I’m skimming ebay today still looking for the perfect car. I’m going to be driving this thing a lot, so the car has to meet not only the mechanical requirements, but also my own personal tastes.
I’m looking for something:
- That has a diesel engine (obviously)
- Runs reliably without significant modification
- Won’t be embarrassing to drive to work.
- Fits my budget of $2,000 (preferred) to $4,000
This is turning out to be a pretty tall order. I’m mostly just window shopping today, but here are some of the considerations from ebay:
1) 1982 Mercedes-Benz : 300-Series 300SD diesel
Pros: The price is right, currently at $2181.00 with 1 hour to go.
Cons: Needs some engine work, some rust, located in California.
Verdict: Pass
2) 1982 Mercedes-Benz : 300-Series
Pros: A beautiful car! I love the shape of the 80’s model Mercedes Benz. The owner record on this one is excellent as well.
Cons: The care is in Iowa. Why am I doing this to myself?
Verdict: Bookmarked while I look for something closer to home.
Here’s an excerpt form the Q&A regarding bio-diesel :
Q: Hello… Looks like a fine car. First, all the work for bio-diesel has been done, correct? Second, could you be just a tad more specific about the car’s location than ‘Midwest US’ so I can figure in whatever shipping or driving hassles there are? Thanks a lot… Warren
A: Hi,, The reason MB’s of this era are so highly sought after for using alternative fuels like SVO (straight vegetable (virgin oil) or WVO (waste vegetable oil) as they use glow plugs and a prechamber. These cars only need their fuel lines replaced, and frequent inexpensive transparent fuel filters run until the fuel system is cleaned out, as all bio-diesel, particularly WVO (Greasel) is an aggressive cleaner that will over time remove all contaminants in the fuel tank, lines, and and eventually conventional rubber. Tigon and viton are two high tech materials used for this, and the critical lines on this vehicle have all been changed. For optimal burning and easy winter starting it is a good idea to blend bio diesel with varying amounts of petro-diesel. I generally run 50-70% during the nice weather and as little as 20% in the winter. WVO tends to thicken below about 30 degrees, so it needs to be pre-heated or have a chemical added with the fuel to lower its gel point, and cold pour point. I use a chemical that lowers that point 40 degrees and use mostly SVO in very high concentrations, just to see how far you can push it. I do this on my VW Jetta 170K miles, my 82 Benz wagon, 750K, (same exact engine and trans as the car in the auction), and all my heavy equipment, from tractors to road graders and bull dozers, even a MB bus I use as a mobile home. For three years I’ve floundered around with Bio-D and have never once had a problem. I still have straight soy oil in the MB bus from three years ago, 100% plus the additive and it starts easily. Nearly 20 below is the coldest I’ve tried. Circuitously, this is to say the vehicle has had the minimal work done on it needed for Bio-D and it loves it. Nothing else is a necessity. I am currently experimenting with pre-heating the fuel just before injection using a small heat exchanger using coolant heat. If you want to know more find Journey to Forever on the net. Car is at Iowa City Ia 52240, right off I-80
3) 1993 Ford : F-250 7.3L V8 DI
Pros: This one is nearby and I like the truck utility aspect…
Cons: My current truck is already pretty big and I’m dealing with the carseat problem for my little girl already. This is one heifer of a truck and it could get pricey as well. It’s already at $3,250 with the reserve not met.
Verdict: Pass
