[W126 Coupe] Favorite car

[Richard Hogarth]

You're talkin bout one of my favorite cars. 
I owned a silver '81 Deisel Rabbit 5 speed. 
I got 62mpg if I sat on 68 miles per hour and plenty of torque to pull a
small boat. 
At 85mph, my mileage dropped to around 40mpg. 
Although I did have to clock 0 to 60 on the 
Calendar instead of a stopwatch. 
The block cracked at 258k miles and everyone told me to avoid nuying that
vehicle.
I didn't have 5minutes of regret owning that little car!
-rh














 

-----Original Message-----
From: mbcoupes-bounces at mbcoupes.com [mailto:mbcoupes-bounces at mbcoupes.com]
On Behalf Of a figment of the imagination
Sent: Monday, September 05, 2005 10:26 AM
To: Mercedes Coupes Mailing Lists
Subject: Re: [W126 Coupe] OFF TOPIC - 126 CHASSIS DIESELS 300SD VS 350SD


Hi!

My only comments regarding diesels follow.  First, I think diesels are great
engines (especially
Mercedes-Benz) and, if tuned right, can accelerate and out-run some gas
engines.  I say this because a friend of mine tunes Mercedes-Benz diesel
engines and owns a 300 CD.  His car was so fast that it out-accelerated my
380 SEC and probably could keep up with my G35
(ouch).   Watching his car take off made me feel flat,
but, hey, I am glad that he helped turn me onto diesel engines.

Second, diesels have great fuel economy, especially within city traffic,
where they can run at higher gears and burn up 50% less fuel than a gas
engine.  

Third, they can propel you at higher torques and allow you to "pull" heavier
loads, better than regular gas engines. Indeed, they provide grossly
equivalent power at the same or lower rpms as a gas engine would.  For
instance, quoting from Robert Bentley's Rabbit diesel manual, "the 1981
diesel is rated at 40 kWatts (52 horsepower SAE Net) at 4800 rpm, compared
to 57 kWatts
(74 horsepower at 5000 rpm) for the 1981 spark-ignition engine.  This
enables the diesel to propel the lightweight Rabbit to a top speed well
above the legal limit, with acceleration akin to that
of a spark-ignition engine."   [While I don't fully
understand this logic, I think the author means that diesel engines give you
a 'good' amount of power at lower rpms than a gas engine would....but
someone else can help explain this.] 


Fourth, most people are ignorant (including myself) about the diesel engines
and as result, shy away from them, especially when it comes to repair.  The
truth is that they are actually *EASIER* work on and are
*SIMPLER* than most gasoline engines.  Diesel engines don't have the
complication of spark ignition, spark plugs, breaker points, condenser,
ignition cables, distributor rotor, and other components that have to
replaced over the lifetime of the vehicle.  Each of these components
magnifies the number of potential problems that a gasoline engine can have
and that can go wrong and be a nightmare (as it was for me with my SEC on
Friday the 13th, during the heavy downpour].  

Fifth, diesel engines are more economical to own and maintain because of not
only the fuel economy but also by the fact they don't have a carburetor
(older cars) or emission controls to service periodically to meet inspection
requirements.  At $2.97 per gallon of gas, you can get 2-3 times the
distance. That's simple math.  (It is too bad that it's actually cheaper to
refine diesel and that they charge more for diesel to the point it is
equivalent with lighter, more refined gasoline than is reasonably
justified.]

It is a myth that diesels are intolerably slow automobiles; those cars are
actually not tuned right! 
MBZ diesels are as amazing as VW diesels, when they have been serviced
correctly.

I hope this helps.  

Cheers.

-figmented on diesel power

I just purchased and had delivered (thankfully) the first 2006 VW Beetle TDI
(Turbo Diesel Injection) in my state.  Woo hoo.  (These guys don't even make
it to the lot before they are sold out).  I also just got done fixing up our
1981 Rabbit diesel and sold it for
4 times its previous worth.  Both cars get 45/55
(city/highway) mpg, easy.  Trust me, diesel engines are a lot simpler to
work on than regular gas engines; it is a tragedy that most mechanics do not
know this fact, but use an incorrect (ignorant) cliche that they are
actually more complicated to work on. 

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