You mean your 01V didn't hold up? Unpossible :D

-J

I got completely scalded on my first w201; but drove it for three years anyway. By then I knew what I was looking at, and my current 190d is a real gem. There is a learning curve here, and I have a lifetime of keeping >20 year old cars on the road. The difference between a 20yo Merc and a 20 yo Ford is that the Ford isnt worth the effort to fix when you are done, but the Merc is.

But make no mistake, a 20 yo automobile of any make will require a lot of maintenance, and if you cant do it yourself, they cost as much as a new car.

Faith man...

I jumped in my 116 at 2 am and drove 175 miles. Did my shift, jumped back in that sucker and drove it home...

Holy. Freakin. Crap
 

I expected a few responses to my post, but certainly not over two pages of discussion from some very knowledgable folks! Thanks a ton! This is exactly what I was looking for. Although I must say it hasn't really made my decision any easier...

I think what really stood out to me is that most of you consider these hobby cars and I had never thought about it from that perspective before. So while they have an undeniable cool factor, they really aren't the indestructable beasts that internet legend has made them out to be and therefore still need just as much work as most other 30 year old cars. Imagine that... It was really refreshing to read such honest assesments from so many enthusiasts.

Even though this thread has given me a lot more to think about, ya'll haven't quite talked me out of one yet. ;) I'm still going to try to look at the two mentioned in my first post this weekend. Although I think I've pretty much ruled out the 115, I still would like to see it. Y'know, just in case I decide it's ridiculously awesome and I can't live with out it. Here are the CL ads for the two that caught my eye:

1976 W114/115

1979 W123

I know the descriptions are limited, but are there any comments or thoughts on these two? And again, thanks a ton for all of the great responses. This has all been incredibly helpful.

Aaron

Another thing to consider is insurance value. You're not going to get anywhere near $4-5000 if a car like that gets hit even if it's not your fault, at least not without getting lawyers involved. It'll automatically be totaled by a shopping cart dent. Discuss specific scenarios with your insurance agent to make sure you'll get back more than your first premium payment if the unthinkable should happen.

Sixto
87 300D

best advice ever. an old diesel merc will undoubtably become your baby or worst nightmare. i tinker with my diesel more than my volkswagen thats tuned to within an inch of it's life! these cars are everything like high maintenance ladies. that said i'll always have one in my diverse fleet.
http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot...3_344009_n.jpg

Don't have anything older than an 81 but, I can share my view.

Good points,
1. They are cheap and easy to work on and fix, tons of help right here.
2. Cheap to insure, My 81 and and 85 together cost 33 bucks a month.
3. Cheap to register, 22 bucks a year for tags
4. Will run even if there are issues. Very rare to have one just leave you stranded. (In my case read this as "NEVER left me stranded")
5. have a ton of room in them, huge trunks etc...
6. Great MPG. I average 27 in my 81 and almost 30 in my 85.

Bad point.
90% of parts you need, need to be ordered, so there is a wait.
Honestly thats about it...

The 81 is geared for 55, but will run all day long at 65-70, in comparison the 85 will run at 85+ without trying.

I have 3 kids. 5,3 and 5 months. I can fit all 3 car seats in the back seat fine. (I can not fit all three across the back seat of a hyundai santa fe) This goes for my 300cd coupe as well. There is simply more room from side to side.

To give you an idea of repair costs.

I had a full set of brakes put on the 81 Cost was under 80 bucks for all
parts and labor. Same job on my 99 E320 wagon was 300.

Replaced all the tie rods on the 81, all the parts were something like 45 bucks and my shop hit me for another 60 to do the work.

I try and do all the work I can myself, but I don't have a lift and some things are well, just not busting your knuckles over for the cost of having someone else do it.

I drive my cars daily. The first MB I ever bought was my 87 300D. Yes its a very nice ride, feels totally different than the W123. Smooth and fast. But it's been down with a cracked head since last fall. I have all the parts here to fix it, but the guy thats going to put it back together got swamped due to the local tornados and has not been free to even get back on it. (he had contracts to the emergency trash and tree removal companies) Honestly, once it's redone I'll sell it as I've really come to enjoy the w123 more.

If your doing a lot of hill climbing or interstate driving... then the 82 up with turbo is a must. I've driven my 81 on dozens of 4+hour round trips and it's done fine, but it's loud and if your not use to hearing the engine scream at 75 can make you wonder if it's going to all hold together lol!. (it does). Same trips in my 85 feel a lot more like a modern car, due to the higher gearing. at 75 I'm doing 3k RMPS. The extra sound proofing makes the car almost silent in comparison.

The 85 Scoots. I have it's kkk turbo turned up to give me a max or 19 psi boost. (normal around 12-13) and it's really woken up the engine and the cars performance. I can enter the interstate now and be at speed (75) before I hit the end of the ramp. Plus I can actually kick it down and pass when I feel like it.

