My 300E is my daily driver during the Winter. I have an issue with the a/c that keeps me from driving it in the Summer. That really is just an excuse, because in the Summer it gives me a reason to drive my 300HP Mustang GT, five speed.

Anyway, I put my 300E away in the back of my old shop last April. The week before Thanksgiving I charged the battery, started it up and went for a State Inspection. I have driven it every day since then without incident.

Mine is a RARE 88, US, five speed car of which only 300 and something were brought to the US. It has 309,000 miles and runs perfectly. It uses a quart of oil in 3,333 miles which is when I change it anyway.

The car gets a consistent 27MPG on my 21 mile one way commute to work over a narrow, winding farm road with the cruise control set. On vacation to the New Mexico mountains a few years ago, the car AVERAGED a fraction over 30MPG for the whole trip.

IMHO, the 124 300E OR the 123 240D is the best car ever built. When in the drivers seat the advantage is CLEARLY in favor of the 300E. The handling and driving prowess puts the 123 cars to shame. When it comes, however, to the time to raise the hood and get out the wrenches, the 123 cars are the CLEAR winners.

The long and short of it is that the 300E is one of the best cars ever built. Period.

BTW, the valve burning issues were with the very early cars. The 90 model has none of these issues.

For $3,000, providing the car is in any decent condition at all, you will be hard pressed to come up with a better daily driver.