My pick would probably be the 190D 2.5, manual. If you could find one, that's not been abused by some college kid who's idea of maintenance is filling the radiator with water. I remember road test reviewing these cars when they came out, and they were fantastic! Fun to drive, quite, very good on fuel, and very tightly built (actually, better than some other M-B cars at the time, as Mercedes was intent on this "baby benz" being perceived as the genuine article).

A common problem with the 190's as they were passed down to neglectful kids pretty frequently (at least by the condition I see most of these cars in, it's clear someone owned them with a "disposable car" attitude).

A nice clean, lower mileage, well maintained 240D manual would be hard to beat, for ease of repair.

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1983 W123 300TD US spec Turbo engine, with Euro bumpers and manual climate control, and manual transmission.