This 1981 Mercedes-Benz 300SD was ordered and purchased new via Atlanta Classic Cars in Decatur, Georgia where it remained under a single-family ownership through 2022 with service records from new. The car currently shows 168k miles and has remained titled and registered in Georgia since new. Finished in Light Ivory (263) over Palomino MB-Tex (134), this sedan is powered by a 3.0-liter turbodiesel inline-five paired with a four-speed automatic transmission. In addition to the completed service records dating back to 1981, the car has received a transmission rebuild, fuel system refresh, new suspension including H&R springs, new A/C compressor, complete coolant system refresh, steering refresh, all new filters, and much more. Features include new old stock (NOS) Mercedes-Benz floor mats, a power sunroof, power windows, a power passenger mirror, automatic climate control, tool kit, first aid kit, and the original Becker included with bluetooth. This 1981 300SD is offered by the current owner and seller with factory literature and datacard, comprehensive service records showing a mechanical rebuild of the entire car, a Carfax report, and a clean Georgia title.
The car is finished in Light Ivory (263) with contrasting light brown lower body cladding. The paint is noted to be original on the metal other than the lower half of the rear passenger door and has recently undergone a comprehensive decontamination, correction, and graphene ceramic coating. Some rock chips are noted at the nose of the car along with dents on the front quarter panels. The glass is original with OEM logos displayed and there is no corrosion or rust present on the body/chassis. Exterior features include North American Market headlamps, original brightwork, a power sunroof, and a rebuilt and serviced Hirschmann power antenna.
The car shows the original 14” Bundt wheels with Mercedes-Benz center caps. The wheels wear Michelin Defender tires measuring 205/70 at all four corners with 2014 date codes. New H&R Sport Springs were installed in 2023 along with Bilstein B4 shocks and a fresh wheel alignment. Braking is provided by four disc brakes with new brake pads, rotors, fluids, brakes lines, brake master cylinder, and rebuilt rear driver calipers.
The cabin is trimmed in Palomino MB-Tex (134) with color-coordinated trim, carpets, and lower dashboard. The steering wheel, shift knob, and upper dashboard are trimmed in black and remain original. Zebrano wood adorns the dashboard, center console, and door card trim with one hairline crack noted behind the steering wheel. Matching velour Palomino new old stock floor mats are featured for the front and rear. Factory features include a power-operated sunroof, rebuilt central vacuum locks, power seats and windows, a Becker head unit with integrated bluetooth, and first aid kit. New interior bulbs have been installed throughout along with new window switchgear. The A/C and climate control have been rebuilt including new:
A four-spoke steering wheel frames a 85-mph speedometer, a 6k-rpm tachometer with an inset analog clock, an external temperature readout, and a combination gauge showing fuel level, coolant temperature, and oil pressure. The six-digit analog odometer shows 168k original miles. A new tachometer amplifier has been installed and the instrument cluster has been completely rebuilt and restored with new bulbs in the original color and warmth.
The 3.0-liter OM617A turbo diesel inline-five was factory-rated for 120 horsepower and 184 lb-ft of torque when new. Power is sent to the rear wheels via a four-speed automatic transmission. Provided is the complete service history of the car as well as the restoration invoices since 2022 by the current seller. Detailed photos of the engine bay are included and show considerable cadmium plating throughout. A Doomsday Diesel EGR delete was added. The current seller has performed a thorough mechanical restoration on the car. The break down can be seen below:
Transmission and driveline
Engine, cooling, air, and fuel system
Suspension and steering
The attached Carfax report lists a “minor” from 2008 when the original family had a parking lot incident resulting in a dent on the rear passenger door resulting in half the door being repainted. This 1981 300SD is offered by the current owner and seller with factory literature and datacard, comprehensive service records, tool kit, first aid kit, a Carfax report, and a clean Georgia title.
The seller has included the following videos:
For the longest time, the OM617A powered W126 S-Class was regarded as a diesel chugging piece of metal that was birthed in response to the fuel crisis of the ‘70s for the North American market. They were used as shoe-string commuter vehicles in the mid 2000's during the rising prices of gasoline during the Global War on Terror. Only recently have these come into vogue with the rise of Saccoism and as retaliation to the proliferation of technological complication in new cars as OEs embed planned obsolescence into every facet of the modern automobile. Gearheads are now seeing how precious these cars are as everything can be serviced, rebuilt, and kept on the road for not a lot of money. The cat is finally getting out of the bag on the W126 as good engineering becomes timeless. Timeless items become collectable. Collectable items become valuable. The only device tougher and more reliable than a 300SD is a blacksmith's anvil. This particular W126 is a unique example in many cases including 41 years of ownership with the torch being passed on to a new steward who was determined to keep the originality of the car, but also make this turbo diesel run and operate as it did when new. With records dating back to day one chased with a labor intensive, two-year mechanical restoration, this W126 will give the future owners another four decades of service with ease. There’s not a lot of Mercedes-Benz's that are almost 50 years old that can reliably be used as a daily driver. This appears to be one of the few.
