Quote:
Originally Posted by pawoSD
I'm sure an '87 300TD is an awesome car....but they are so rare and do have their issues, in my case the W203 has been great. 0 problems, smooth, quiet, everything works...no rust issues, no SLS to deal with....bulletproof M112+722.6 powertrain.... I am becoming a big fan of the W210 and W203. What is happening to me. 
At this point an '87 is over 27 years old..... |
Your last sentence hit the nail on the head.
As the former owner of the subject car for 13 years, at some point you NEED to upgrade the car if you are putting it in prime car duty.
While my wife dearly loved her 87 300TD, there came a point where mileage and age raised too many red flags for the car to serve as one of the primary cars in our family. For me, it was a combination of events that led me to replace the 300TD. First, my next door neighbor was so pleased with the 400E I had sold him had a standing offer on the 300TD. Secondly, a good friend was selling a mint 95 E320 wagon, with low mileage.
It just made sense to move from a car with over 250K on it to a 9 year newer car ( yes I know, but our 300TD was made in 86) with 1/3 the mileage. We got a premium price for the 300TD and moved on. With the exception of fuel mileage, and at the now low rate of annual mileage my wife now accumulates, the extra efficiency of the diesel didn't make much difference. In every other aspect, the 95 was(is) a superior car to the 87 300TD. While my wife still misses the old diesel, I enjoy not having to address the issues that crop up on a high mileage, old car. I have lots of other old, needy cars, but as I said, this was a PRIMARY car, not a hobby car. We kept both for a year, but having two essentially identical cars just didn't make sense, with all the other cars we have.
I've owned nearly every permutation of MB diesel over the last 30 years (and those few I've missed, were owned by relatives), and if there is one consistent factor, it's that the next gen is always a nicer car. A corollary to that is that the last year is always much nicer than the first.
The W211 CDI I bought from Tyler last year is truly amazing. I cannot imagine anyone could prefer the 87 300TD to the CDI once they have experienced the W211. Now that the kids are out of the house, our 95 E320 gets few miles on it, so I plan to keep both the wagon and the cab for a long time, the W124 is a very nice car, no doubt about it.
But... time marches on.
Jim