Fixing Up An Old Diesel-Powered Mercedes

You can also turn on subtitles for explanations on what I'm doing throughout the video. You can view the transcript itself at the bottom of the description

This is a 1975 Mercedes 240D with a 4 cylinder diesel engine. The car has been off the road for a while, and barn-stored for that period. Fortunately, the previous owner periodically went out and fired up the engine. So albeit not roadworthy, it technically runs and drives. This car now belongs to a friend of mine and I was asked to make the car reliable again, and on top of that, I ended up cleaning out a total of 21 dead mice. Unfortunately, they left a stench that I'm not sure can ever be removed (Although maybe an ozone generator). There's plenty more to do on this car, but it's ready to putt around. Maybe you'll see more on it.

Chapters-
00:00 - Intro
-All I really knew about the car when I got to was that it ran and drove onto a trailer, and it's been sitting in a barn for a long time. It REEKS of rodent urine.
02:20 - Replacing the V-belts
04:26 - Oil Change & other checks
07:30 - Replacing some bulbs
11:38 - Replacing the brake hoses
-Driving the car back to my garage, the brake pedal started sinking way down to the floor. The brakes had overheated themselves. The rubber hoses swelled up and restricted the fluid flow, maintaining pressure on the brakes.
18:43 - Cleaning up
33:41 - Reassembling the dashboard/heater controls
- it looks like someone pulled all this apart to figure out why the heater fan wasn't working. I did some diagnosis and it seems like the fan motor itself is done for. Thats a dreaded job on this car, and most, so I just put things back together for now. At least there's still some heat/defrost from natural airflow.
38:47 - More cleaning
41:03 - Fixing some loose parts in the gauge cluster
43:59 - More cleaning & washing
46:15 - Patching up the rusted off muffler
50:36 - Servicing the transmission
53:37 - Adjusting the valves
56:47 - Servicing the air and fuel filters
1:00:44 - Revisiting the blinkers
1:01:30 - Finishing up and finding a grand total of 21 dead mice
1:04:40 - Winston the cat

[Mariano.Bernacki]

I was a newborn when that Mars candy was being made. The car was already 16 years old at the time. Now I am a balding dude saving for retirement. Really drives home how old these cars are. Keep up the good work and videography. Filming and editing makes everything take longer, thank you! You will soon be able to make a living doing this.

[PeterLee-znjl]

We drove a 1968 190D from alaska to florida AND BACK...~7000
Mi..NOT A HICCUP..
AT 75-80 mph the motor was silent..!
DROVE LIKE A CRUISE MISSILE...

[keikunoriginal]

My uncle had one of these he biught brand new. He drove that thing until its untimely death in an accident 8 years ago. At the end it had 600k miles on it. He took unbelievable care of it the entire time.

[jordandowd]

Great job! As one of the other comments stated " A nice simple approach to fixing a vehicle". I'm very pleased that you have no music in the video. I like to hear the sounds of work being done, hearing screws, bolts, and nuts falling through the vehicle frame.

[franklinnieto]

Simon, Your video's remind me of when I was a kid in the 60's and 70's. We had little to repair our vehicles with and had to repair many parts and use them till they were completely wore out, and then go to the junk yard to get used parts most of the time. Watching your video's has reminded me that I dont always have to throw new parts at a build and many times the old parts are better than the Chinesium that we get at the parts stores anyway. I started with a 1967 Galaxie 500 and learned many repairs on it, from brakes to valves. I just finished up a build on a 1989 Chevy K2500; got the engine changed out last year and am now fixing all the little stuff. It seems that it was leaking from every system in the truck. Many times it just needed cleaned and new seals. From watching your video's, however, I am cleaning and repairing much of the fixes, rather than throwing new parts at it. Thanks for the vid's. Frank

[johndefelice]

This brings back memories. I had a 1972 220D, dark green with a tan interior. It required weekly repairs at 250, 000 miles! Drove it from CT to FL and back, adding oil all the way with that tired 4 cylinder. Similar dash and engine, the joy of glow plugs and lots of chasing electrical and brake problems. I gave it to a friend at 300, 000 miles and he swapped in a gasoline engine. Sad. Miss the beast. We called it "The Powerless Puffer." Good memories.

What a great guy working alone & quietly on a legendary piece of a mechanical you`ve done a great job my friend..!!

[cybcarr]

It would last forever. Starting without blue smoke means the engine have all the mileage in the world, and still as good as new. Lovely job mate!

[DaylyDriver]

I love your kind of doing videos. It's so relaxing to watch and no stupid talking. Just you taking care of the car. I'd love to have one of these old Mercedes. Here in Germany they've become collectibles.

[СтепанРазин-вр]

Очень сочная картинка! Спасибо товарищ :) Бесконечно можно смотреть на три вещи : как течёт вода, как горит огонь и как этот парень чинит старую тачку. Жаль прошлых владельцев этого Мерседеса, которых ты выбросил в ведро))

[gabrielanak]

Simon's FIXING ABILITIES KEEP ME AMAZED !! YACKLES EVERYTHING A GEM OF MECHANIC IN THIS DAY AND AGE !!

[Mr.TrumpDonald]

Cool man, thanks!
I watch every video of yours!

My brother had one from the 80s, also with a diesel engine.
I was a young guy in the early 90s, such a car was rare in the newly independent country of Kazakhstan! And for me, such a Mercedes E-Class was a dream, which I later realized, but it was a Mercedes already in the 124 body.

Keep going Simon!

[beakittelscherz]

Very much enjoyable, thank you Sir! Happy to subscribe. Cam is spot on. No walkie-talkie, no music, no hectic.
AWESOME😎👍
Greetings from Germany sends CarpenterBea.

[nasilemak]

Nothing's better than a cold one with Simon Mercman.

[carmomicheleta]

Diese /8 sind - wenn gewartet - die letzten von DB die wir hier in Europa als 'unzerstörbar' ansehen. Hatte selbst einen 200D /8 mit über 450 tkm. Boden fast weggerostet aber nach wie vor stabil auch mit Kofferraum voll und vier Personen im Auto. Das Video ist perfekt gemacht, grosses Kompliment für den Schnitt und vor allem: keine störende Musik oder unpassende

[JoseGamboa]

You were very lucky Simon that with 21 mice living in that car they did not eat all the electrical cables!!!!

[timclarkson]

What a find and to be able to repair rather than replace is great. We had a petrol version of this in the ‘60’s and it never missed a beat. Hope the Becker radio still works as they were regarded as the best along with Blaupunkt. Thanks for a great quiet video!

[lionelguilbert]

These old Merc never die. I remember seeing so many used as bush taxis in Morocco and Africa in the 80s and 90s

[uliwehner]

nice job. i got to drive a W123 240D automatic in the 80s, former taxi. it was so and my regular 59 beetle felt like a rocket ship.

[jebsails]

I had and restored a '72, 220D. If your headlights do not flash (passing mode) unscrew the fuse block under the hood. There may be a spare wire tucked in there. Simply connect that wire to the headlight terminal and you can now flash your headlights. Turning the headlight switch to the left will generally turn on your standing lights, when parked on the roadside. The appropriate setting is to turn on the light closest to the lane of travel. I your glow plug bus bars are heavy gauge (8?), they can take up to 45 sec to glow in cold weather. Replace with the rapid start plugs and smaller gauge wire, which cuts down the glow time significantly. Mine was black with burgundy. Love this body style. Narragansett Bay