W202 C250 DT. Any good?

[neilrr]

Been offered a 1998 one of these from the original owner. 127K miles, pretty basic spec, silver.

Intertcooled turbo OM 605.960 engine & a 5 speed auto (is that standard) are leading me to believe it won't be a complete slug like the last 2.5 diesel 190 D I had & disliked.

Are they thirsty? Are they bulletproof? Do they run on SVO or WVO?

Anybody got one, know about them or have any views?

 

[Vlad]

Not as economical as they should be....mid 30's. Pretty much bullet proof judging by some of the mileages I've seen on them. Good performance. 5 Speed auto would have been standard at that age and yes they can run on SVO or WVO as they are old tech diesels.

 

[neilrr]

Thanks

Not as economical as they should be....mid 30's. Pretty much bullet proof judging by some of the mileages I've seen on them. Good performance. 5 Speed auto would have been standard at that age and yes they can run on SVO or WVO as they are old tech diesels.

Perfect! Who cares how economical they are if fuel is pretty much free?

 

[lordlee]

Not hugely economical but pretty bullet proof. The plastic fuel lines can go but they may have already been done. I say go for it.

 

[jonnyboy]

mate of mine has 2 or 3 of them, really likes them apart from the rot

 

[91dm]

I easily get 40mpg out of mine, high 40's on a run and very good performance wise, compared to 190d’s anyway.

 

[Dieselman]

They are crap...I'll give you £50 for it...

 

[SilverSaloon]

Perfect! Who cares how economical they are if fuel is pretty much free?

if you can get it. if you are buying purely to run on WVO then it would be worthwhite making sure you have a few reliable sources of WVO before you purchase a car on the basis of it being free fuel...

 

[neilrr]

I went to see the car today & bought it.

It came with all the paperwork from when the man imported it from Germany, all the SH (MB until 2007) with receipts, manuals, codes, docs, MOTs & 2 EIS keys. One wing is quite rusty, a couple of spots on the bottom of the doors but otherwise v. clean. Interior like new.

It is in far better condition than I was led to believe & has obviously been looked after - the last service was a few thousand miles ago in July. It drives really well without rattles, wobbles, noises or any issues I can see. The owner, who lives in a ridiculously affluent stockbroker belt ghetto in Surrey, is in his early '70's and put every one of the miles on the car himself. He was really sad to see it go. His wife made him sell it & get a newer MB.

The performance is a revelation. I'm amazed at the pick up this thing has. It actually feels quick! Think I'll keep it as my every day thrash.

 

[Maz]

Seriously these cars run on Veg oil?

I have a 99 C250 TD Estate in stock at the mo, and my uncles owns an Indian takeaways as do many of my dads friends etc!

Shame I don't do many miles, cheap motoring sounds great!

 

[91dm]

Seriously these cars run on Veg oil?

I have a 99 C250 TD Estate in stock at the mo, and my uncles owns an Indian takeaways as do many of my dads friends etc!

Shame I don't do many miles, cheap motoring sounds great!

Have a look through this thread, LINK. I think it requires some small mods.

 

[SilverSaloon]

yes, visit

vegetableoildiesel.co.uk - Powered by XMB

if your family owns a takeaway and isnt already giving the oil to a private collector then please offer it to someone in newcastle on the forum above - big oil collection companies are terrible - make sure the oil goes to the "little guy" who will appreciate it far more.

most pre-1999 merc diesels will run on WVO (ie non-CDI) but there may or may not be various mods you need to do to the car 1st. the W202 has a saddle fuel tank which causes some problems and you need to replace various orings etc too. what i'm saying is dont just pour it in and think the car will be fine.....

 

[neilrr]

Quick question for the panel. In my search for WVO I've been offered some diesel/petrol mix from a misfuelling episode. It's probably 90% petrol, 10% diesel, maybe higher on the petrol bit.

What's the lowest percentage WVO I can mix this with & still run my car safely?

Am I correct in thinking the WVO (or diesel) is required mainly to lube the pump rather than for it's combustion characteristics?

Beginner's question here, can a diesel run on 100% petrol?

 

[Will]

If it's a 90% plus petrol mix, it'd run better in an older petrol car. Maybe by diluting it further into say a 1/2 full tank of petrol (95%+ petrol mix)

No, you can't run a diesel engine on 100% petrol.

 

[Dieselman]

Stick to adding 10% "special brew" to SVO or diesel.

 

[mjrennie]

They are crap...I'll give you £50 for it...

 

[neilrr]

If it's a 90% plus petrol mix, it'd run better in an older petrol car. Maybe by diluting it further into say a 1/2 full tank of petrol (95%+ petrol mix)

No, you can't run a diesel engine on 100% petrol.

It's to go in a diesel car.

What I want to know is what % of the misfuelled fuel I can add to the WVO. I'm adding 20% 'fresh' petrol to clean, dry WVO now. Can I go higher?

 

[Dieselman]

It's your choice to ignore peoples posts, but you've had your answer. Even 20% is too much petrol, but carry on.

 

[neilrr]

On the topic of using WVO as a fuel I've discovered that opinions are like ****holes, everyone has one there are many different opinions on every facet of the subject.

Over on vegetableoildiesel.co.uk - Powered by XMB where several people who actually own & drive WVO using C250 DTs are to be found, nobody has raised any issues with adding 20% petrol in the winter.

DM, why do you say it's too high a %?

 

[Dieselman]

DM, why do you say it's too high a %?

Because the petrol reduces the pump and injector lubrication and reduces the cetane value.
Adding petrol causes a much faster flame front, so greater short term pressure in the cylinder. A diesel wants a slow burn to apply the maximum duration of pressure as fuel is still being added by the injector.

Loads of people remap diesel engines and they are great short term, but it's still doing harm to the engine. When someone holes a piston, lets see if they blame the petrol.

iirc. MB specified up to 10% petrol could be added to winterise diesel.