I like my 85 so much I just bought another 85 4 door. You can find these cheap.

repairs can get you in a pickle... Like my current dilemma, My 81 has a new A/C compressor on it, a new Alternator and a new starter plus a new power antenna and perfectly working smooth sunroof. My 85CD needs a compressor and my new 85D needs a starter and a new antenna brakes and could use the front and rear bumper as the rubber strip is coming off (and I'm sure a few other things) Do I part a perfectly good running 81 for these parts? Or sell the car and buy the parts. I've been asking 2k OBO for the 81 will little interest so it's looking like I'll be parting it out. Shame for such a good running car. But, I know in total I would get more out of it than my asking price.

As to the main question of using them as a daily driver. Not an issue. Your starting with a solid dependable platform. One that fixed and kept up has no problems going for all rights indefinitely. What you save on insurance and new car payments more than makes up for what your spending to drive these. In fact, I could buy another W123 class car in the 1000 range every month in what I save. (My old car payment was 785 Plus 110 for insurance and 400 a year to title)

So if your going to be cheap like me, then be cheap with style ;)

What he said. I have owned my 81 SD for 14 years, last 4 or so as a daily driver. I do have 3 advantages that greatly help me keep it on the road: 1) I work from home, so I do not drive every day. 2) I have another car to borrow in a pinch 3) When I do drive for business, which is typically 100's of miles, I get reimbursed mileage. This has allowed me to maintain/upgrade before any problems start.

The only time I got stranded was when I tried to stretch a tank of fuel unsuccessfully :o

I bought a 1984 300SD with 135k miles last year for $2,000. Took it to my local mechanic and it needed the following:
New Motor Mounts
New Ball Joints and Upper control arm for the front axle
1 Vacuum hose replacement

I also had him do a transmission fluid flush for a grand total of $1600. So as stated earlier, tack on at least $1500 to the price to get the car in good running shape. Or better yet bring the car to a mechanic before you buy it and have them tell you what it needs. I would have but the car was so far away I took the gamble since it was only $2,000 and I saw that it had no rust outside or underneath and it passed the blow-by test and test drove nicely. The car is not in perfect condition, the interior could use some work and the A/C condenser is frozen over. I'm going to get quotes from an upholstery place (It's mainly just the roof interior that could use some fixing up) and maybe see about getting the AC fixed but since I live by the coast it rarely gets hotter than 75 here, so not a big deal for me. I hope this gives you a general idea in what to expect. The engines on the diesels if maintained properly can last a long time (oil and fuel filter changes are easy on these), it's the other things that you may not be able to do yourself that cost a pretty penny. All in all I'm happy with my purchase, cheap to insure, good mileage and no smog tests save money and to me is much cheaper than a new car.

Great cars, you should absolutely get one. I just wouldn't count on a 30 year old car as a daily driver.

When I had my W126's I had them pretty well sorted, well the SDL very well and that was a pretty good DD, it never really let me down. The SD OTOH left me stuck a couple of times.

The best way to own old Mercedes is to have a late modern reliable car to get you around when the Merc breaks, because it will.:D

If you buy one and get to know how it works, and spend a bit of money and time sorting it, than yes possible in a year or two it will be sorted enough to be a reliable daily ride. To a point.

Another thing that attracts me to older cars is their lack of dependancy on complicated electronics. The way I see it, it is just one less thing to go wrong. So my question is, since these were luxury vehicles in their day, do they still have reletively complicated electrical systems?

I realize that this is kind of a vague question but any insight is appreciated.


Aaron

PS - I am going to test drive the 123 on Saturday and am really excited! Here is one of the pics of the interior the owner sent to me.

They have complicated vacuum systems to make up for complicated electronics :)

And one would wish the ACC were only complicated. It can also be unreliable.

Sixto
87 300D

I tend to drive old cars. Wife has a 97 Saturn. I hate that car but it is the least expensive one we own & gets 32 MPG at 80 mph. At 150,000 mi, I'm hoping it dies. The car came with my wife & I won't throw either out.

The 00 Diesel Ram is the money pit with its horribly weak front end & injection pump. I think most of the deferred maintenance will be finished this fall. It will tow straight up a wall & I like driving it - just don't like paying for it. The dash goes back in with new heater core this weekend.

The 78 Datsun Z has been relegated to toy status. Very reliable but I have a long list of wants before it goes back to a DD. Turbo transplant, modern (megasquirt) engine management, paint are on the list.

My 85SD needs the climate control fixed, better seats and paint. It is reliable but not my only transportation. With CC fixed, it will be comfortable anywhere. It always runs & expected problems have always turned out to be less trouble than predicted.

In short get an old MBZ but don't rely on it exclusively. Buy the best example you can find. It will be less expensive than fixing a project car. I'm partial to 81-85 SD.

:D Like I've said many times, electronics aren't necessarily harder to fix then older mechanical systems, they're just different.

Make sure you count the cost re maintenance and repairs. On my pair of 124's, my blended rate is 16.5 cents per mile over 120,000 miles of driving. I can do a few things myself, but pay my indie for most stuff.