai Santa Fe Diesel 48k (S.A.)

Have plenty of $$$$ for repairs.

Excellent Car.....as far as repairs and maintenance they are no different than the rest of the MB diesels I have owned which included a 84 SD and 87 SDL.
Don't be afraid to dive in and get your hands dirty... they are not made of fragile porceline..they are tough..tough vehicles! The 98 E-300TD I have now is my favorite!.... a real trusty "road warrior" machine
Good Luck

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FRED

Daily Driver: 98 E300TD 199K
Hobby Car: 69 Austin Mini
Past Diesels: 84 300SD, 312K
87 300SDL, 251K
94 Chev. K-1500 6.5Ltr.TD, 373K

Keep your '87 300D.. it's a much better car. I've owned both.. and I'm still driving around in an '87 with 280k miles.

I'll never understand why it's exceptable to spend $1,000 $1,500 a year to keep a 123 on the road yet spending a few hundred a year on a 210 makes them "crap?" Basic maintenance on these cars is very easy to perform. Don't be scared.

I had a 98 turbo and loved it.

Scott

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Scott
1982 Mercedes 240D, 4 speed, 275,000
1988 Porsche 944 Turbo S (70,000)
1987 Porsche 911 Coupe 109,000 (sold)
1998 Mercedes E300 TurboDiesel 147,000 (sold)
1985 Mercedes 300D 227,000 (totaled by inattentive driver with no insurance!)
1997 Mercedes E300 Diesel 236,000 (sold)
1995 Ducati 900SS (sold)
1987 VW Jetta GLI 157,000 (sold)
1986 Camaro 125,000 (sold - P.O.S.)
1977 Corvette L82 125,000 (sold)
1965 Pontiac GTO 15,000 restored (sold)

It wasn't the cost of ownership for me. The overall feel and quality of the car was not the Mercedes I know. They don't build them like the 123, 124, 126 and 140 anymore..

My W123's have never cost me THAT much money to repair. Also consider this...My W123's have a couple of hundred of thousands of miles and then some. My 1999 E300 has cost a lot before 70,000 miles.

I know a few people who bought W123's and 300SD's new or darn close to it. I remember one in particular sold his 300D after only few years becuase it would always fail to start when it got below freezing. He would come out in Jan after having a nice dinner and the car would fail to start, MB dealer just said buy a gas car. So he did, traded it on a W124 I think.

I know both PO's of my 300SD. First owner bought it for his wife, she hated it. Drove an XJS I think insted. He then drove it, got bored with it (no power) and sold it in 1986, to the Dr I bought it from. Dr, spent quite a bit of money on it until I bought it.

Lets see then there is the lady who bought a 1989 420SEL, first she wanted a little car and test drove a 190E. In her words "it was a little POS", then she found the 420SEL was much more to her liking. Still owns that car to this day.

A lot of the original owners of these cars sold them for a reason. Cars in general can be a pita though.

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2016 Corvette Stingray 2LT
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Unless you are the original owner from day one chances are you will spend the first year undoing all the work that was done wrong by the PO or his techs or trying to fix all the little things that were neglected.

Then, after that, if you still are having constant problems the car may just be a lemon - it happens, but I still say most cars are fixable with a little patience and a lot of experience.

Usually cars get sold for a reason. I found out why mine got sold because when it got warm out the car would intermittently not start. I found the cause to be a $25 relay, now it is 100% perfect. However, it probably spooked the PO who decided that rather than pay a tech $100 an hour to shotgun parts at it he would sell it instead (in the winter, of course so it would not be a problem)...OK, so I fixed it in an hour for $25 and that has not caused me another problem. His loss...my gain.

I don't regret the purchase of my '98 for a minute. This is one of the best highway cruisers I have ever driven, period, even with 135K miles on it.

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Marty D.

2013 C300 4Matic
1984 BMW 733i
2013 Lincoln MKz