Thread: Buying a high km TDI 300

When buying a secondhand car you need time to work out what issues it has and money to rectify them.

If buying private I would ask for service history and where they got it serviced.

You don’t say what year the defers are...I’m assuming tdi ??

Either model has there own known issues and fixes.

Welcome to the forum Floyd, I think that if you are new to 300tdis , it would take some research and experience to get the motor car as right as I would like it to be for remote area travel. I know that there are people who will do this for a price but unless you have been a major part of the rebuilding/maintaining team you won't have had the hands-on experience that hopefully equips you to an operator in such localities.

My suggestion would be to purchase one well ahead of your planned remote area trip and go through it with assistance and a fine toothed comb until you feel competent with it.

Issues can arise with anything that is potentially 25 years old and may be anything in the motor car including engine and drivetrain, electrics, body, brakes & suspension.

If you can have an experienced owner look at your prospective vehicles with you and point out potential faults & problems it could be very helpful.

Feel free to ask for help on this forum and ask as many questions as you like ... and good luck

Welcome Floyd
As the others have said go with the vehicle you like and that fits your need best and then work your way through it using this forum as a point of reference for problems and fixes. Over time it will become what you need if you check , fix and repair as you are going
Good luck end enjoy the ride
Phil

Anything under 500k isn't high mileage for a TDI.

A 300tdi motor needs regular maintenance to make it last. I’m not only talking about regular oil changes, oil filter changes, fuel filter changes, cleaning out of the sediment bowl, but also big end bearing shells, lash caps and timing belt.

There’s also oil leaks from seals including the rear main seal, front crank shaft seal and cam shaft seal, rocker cover breather oring, rocker cover gasket. Even the oil filler plug has a seal that shrinks over time.

The vacuum pump can leak oil, oil leaks around oil cooler lines, oil filter housing and oil pressure switch.

Then there’s the cooling system. Ensuring the radiator is clean (inside and also outside for airflow) and the thermostat and radiator cap are replaced regularly. If the heater has been bypassed, make sure the water flow still flows through the head correctly. This is essential. TDi’s overheat easily if not maintained.

Onto the brakes, check for cracks in the booster where the master cylinder is bolted.

Wheel bearings often need adjustment especially if running larger wheels and tyres.

The 300Tdi is not built for speed, however with some tweaking, 105hp/570ftlb at the wheels (on 33” rubber) is easily achievable.

All the above are just some of my experiences on a 12 month 1998 build 130 300TDi with 307,000 kms currently on the Speedo. Over my 10 years of ownership, I now know the truck backwards and only once has it been on a tilt tray.... and that was in the first week of ownership and only due to poor maintenance by the previous owner.

Parts are cheap, easily available and this forum is a great source of info. If you can swing a spanned yourself, this will save you a lot of coin.

A lot of it boils down to how it’s been looked after in the past.

Cheers

Andrew

You still haven't put me off. I build gas turbine helicopter engines for a living. An have owned a series 3, which I rebuilt the gearbox and transfer case on. Been looking at these ones on Gumtree. Any opinions? Red hardtop, a Green 5 door, and a 130 single cab ute. All around the 14k . Sorry not sure how to add the links. Thanks again

If its just you and you plan on doing a desert trip get the 130

Originally Posted by Floydo

You still haven't put me off. I build gas turbine helicopter engines for a living. An have owned a series 3, which I rebuilt the gearbox and transfer case on. Been looking at these ones on Gumtree. Any opinions? Red hardtop, a Green 5 door, and a 130 single cab ute. All around the 14k . Sorry not sure how to add the links. Thanks again

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