Open Transit:
Enclosed Transit:
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31 Comments
Oh, boy. Can't wait to see that one, if it appears here.@Jim_Rosenthal The cleanest Malachite Green W124 E420 -- like Dean Laumbach nice. Going through the ignition system with right now and it'll be listed next month. I might not sell it just yet. I'm on the fence and love driving it.@Agschmidt Definitely bringing my GoPro@DougsCars you’ll see it at the farm this weekend!I think that was a deal, and I wish I had had room for it. Sigh. What do you have next? :)@Agschmidt Congrats! Happy it's going to a good home. Completely bittersweet ending. I'll reach out!Can't wait to see it in person @AgschmidtGood luck to the bidders! I'm here for any final questions. We added up the invoices and we put about $8000 in parts into the thing. Every system has been touched and brought back to new using quality parts. I have a gallery of a few extra hundred pictures that I'll send to the winner documenting in nerdy detail all of the things we fixed. We just didn't want to blow up the gallery with pictures of that stuff.$7,500 bid placed by @Agschmidt
$7,250 bid placed by @ItsaSmithThing
$7,000 bid placed by @Agschmidt
$6,700 bid placed by @VIGIL
With the auction ending in 23 hours, please feel free to PM me or comment below. Again, more than happy to have a phone call with interested parties. Thanks everyone and good luck.$6,000 bid placed by @Agschmidt
$5,500 bid placed by @Gysnl
@tbssd They’re addictive and incredibly satisfying to own/drive. Some pictures have been uploaded documenting the trans rebuild. We went deep and replaced every seal. Photos have been uploaded. Here is what we used for the steel clutch packs: https://www.ebay.com/itm/283338012105 Here’s what we used for the friction rings: https://www.ebay.com/itm/225215844437?itmmeta=01J3AK6HH57KN5EC3M1VF0033Q&hash=item346fe91055:g:VpcAAOSwJ6BjUvMW&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAAwNs6nSXE7AHJdhU6lV9HtvpZWeXx6IdJUe467k%2FaANfV%2FipMvoUul6YOG8IboOFjgbgnY2pXm90DzoGSlq0xc7UY5o0HP2S6avz0ZOVUIsXzKO4HKxeq1ZBrIEq5sJJuKwODRF5Qn%2FHMMBsIuvYFObdmn%2Bp%2BMZg4AFp427ldzPcJaCy1LROcNAQacJh54X6xYiDzQOWboZ5RDDyv016k1NoKj0KIimGDj3j92JUWyhPiQOxRPP1jGFwoKWIaAN%2FBEA%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR86YmtOaZA The seals were an Elring master kit mixed with some NOS MB stuff we have stowed away. Superior Transmission Parts Shift Correction Calve Body Kit Genuine MB Vacuum Modulator as well. Those are some of the important bits.Photos documenting the transmission rebuild have been added to the gallery.Thanks for the information. It’s a great example of an Atlanta car. I will look for the pictures later on. Great presentation , tremendous detail, wonderful pictures. I’ve been looking at these 100’s of this model cars for 30 years and currently own three sd’s.@tbssd 1981 was the switch over year when Mercedes-Benz started to treat the horsehair. I had the seats out of this car when servicing the rails and doing a deep clean and there's wasn't a pile of brown dust underneath. The pad is not degraded, is still supportive, and intact. What's happening is there is a thin fabric membrane attached to the back of the MB-Tex where the stitching attaches to which has just been damaged from the wear, hence the delaminated seat ridges. I will provide the parts invoices and photos of the transmission build to the gallery here. I have a bunch of that logged on my phone gallery. Give me a day or so and The MB Market team will upload those here shortly. I'll tag you when they are up. Thanks for the thoughtful comment.How are the seats? A lot of 81 cars had trouble with horsehair or whatever breaking down like the 116 cars. How are these? Crunchy and dusty or good? Was the transmission rebuilt with all of the improvements made later in the 126.120?That gray car was outstanding.@Jim_Rosenthal I have no idea how this one is going to go. It’s such a unique example with the Herculean effort and detail we put into restoration on an otherwise “normal” classic Mercedes. https://thembmarket.com/1972-mercedes-benz-280se-4-5 This was also our car that we restored. Same effort was put into the 300SD as our 280SE. All we can do is sit back and see what happens. There’s nothing logical about what we did to this W126 other than we just really really love these cars.Still a bargain, but I don't think that will last.$5,000 bid placed by @Agschmidt
@markwilson It's a milled metal cap that deletes the EGR on the OM617A. Over time, the EGR will clog up the intake manifold and in some instances that debris will shoot into the engine. It also increase the cylinder head temp to give a little bit more power and better gas mpg usually increases up to 1-3 mpg more. These OM diesels run better with this little modification. https://www.doomsdaydiesel.net/product-page/om617-egr-delete$3,750 bid placed by @markwilson
