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Completely Original 1986 300 SDL

Note: This car is Not For Sale, as it is known that engines which have regular head gasket and motor mount maintenance have lived well past 500,000 miles.
This car has 197,000 miles on the odometer. We have just under $14,000 invested.
Classed as 'Very Rare" due to long body, and Turbo Diesel combination, this vehicle is in 'A' condition throughout.
Appraisal Document for the 300SDL

	History Following the debut of the 1970s generation W116 (which also included the flagship Mercedes-Benz 450SEL 6.9), Mercedes-Benz began plans for the next-generation S-Class model in October 1973. Codenamed "project W126,"[1] the project had specific goals: an improved ride, better handling, and improved fuel efficiency.[2] These improvements were aimed at helping retain the S-Class' market leadership as the world's best-selling prestige luxury sedan.[1] Following the 1970s oil crisis, Mercedes-Benz had made fuel efficiency an especially pertinent goal (named "Energy Program"),[3] even in the large V8 engined versions of the S-Class. In terms of the body design, the objective of the W126 design team, led by Mercedes-Benz's Bruno Sacco, was to produce a car that was sleeker and more aerodynamic than the previous model. The application of lighter materials and alloys combined with thorough wind tunnel testing to reduce overall drag meant the car consumed about 10% less fuel than its predecessor.[2] The maximum speed was also increased (250 km/h in the most powerful model).[1] After six years of development, the W126 was formally introduced at the Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung (International Motor Show, or IAA) in Frankfurt on September 1979. The initial lineup featured seven models in standard (SE, SD) and long (SEL, SDL) wheelbase sedan body styles: the 280 SE/SEL, 380 SE/SEL, 500 SE/SEL and 300 SD. Technically, the long wheelbase (SEL) variants were codenamed V126, but this was not popularly known.[1] In 1981, the coupé version (SEC) of the W126 S-Class premiered at the IAA with the 500 SEC model. In 1981, Wheels Magazine selected the W126 model 380 SE as its Car of the Year.[4] Four years after the introduction of the fuel-efficiency "Energy Program," the model range had been reworked completely. In September 1985, again at the IAA in Frankfurt, the reworked model range was reintroduced. Apart from visual changes to the bumpers, side covers and alloys, the changes made to the available collection of engine variants was most visible. Two newly-constructed 6 cylinder engines and new 4.2 and 5.6 litre V8's were added, and other engines were further upgraded. The W126 generation was replaced by the W140 in 1992, although a satellite factory in South Africa is known to have continued production until 1994. The different body styles of the W126 S-Class achieved a combined sales total of 892,123 units (818,063 sedans and 74,060 coupés), making the W126 the most popular S-Class ever produced.

	Mercedes-Benz OM603 From Wikipedia encyclopedia (November 2008) Mercedes-Benz OM603 Diesel Engine Manufacturer Daimler-Benz Production 1986 to 1997 The OM60x engine family was a straight-4,5,6 Diesel automobile engine from Mercedes-Benz used from 1984 through 1999. The 603 saw limited use in the W124, W126 and W140 model vehicles. The 603 engine has a capacity of 2996cc and was an engineering marvel in pre-chamber design and a technological leap forward from the tractor motor like 5 cylinder OM617. Versions 60x.96x and 60x.97x are turbocharged; Versions of the 60x.91x and 60x.92x are naturally aspirated. Only turbocharged models of the 603 series were available to the U.S. market. Only naturally aspirated 601 variants we sold in the US market, The 602 and 606 variant engine of this family available with and without the turbos. The 604 and 605 never made the US market.<http://www.mbwholesaleparts.com/wholesaleparts/ModelChart/usmodels.htm> The camshafts and injection pump are driven by duplex chain from the crankshaft. A separate single row chain drives the oil pump. The camshaft operated the valves via hydraulic bucket tappets; valve clearance adjustment is automatic. Fuel injection is indirect. A Bosch M in-line injection pump is used, with a mechanical governor and vacuum-operated stop control. The pump is lubricated by a connection to the engine oil circulation and the fuel lift pump is mounted on the side of the injection pump. Preheating is by glow plugs with automatic control of preheating time. The 603 engine was (in)famous for several reasons: The emissions controls imposed in the US market led to the creation of a diesel particulate filter, otherwise known as a trap oxidizer. As these were mounted at the cylinder head (modern traps are mounted further away), heat from these trap oxidizers caused failure of the aluminum cylinder heads on the first generation of 603-engined vehicles; debris from the traps could also damage the turbocharger. This first version was sold in the US from 1986 to 1987. Daimler-Benz removed these traps for free, and if the turbocharger has been determined to be damaged it was also be replaced. Even without the heat from the trap oxidizers, the original #14 mold cylinder heads were weak and if overheated could crack. In general, the later model #18 or #22 mold cylinder heads are considered to be the definitive cure for cracked heads. In 1990 the 350SD/SDL debuted, using a larger-displacement 3496cc OM603 engine that had more torque and a lower top RPM. The engine lived on in the w140 chassis after the w126 production ended, as the 300SD or S350, with a larger yet turbocharger and thus more power and torque. By the time of the 3.5L engine, the cylinder head issues of early 3.0L engine (US 1986-1987) had been corrected. However in the 3.5L there exists a different problem; eventual head gasket erosion, and thus passage of oil into the #1 cylinder. As the 3.0L engine uses the same head oil passage design, yet does not appear to exhibit the problems - it appears that the larger bore in the 3.5 engine, the higher pressures, and resulting smaller head gasket surface area conspire to cause the gasket erosion issue. High oil consumption (ultimately a quart per 200 miles not uncommon) is an early warning of imminent problems. If enough oil finds it's way into the cylinder, at some point a hydraulic lock results in a bent connecting rod, and subsequent rapid complete engine failure. Many anecdotal sources state that the connecting rods are weak, but it's not so much weak rods as the non-compressibility of a liquid. With a bent rod comes ovaling of the bore and a ruined engine, as the 3.5L block does not have sufficient bore material to allow for sleeving. Once ovaling occurs a complete replacement engine (in excess of $15,000 USD) is the only fix. If one catches the problem before it has progressed to far (after oil comsumption starts, but before the bent rod occurs) the issue can be alleviated with what is otherwise regular maintenance; replacement of the head gasket at regular intervals (no more than 100,000 miles) appears to reduce and / or limit the chances of this bent rod problem. A secondary problem with either the 3.5L (though true for any of the OM60x family diesels) is lack of maintenance of the motor mounts, which results in hard engine vibration from the engine resting on the frame members. Especially in the OM603, the vibration helps loosen one of the myriad of small screws in the crankcase which primarily hold on the windage tray. If these small bolts / screws find their way into the oil pump or passages, the resulting oil starvation will cause bearing failure, and subsequent broken / thrown rods - usually cracking the block. The result of both these issues was that the 603.97x engined cars had numerous engine failures. While never formally recalled, Daimler-Benz replaced many engines under warranty, even somewhat after the original warranty term expired (at least for the original owner). Conventional wisdom holds that cars with the 3.5L engines are generally to be avoided unless accompanied by proof of the installation of a factory replacement. The factory replacement engine has a metal plate pinned to the block on the passenger side on the bell housing roughly opposite where the starter is on the driver side of the vehicle. It appears that even the factory replacement engines have failed with the same conditions unless the head gasket and engine mounts are regularly maintained. All that said, it is known that engines which have regular head gasket and motor mount maintenance have lived well past 500,000 miles.
	Page last updated Dec 2009

	Update from Sacramento on Sep 11, 2010
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