Mercedes Benz 4DSEDAN

The vehicle recorded here from 1981 carries this five-cylinder diesel engine of 3,000 cm³. With a gross weight of 1,965 kg and a kerb weight of 1,460 kg, a payload of about 505 kg remains for passengers and luggage, a figure typical for a four-door saloon of this class. The width of 1,790 mm matches the mid-size class of its day.

The 300 D and the whole W123 range gained a worldwide reputation for longevity: in many countries, particularly the Middle East and Africa, such vehicles still run as taxis today with mileages of several hundred thousand kilometres, because the rugged five-cylinder diesel keeps running reliably even under poor maintenance conditions.

When buying such a vehicle, what counts is corrosion at the known weak points – wings, sills, boot floor –, the condition of the injection pump and glow plugs, the tightness of the crankcase breather, and, on the automatic version, the condition of the four-speed torque-converter gearbox.