A video has been added to the listing showing driving functions, a walk-around, and various details.What is a Doomsday Diesel EGR unit?Thank you.@Jim_Rosenthal All services and fluids are up to date. We have about $8,000 in just parts put on the car over the past few years. Please look over the provided invoices. We did everything possible to the car other than what you noticed which would have effected originality. The rear seat, luckily, is in perfect shape. It’s just the front driver that needs a little love and the front passenger bottom if you wanted to make it perfect. That said, they’re still supportive and comfortable on long drives, so it wouldn’t need to be taken care of immediately. GAHH sells MB-Tex covers that match OE perfectly. I’ve used them exclusively on my other cars. The cruise control amp needs rebuilt. It intermittently works. Old capacitors, etc. It’s about a $110 fix. Every system was touched and dialed from the operational vacuum door locks all the way to removing the door panels to grease the window regulators with MB spec lithium grease. We’ve been trained by master-techs who worked on these cars when new and followed factory guidelines using Mercedes-Benz factory service books from a curated library in our family using OEM parts when available.It appears that some attention will be required to the seat upholstery and cushions, as well as the damaged right front fender. What else does this admirable survivor currently need in the way of service or replacment? Thank you.$3,500 bid placed by @VIGIL
@janos_z Appreciate the comment. Really don't know what happened to the quarter panel. It must've happened sometime in the past 40 years during the original owner's tenure.I've always liked this color combo - quintessential early '80s Mercedes. How did the car acquire the crinkle on the left front QP?I recall that the bumper height standards of the 70s and 80s forced some automakers to adjust the ride heights to meet the rules which meant some cars had a nose up attitude or at least had an offroad look to them, which of course is the current trend. I like the lower look and no doubt would enjoy the improved handling due to the lower center of gravity. The 4 dot pads could level the car out a bit. In my opinion optimizing the car for highway touring and boulevard cruising would make this car even more pleasurable to drive. The "slammed" look, where the tires are tucked up in the wheel wells, is going too far! At that point there is no suspension travel left. Nice car, good luck with auction, someone will get a nicely sorted SD.@Bankrep40 The rear springs were original and tired, so the car was rearing up in the front like a power boat, so we made the decision to change them out and upgrade while we were in there. I had them on my Midnight Blue car (see my profile), so I put them in here as it modernized the ride. H&R Sport Springs reduced the wallowing body roll these have from the factory and make handling flatter without compromise to ride quality. It was a huge improvement over the originals.Why is the car lowered@ChicoBTexas The 300SD is on H&R lowering springs with 3 dot spring pads in the rear and 2 dot spring pads in the front. I had used the same formula on a 1983 300SD, and the ride height turned out perfectly even. I do agree that the front is a bit lower than I had anticipated. I had a larger wheel on my ‘83 (see my profile for the blue ‘83) so I miscalculated it with the OE “14 Bundt. The front can be raised up further by replacing the 2 dot spring pad with a 4 dot pad. There has been no scrubbing or fitment issues at the current ride height, so I decided to let it be.Everyone, welcome to the first day of my auction going live! I will be around to answer any questions bidders have. Please flip through my photos of my mechanically restored W126 and of the service records I have in the gallery. This was a labor of love my brother and I poured our hearts into in getting this car back on the road and driving as it should. Backstory: We discovered this car about five years ago. The owner was a client of my uncle's Mercedes-Benz specialty shop (German Auto Sales and Service) who had been maintaining this car since the '90s. They bought it brand new in 1981 and after a lot of back and forth, let us finally buy it on December 23rd of 2021 as we promised to make the car right again since it had been sitting for a couple years -- used primarily to go grocery shopping since about 2019. The family just never used it much recently, because they worked for Delta as pilots and were just never home and wanted garage space back (car was garage kept its whole life, hence the original paint). We both restore Mercedes-Benz in our free time with my brother being a professional Mercedes-Benz technician at DC MotorWerks, so this is what we worked on after work and on weekends, splitting it as a commuter vehicle between system refreshes. Some of you might recognize the car in the Atlanta area from car shows, MBCA meets, and it pulling 100 MPH in the left lane of Georgia 400 as there are basically no clean Light Ivory 300SDs left. It's a true survivor with decades added to its life after our hard work and expertise has been put into every system of the car. More undersides and a very detailed cold start, acceleration, POV driving, and walkaround video should be uploaded to the auction here shortly! I'm available to chat via phone, email, or PM whenever. Please reach out to me if need be. Thanks for looking$2,250 bid placed by @Agschmidt
$2,000 bid placed by @kmr9146
Beautiful car. I’m curious why the front end of this car was lowered so significantly?