This 1984 Mercedes-Benz 300D Turbodiesel shows early registration in Alabama and Pennsylvania with the last twenty years showing registration in Arizona where the car has spent the majority of its life. The seller acquired the car in early 2022 and moved it to New Jersey where it’s currently offered for sale in the seller’s name. Finished in Ascot Grey (751) over a Blue MB-Tex (152) interior, power comes from a 3.0-liter turbodiesel inline-five paired with a four-speed automatic transmission. Features include a painted power sunroof, R134 air conditioning, automatic climate control, an updated JVC head unit, and power windows, locks, antenna, and passenger side mirror. Extensive service records accompany the car showing more than 100k miles of history from the original owning-family. Recent services include an A/C recharge and check, oil service, new valve gasket with valve adjustment, new intake and exhaust manifold gaskets, new turbo drain seals, turbo oil line gasket replacement, a new oil pan gasket, new master cylinder, a brake flush, power steering flush with line, new fuel filter, new fuel supply and return lines, a new throttle linkage, and new sunroof seals and brushes. This W123 shows just under 311k miles and is offered with a clean Carfax report, extensive records, and a clean New Jersey title.
The car is finished in Ascot Grey (751) and features chrome-accented North American-spec bumpers and trim, glass headlamps, an electric sliding sunroof, and an electrically adjustable passenger-side mirror. The trim, bumpers, and door handles are reportedly original to the car while the body has received a trim-off repaint in the factory color. The power antenna and power sunroof are functional with a recent sunroof service noted consisting of new seals and brushes for the mechanism. Detailed photos of the exterior are viewable in the gallery.
Factory Bundt 14″ alloy wheels are equipped and wear General tires measuring 195/70 on all four corners. Braking is handled by discs for all four wheels.
The cabin features seats upholstered in Blue MB-Tex (152) with matching blue door panels, carpets, and dashboard with the footwells show matching Blue floor mats. Wood trim adorns the dashboard and center console with cracks and light fading visible near the window switches. Equipment includes functioning automatic climate control, cruise control, power windows, power door locks, and an aftermarket JVC head unit and a power radio antenna.
Instrumentation includes a 125-mph speedometer, a 6k-rpm tachometer, and an analog clock. Additional auxiliary gauges include coolant temperature, oil pressure, and fuel level which all function properly. The six-digit odometer shows just under 311k miles. The seller mentions the dashboard clock is inoperational.
The 3.0-liter OM617 turbodiesel inline-five features a single Garrett turbocharger and Bosch fuel injection. Power was factory rated at 123 horsepower and 184 lb-ft of torque and is sent to the rear wheels via a 722.3 four-speed automatic transmission. Recent services include an A/C recharge and check, oil service, new valve gasket with valve adjustment, new intake and exhaust manifold gaskets, new turbo drain seals, turbo oil line gasket replacement, a new oil pan gasket, new master cylinder, a brake flush, power steering flush with line, new fuel filter, new fuel supply and return lines, and a new throttle linkage. Extensive records are offered outlining the service history of the car. Additional underbody photos are viewable in the gallery below. The seller notes no blowback from the engine.
The Carfax report lists no accidents or damage since new. This W123 shows just under 311k miles and is offered with a clean Carfax report, extensive records, and a clean New Jersey title.
Some things were built to last. The W123 is most certainly one of those things. Often referred to as the “million-mile Mercedes,” these cars have legendary reliability and longevity thanks to their OM617 turbo diesel engines. The addition of the turbo greatly helped improve the drivability and performance of the W123 over earlier years. It’s not uncommon to see these cars available with 500k+ miles on the regular which is a testament to how great these cars really are. This example is proof that these cars will truly go forever. The added benefit of a proper repaint only makes this car more appealing as we imagine the endless miles that lay ahead of this 300D. There's a good chance these cars will outlast us all so those in search of the forever car should welcome this Ascot Grey W123 with open arms and embrace high mileage at it’s finest.
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8 Comments
$6,250 bid placed by @OMG648
$6,000 bid placed by @Alex210
$5,500 bid placed by @OMG648
$5,250 bid placed by @Putamadre
As we get closer to the end of the auction please feel free to ask any questions. I will answer as promptly as I can.
$5,000 bid placed by @Jaynwamadi
I thought I must be looking at a dash cover but wow how impressive is that! It looks great!
$4,250 bid placed by @prsbirds
@prsbirds Thanks for that, and nice 3rd place win for detailing! The blue dashes are always cracked. I've found plenty of brown ones intact but not blue. Also just pointing out that this dash has been covered (the pictures show it) but it's one of the best one's I've seen. The cover is a near perfect color, has good simulated grain, extends all the way into the vent openings and into the wood seams and also still has the the temp sensor vent so it's barely noticeable. Not at all like the URO covers that are obtrusive. Also I would like to note that the top vents work as they should. The vacuum pods have been replaced and the air switches to the top vents properly when the AC or economy is on cold.
$4,000 bid placed by @Gurshawn796
What a beautiful car. My first car was an '83 240D silver on blue MBTex. Biggest regret of my life selling that thing. It was my dad's since new and I swooped in and bought it from him for $500 as he was about to trade it in on the first black '98 ML320 in Maryland (he was on a waiting list for around 3 years for that M class). I detailed it up and won 3rd place at a local MB "detail contest" -- the cracked dash brought me down. When I sold it we estimated that it had around 225k but the odometer had seized up with 193k on it. I'm going to have a lot of trouble holding back on a bid for this beauty... wife might just kill me if I do it.
$3,750 bid placed by @BernardH
@Copterman84 Service records indicate that the transmission was fully serviced (fluid, filter, gasket) most recently by Autohaus Tucson 9/4/2020. Also notable is that they replaced the shifter linkage bushings 3/22/2019 so there is no play in the shift lever. Shifting is smooth with no flaring and the shifts timing is excellent.
$3,500 bid placed by @Pictureperfect
I didn’t see any mention of automatic transmission service, overhaul or replacement?
$750 bid placed by @Scottisha
$500 bid placed by @Alcap81
@Easton12 Thanks! I pulled all the trim before paint and did all the prep. Thankfully I didn't need to do any rust work just sanding down the old faded paint. Definitely worth the effort, it came out beautifully.
Whoever did the repaint on this car did a really nice job. Quality looks superior to many of the "restored" examples I see advertised. A rust free and well maintained 123 is never a bad choice.
$250 bid placed by @Gurshawn796