Nice old one funky colour scheme

mariesnowgoose said:
Not so weird, but still a rare sight, I spotted this while out and about today.

A lovely old Merc 508D. It was parked up outside a local auto electricians waiting to have something fixed (heh, no surprise there!).

It's an import from Germany, apparently. Can't help myself, I do love 'em! 😍

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A friend of mine has similar. To big to get anywhere off the beaten track, grounds out with the big overhang and breaks down every time he uses it. Totally impractical.
 
caledonia said:
A friend of mine has similar. To big to get anywhere off the beaten track, grounds out with the big overhang and breaks down every time he uses it. Totally impractical.
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That surprises me. As Mr Bear says, it's breaking down because something is very wrong and needs fixing.

Those old Mercs are often a vehicle of choice for getting off the beaten track, so that surprises me too, especially if used overseas.
Unless you mean limited just in the UK because of very narrow country lanes? But even then... combine harvesters? massive tractors?

The size is no different to big modern motorhomes with an overhang I would think? They're only 7.5 tonne trucks in reality.
Not that big. I can drive one on my license and have done so, they're pretty much a doddle - as long as the engine is running right! ;) :)

There are loads of videos and info out there proving they are good for going off the beaten track.
Take your pick. As long as you don't go at it as if you're in a Derbyshire hill climbing competition! 😁

Just one example below...


... and another fairly recent video, about to go from Maine to Argentina...

 
Driven many vehicles, from artic trucks to 70plus ton earthmoving equipment, never had any issues getting anywhere. Access problems could be more to do with the driver than the vehicle.....
 
mariesnowgoose said:
That surprises me. As Mr Bear says, it's breaking down because something is very wrong and needs fixing.

Those old Mercs are often a vehicle of choice for getting off the beaten track, so that surprises me too, especially if used overseas.
Unless you mean limited just in the UK because of very narrow country lanes? But even then... combine harvesters? massive tractors?

The size is no different to big modern motorhomes with an overhang I would think? They're only 7.5 tonne trucks in reality.
Not that big. I can drive one on my license and have done so, they're pretty much a doddle - as long as the engine is running right! ;) :)

There are loads of videos and info out there proving they are good for going off the beaten track.
Take your pick. As long as you don't go at it as if you're in a Derbyshire hill climbing competition! 😁

Just one example below...


... and another fairly recent video, about to go from Maine to Argentina...

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My friends is similar to this and is rather low to the ground and has a long overhang which he has damaged getting on the Corran ferry and it’s not easy to manoeuvre in a bumpy forestry commission car park. It’s let him down loads of times with cracked injector pipes, clutch slave cylinder, starter motor, brake shoes linings falling off, prop shaft universal joints. Being an older vehicle parts aren’t normally on the shelf making things a problem. So not the bullit proof go anywhere vehicle other mercs maybe.
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These vans are all 40/50+ years old, sure they've rusted, but you can hardly call them rust buckets. Where are all the Fiat/Iveco OM vans from that era, you hardly ever see a first generation Daily on the road, and they are far younger. Wheres the Opel Blitz's , and what about the Ford A series? Yes, exactly, barring the rare "barn find" they've all been scrapped long ago, yet you still plenty of old Dusseldorfers plodding around. :)
 
Reckon people are prepared to save the old mercs because of their legendary reliability. As you say, they're old as the hills now so any that are still around are doing OK I suppose.....
 
caledonia said:
My friends is similar to this and is rather low to the ground and has a long overhang which he has damaged getting on the Corran ferry and it’s not easy to manoeuvre in a bumpy forestry commission car park. It’s let him down loads of times with cracked injector pipes, clutch slave cylinder, starter motor, brake shoes linings falling off, prop shaft universal joints. Being an older vehicle parts aren’t normally on the shelf making things a problem. So not the bullit proof go anywhere vehicle other mercs maybe. View attachment 77351
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I sold my 207d two years ago, probably the most reliable vehicle I've ever owned in my life but nothing goes forever without a bit of pre-emptive maintenance,I would take it back in a heartbeat if it wasn't too small for my needs. Parts are easy to get for the old mercs,can get most things in the UK and anything else will be available in Europe,I also found parts very cheap,as an example an entire exhaust system from Germany cost me under £100 delivered.
 
caledonia said:
My friends is similar to this and is rather low to the ground and has a long overhang which he has damaged getting on the Corran ferry and it’s not easy to manoeuvre in a bumpy forestry commission car park. It’s let him down loads of times with cracked injector pipes, clutch slave cylinder, starter motor, brake shoes linings falling off, prop shaft universal joints. Being an older vehicle parts aren’t normally on the shelf making things a problem. So not the bullit proof go anywhere vehicle other mercs maybe. View attachment 77351
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It's that 'skirt' that's the problem, then.

My old 811d had a huge gap between the bottom of the van and the ground, makes all the difference.
 
Had a 1981 307d pickup some years ago, loved it. Bit steady but would go on & on never missed a beat. One of the best motors I ever had. Lab chassis too, if I still had it now I would drop a 14ft caravan on the chassis & away you go....😜
 
GreggBear said:
Driven many vehicles, from artic trucks to 70plus ton earthmoving equipment, never had any issues getting anywhere. Access problems could be more to do with the driver than the vehicle.....
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maybe maybe not,have you been to donegal and seen some of the old rds. :eek:
 
No but I used to deliver/pick up from a lot of farms in the dales & similar places, farm tracks narrower than my wagon regularly had to fold both mirrors in & run both side wheels on the verges to get through. Many times some old boy would say "we've had bigger wagons than that in here"
Used to tell them " no you haven't, this is as big as they get!"....
 
When I was involved with truck rental the merc actros.was a complete nightmare with electrics and overshadowed the Mercedes reputation , howevervthe 7.5;tonnes hauliers in the know loved them not, the quickest not the most payload non of that and were plodders ...but they loved their reliability a couple even often requested them particularly going abroad
 
Robmac said:
I always wanted one of the UPS vans (The brown Mercs with the sliding driver and passenger doors).

They would never sell them off to the public though, I believe they were always scrapped when replaced.
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Apparently they just run them into the ground here then use them as donors for the others in the fleet. Have seen a few in private ownership mostly LHD models, I believe they do get sold occasionally on the continent. The modern Sprinter variant looks good too, big body & a sliding bulkhead door. The other ones to watch are the Amazon vans. They have a nice bulkhead with door too....
 
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