1994 E300 Diesel - What are the warts to look out for?

[pcman_jh]

I have my eye on a 1994 E300 Diesel with 133K miles on the clock. I've heard rumours this 6 cylinder engine is soft - is this true? I used to have a 1994 C250D which looks like it was the same engine (bar the extra cylinder) which I didn't have any probs with.

The only 2 observations I had wiht the car was the coolant looked clear - I'd expect the usual blue or green antifreeze colour, and there was a slight oil leal on the left hand side of the engine (from the driver's perspective) about the sump.

Any feedback or advice would be appreicated. No service history but it sounded sweet and the body was minted.

 

[Chazchuzzlewitt]

I wouldn't say this engine is 'soft', whatever that means! 90-95 cruising on the motorway with no effort is more like it. It has no turbo of course so acceleration isn't exactly mind-blowing but it's no slouch, even up against modern turbo-diesels. Bear in mind the 124 is a very heavy car though, and will feel bigger than your old C-class.

These (OM606) engines tend to have no real issues like their petrol cousins, I have heard of the head gasket giving up eventually but I expect the rest of my car with give up before the engine does...

The coolant being 'clear'- MB coolant is blue (in this country anyway)- clear sounds like just water! I'd flush it out and put new coolant in anyway.

The oil leak is probably nothing to worry about, mine looks like it has a very slight stain in the same place but my engine needs no topping up between oil changes.

glow plugs are a bit of a bugger to change on this engine, but the rest of it is easy to work on.

With no service history you'll have to check it out yourself. A 'minted' body can be hiding lots of mechanical nasties. Frequent oil changes are a must, and 124 service parts can start to get expensive if it hasn't been looked-after.
check for rust in the jack points and under the wheel arches, check the alignment (they often pull quite badly). check the ATF is red and not brown and burnt smelling, aside from the 1-2 change at slow speed the gearbox should be smooth, all electrics inc. sunroof should work, if it's an esate check the rear suspension.