That's terrible. I guess I've been lucky with my VW, but then again I've never taken it to a VW dealership. I bought it used and I do all my work. The Jetta does have some cheapness to it, namely interior rattles, but overall it's been a reliable vehicle so far. Other than routine maintenance I just had to replace the brake light switch which totally drained my battery one night. Good thing it happened in my garage.

Our 93 300d 2.5 turbo that cost $43K new just doesn't feel as good as the 91 350SDL that cost $68K new. The 350 feels like a mb, while the 300d is just an intermediate car. It's little things: smaller mirrors that don't give like the old cars, wide heater elements in the rear mirror vs. very tiny close spaced elements in the 91; no glove box, just small stuff....

The sweetest mb I own is the 83 manual 240D...

Why do I want a newer one?
 

The one I have, although showing no signs of impending demise, is showing some age. I travel a lot for work and I need to know that I won't be left beside the road in the middle of nowhere. I realize a new car can do that as well. But given the choice I hope one with 150K on the clock will be a little more dependable than one with 310K. I plan on keeping the old 124, probably as a first car for #2 son, who is 15.

Just looking for something a little newer, nicer and a little more comfortable. I was hoping a 210 would fit the bill. Thanks for your advice.

I am assuming you want a Diesel W210 since this was posted in the Diesel section but I have a 96 W210 with the M104 gas engine.
It currently has 196K miles on it. It has been a reliable car and I would say that it still drives like it was new.
I don't have any rust on the spring perches or any other part of the body.
No problems with the electrical system or any oil leaks.
Not sure if you have considered the gas model but I believe you can buy them pretty cheap these days. Also, I would recommend the M104 engine from the 96-97 MY instead of the V6.

All perfectly valid points, however.

I've travelled extensively around Europe, visited nearly every European country at some time or another. Outside nearly every single airport, without fail, will be a large fleet of W210 taxis. They all have starship mileage, and without fail all are smooth, quiet, and much loved by their owners.

Now if professional drivers like them, that says a lot - although I'm prepared to concede that Mercedes do help out by manufacturing a lot of components for taxi use.

I have a 1998 E300D TurboDiesel with 145,300 miles or so, I get right at 30 MPG, and have learned, thanks to this forum, how to do most of the maintenance. Repairs of the electronics have been another story. The added features enabled by the electronics are of little value to me, so I find the overall bargain - more features, lower reliability - not in my favor. One of the appealing features of the W123 chassis is its simplicity. Manual HVAC controls for the 240D that work fine today, without having replaced anything. Of the several I have owned and more that I have maintained in my family, I have replaced one heater valve on a 240D because it leaked. I know of nearly no one who has owned a W210 that has not had a duo-valve fail, which results in a lack of temperature control inside the car and costs an order of magnitude more, as a mere part.

The basic W210 is much more refined chassis than the W123, W124, and W126 chassis. The body slips through the air with substantially less drag (enabling that fuel mileage) and noise. I have had the front seats get wobbly and require new frames (warrantee work), something I never heard of on any prior MB. The same with self dimming outside mirrors. The W210 driver's side mirror is all funky. Unlike many of the other electronics that fail, the mirror is still functional, although staring through it would give you a headache.

Given the cost all this electronic crap adds to the cost of the vehicle, and how troublesome it has turned out (by the way, I have had no issues and know of no one who has, with the ABS, BAS, ASD, ESP, and so forth, which are safety related electronics instead of creature comfort electronics), I would love to have the chance to have ordered the car with minimal electronic stuff and more mechanical stuff. I see no need for the seats, or the memory stuff, or for a bunch of sensors and gadgets to regulate the temperature (what is wrong with turning the heat up if you are cold, or down if you are too warm? Or sending it to your feet by turning a selector knob if your feet need heat?) or a digital dashboard, and so on.

I believe the fall of MB quality is real, and it was driven by the demand, created by the Japanese manufacturers, for more and more electronic stuff. Overall I think the basic MB automobile is still an excellent machine, with few exceptions. The designs in production today can trace their mechanical heritage to the legacy machines we refer to with such reverence. They just happen to be part of machines with a more electronic interface with the owners, which is something MB actually sucks at. When the electronics are part of a safety system, MB is more than capable, which is an indication the lower quality result was an elected path, not a path that "had to happen." Someone suggest this is Schremp's legacy, which was to reap short term profits while eroding a century of building a reputation for rock solid quality. Some bargain. Jim

When I lived in Germany, and when I imported grey market cars here in the early and mid 1980's nearly everything was optional. Electric windows (another item I am not in favor of - I have long arms and can wind down any window in a W123 or W201 from the driver's seat) were purchased as front windows, and then rear windows, or just rear windows, for example. Even the sunroof was mechanical, with the electrically operated version an upgrade of the sunroof option. So, I believe many of the taxi cabs you see are simpler versions of the cars we know here in the W210 chassis, or the W203. In the old days, even the "S" class was available in a very base configuration with everything else optional. A simpler version would not have the automatic climate controls, although even the simplest versions of these cars now come with a standard A/C system, and likely have some electroncally controlled valves or air control flaps. Or the electric seats, or Xenon headlamps, and so on. Overall, if such cars were made available here, it is unlikely anyone would buy them. Americans seem to want to have an electronically enhanced, even if unreliable, interface with their vehicles. Jim

The main difference between older and simpler MB diesels and the newer ones comes down to cost of ownership, with the older ones you can drive them until rust kills the car, with the new MB's 100K or the end of extended warranty is when you need to move on, if you continue driving, it will cost you an arm & a leg, and if you can indeed afford an arm & a leg you might as well buy a new one and be happy.
A new MB from quality standpoint is no better or no worse than any other car, it is just expensive thanks to its reputation derived from its glorious past.

Vahe
240D 77