Thanks for taking a look at this 1976 Mercedes-Benz 300D, lso known as the W115 chassis. This car has just under 118K original miles with documentation and service receipts all the way back to when the car was sold new in November 1975. The original owners owned it until about 2001 and 94,000 miles. I purchased it from a Leake Collector car auction about 3-4 years ago and have used it as a weekend cruiser and on nice days. I’ve owned several Mercedes diesels and this one is a great find.
The way this Mercedes runs and drives is one of the best things about this car. I’ve put about 6,000 miles on it in the time that I’ve had it and it has run great with no issues in the time that I’ve had it. It cruises nice and straight and the four wheel independent suspension supplies a very comfortable ride. This has the now infamous OM617 5-cylinder diesel. These diesels are simple and robust in design. Mercedes used the same basic 5-cylinder diesel through the 90’s. These are known to go +500K miles with no serious issues. I just did a valve adjustment and replaced some older fuel lines. This one runs like a sewing machine, hifts excellent and I would be confident in driving anywhere. It does drop a couple drops of oil overnight as many of these older diesels do; however, fter the first couple of drops it does not leak anymore even if parked for an extended period. I have a factory block heater that is not installed. It’s relatively easy to install and I would do so if I were to do a lot of winter driving. I haven’t needed it thus far as the glow plugs work very well and the car starts with no problem on colder mornings. When I first got the car, changed the rear brakes (pads, alipers, otors). Fronts are good. Parts are easy to get and very reasonably priced. Many original manufacturers still provide parts for these, uch as Bosch, ella, nd Michelin. Big aftermarket for vintage Mercedes.
The exterior color is known as Colorado Beige and shines up nicely. There is no evidence of previous damage, ut it looks to have been repainted the original color at some point. The hubcaps are original. It is difficult to tell in pictures, ut there is some subtle differences in the fading over the years. There are a few small chips on the deck lid that I tried to get pictures of and there are some very small dings that are difficult to show in pics; these are primarily in the trim beltline. Overall, he exterior is a very nice 10-20 footer and very presentable driver quality. But to be pristine you’d likely want to repaint someday. The doors still close with a satisfying “thud” that is unlike new cars of today. In those days, ercedes was designing and building cars to last, nd this car was considered to be “over engineered”. Mercedes engineers figured if one rivet or screw was enough, hen three would be better. It’s evident in the lack of squeaks and rattles in this car after 40 years! This one has the optional Hella fog lamps as well.
The interior color is Bamboo and is very clean. Seats are MB-Tex and are extremely nice with no wear detected. Seat cushions are firm with no breakdown which is common on older Mercedes. Dash, nstruments, eadliner, nd carpet are all in very nice condition. Noteworthy items is a spot behind the passenger front seat wear the carpet has unraveled a bit. No problems with the rest of the carpet. The dash looks great save for one small split that I tried to get a picture of. It’s small and has not gotten bigger since I’ve had it, ut noticeable nonetheless. The radio is the original Becker Europa and works great. Three point seatbelts front and rear seats. Armrests front and rear. The factory cruise control works as it should. This car also came with factory Air Conditioning which is not currently hooked up. The car came to me with a new a/c compressor which is included. I only drive the car on nice days and never took the time to get it going again. However, he parts are there and I know would be nice to have depending on where you live. The heat works great.
Overall, his is a great driver’s quality car that looks and runs great. Again, ’ve loved and babied this car and hope that it goes to someone that will appreciate it for what it is. I love these old Mercedes for their quality and simplicity. This car is 40 years old and is not museum quality; but it is a car that you can be proud to own. I’ve included a video which is somewhat lengthy and suffers from some wind noise, ut will give you a closer look at the car if interested! The second video is a good one from Mercedes talking about this series. Reserve the right to end the auction early as the car is listed locally.Thanks
My video and Mercedes Fascination