Actually, got a pair of cars, the aforementioned '85 300D Turbo just a
coupla days ago for the 'old lady' to drive and I just got me a '79
300TD (not-turbo) today.

So now I've got two diesel cars to maintain.  Never had a diesel before,
and never had a Mercedes.  Both of them charge right along on the
freeway, and there's some tuning that needs to take place on both of
'em, but overall they seem solid and most everything works.

So the first bits of maintenance that I'm curious about are the oil
changes.  I figured I'd swap out the fuel and air filters while I'm at
it, but I went by Kragen today and they've got Fram replacements for
these things but Fram is pretty much bottom-of-the-barrel quality,
sooo...  What do people use?  Also on oil, it seems like 15w40 or 15w50
are recommended above freezing, and being in San Diego  that's pretty
much the case.  What kind of oil do you all like?  I ran Mobil 1
synthetic in my last car on Mobil 1 filters.  Is synthetic oil
interesting or useful or maybe even should I avoid it altogether?

The thoughts today are that I should go 15w40 over the winter (ambient
temperatures 60+ degrees F) and can go 15w50 in the summer.

The bits of immediate work that are necessary are that on the '85 the
turn signals stopped working tonight and the washer pump doesn't work at
all.  Any useful tips beyond "check the clearly-marked fuses" would be
appreciated.  ;)  Kragen had a Chiltons manual for "Mercedes coupes,
sedans, wagons, 1974-1984", but the '85 300D should be pretty much
identical to the '84, no?  Any guidance for "legitimate" shop manuals
for these cars?  (Going to hit the manual right after I help the
neighbor set up a new PC, oh to be the neighborhood tech.)

Not that anyone really cares, but I'll be putting webpages up to brag to
friends and family soon with pics of the new rides.  The sedan is the
common beige color with an immaculate tan interior, and the wagon is
baby blue with dark blue interior.  I've been getting sicker and sicker
of the creaks and groans in my '98 Pontiac Grand Prix, and my wife's '92
Corolla is old and undesirable.  ;)  It's a big step for me, going from
a supercharged V6 to the normally-aspirated diesel I5, but I've found
myself driving more and more "Sunday driver" as I get older anyway.
Hell, the more I rush on the road, the quicker I get to work, and I'd
just as soon enjoy the sun!  heh.

thanks for the help thus far,
-tom!

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