W124/W126

pepsilol

pepsilol

pepsilol

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Joined
26 Jun 2011
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Anyone owned any of these from this era?

Quite fancy one of these just purely for the lulz.

Always loved the older shaped mercs, rust appears to be a big hindrance but it's not uncommon to find some that have been meticulously maintained.
 
My father had a W126. Sadly it was 30 years ago so I can't remember too much and I suspect the ownership experience is very different today. ;) I can sort of see the appeal though if you find a good one. Should be well put together and solid but unspectacular. The levels of refinement I vaguely remember as amazing are probably out classed by a modern Ford nowadays but if we all went for the same thing it'd be boring.
 
pepsilol said:
Anyone owned any of these from this era?

Quite fancy one of these just purely for the lulz.

Always loved the older shaped mercs, rust appears to be a big hindrance but it's not uncommon to find some that have been meticulously maintained.
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Which are you after, a Saloon/Estate/Coupe/Cabriolet in the W124 form?

As far as I know as my late father owned 2 W124's, 2 W123's and W203 Merc, the W123/W124's were untouchable. He only had estates and to put it in simpler terms, they are built like Tanks. They're solid, engines are solid, interior is solid, the doors sound like they're for a boeing 747, they're just so heavy and sound pristine when closed.

The W124's are getting on a bit now, and it's rare to find a good example, the coupe's/cab's hold a premium, seen some go around for £5/6k for what are 16 year old cars. But least to say they are in very good nick with FSH.

However as with any Merc parts are quite expensive, but I doubt there is much to go wrong with a W124. I don't have knowledge on the W126's so can't help you there.

Personally if you do buy a W124 please don't buy one with 4 speed AUTO transmission as it's crap if you're going to use it on the motorway. Get a Manual or 5 speed AUTO. E220's are good, unless you can find a pre 90's 230TE which are imo good bang for the buck engines. E280's/E300, are the bigger engines and give more horses if you want a bit of power under your right foot.
 
My dad has a 200TE H reg that he's had from new! so w124.

Despite the above "it's a crap auto" comment it's fine. he only thing is it drinks a bit of fuel. But it's 200k miles in and is still a really comfy cruiser that is HUGE.

They are actually going up in value and they cost a small fortune to keep in good condition but my dad has paid to keep it up and it's as reliable as anything out there!

As with a bove they are HEAVY machines - a bus tried it on with dad once and the bus came off with a huge dent where as the merc had a broken light...

I think the 300 would be my choice to give it a bit more poke as it is so heavy but i'm not sure that's what they are about...i.e. i've had 125mph out of it on the autobahn so it's adequate...
 
It's not crap, it's just old. It was a perfectly good box in its day.

Surely the 4 speed ones have a different set of gear ratios anyway to resolve the cruising issue? A 4 speed 528i doesn't cruise at 3000rpm for example.
 
[TW]Fox;20872514 said:
It's not crap, it's just old. It was a perfectly good box in its day.

Surely the 4 speed ones have a different set of gear ratios anyway to resolve the cruising issue? A 4 speed 528i doesn't cruise at 3000rpm for example.
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I personally think they were quite short in the E220 Merc. At 70 IIRC the revs were at around 4-4.5k. Quite high for cruising imo.
 
What? I would be absolutely astounded if an E220 Mercedes Automatic revved at 4500rpm at 70.

Infact I challenge myself to find the gear ratios and calculate it. BACK SOON
 
[TW]Fox;20872675 said:
Done - 3000rpm is 70mph on a 4 speed W124 with 195/65/15 tyres.
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:o My memory must really be buggy then. I swear it sat at 4-4.5k, guessing good old Daddy must have been doing 80.

Apologise for the incorrect information.
 
The 500SEL is a gorgeous gorgeous car but if you don't need the rear doors I'd personally get an SEC on the AMG III style dished alloys with the polished lip. Absolutely amazing cars even today.

<3 <3
 
DRZ said:
The 500SEL is a gorgeous gorgeous car but if you don't need the rear doors I'd personally get an SEC on the AMG III style dished alloys with the polished lip. Absolutely amazing cars even today.

<3 <3
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This.

I'm waiting another year or two and then the late 80s ones will be 25 years old and I won't have to pay €3000 a year to tax a 560 \o/
 
I just want it just as a "why not" type second car, and the SEC go for quite a bit more than the SELs so it's not really worth going after the coupe.

I'm going to try and look for a mint as possible SE or SEL.

If I really like the SEL then I would most likely go after an SEC the second time.

Apart from PH, AT, ebay and Carclassic, where else should I look.

Im also browsing around the MB forums but it seems rare to find one there.
 
mjt said:
This.

I'm waiting another year or two and then the late 80s ones will be 25 years old and I won't have to pay €3000 a year to tax a 560 \o/
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Same thoughts here, although it's 30 years old in Ireland. I'll be looking for a clean pre 84 SEC in a couple of years :D They are absolutely stunning cars.
 
The 560SEC is amazing. I would have one in my dream garage. I had a ride in one not so long ago. Huge power and a lovely wafty ride. Stunning looks with the AMG kit too!

If the car is "for the lulz" then surely a coupe is where you're looking E class or S?
 
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