I've got a line on a 240D automatic like I've been looking for.
The story is, the previous owner had someone break out a rear window to steal something. She brought the car home, put a tarp over the rear of the car, and it sat a while. That's why the front is a different color than the rear:
http://s41.photobucket.com/albums/e288/dogohunter/240D/

My big concern is rust. In particular, see this picture:
http://s41.photobucket.com/albums/e288/dogohunter/240D/?action=view&current=IMG_1418.jpg
It will come up reduced, click on it once to enlarge.

See the rust below the taillight, and between the taillight and license plate? Am I correct in guessing that's rust coming through from the inside, where water sat on the floor of the trunk?

The price is ok, the interior is good and he says it's operable but I don't want to get a rustbucket and it's going to be a 200+ mile round trip for me to look at this one. I'm hoping to take advantage of your collective experience on HOW a W123 tends to rust to see if it's worth going out there. Is a car with this likely to be in sad shape?

BTW, I have no experience with body repair, but is an angle grinder a good tool for removing rusty car body metal?