Hello,

I'm back for more! Back in the late 90's I owned a 1984 300D turbo diesel. What a great car. I sold it only because the back window body area had finally rusted out beyond repair. Regardless, it had 300k miles on it when I bought it, and 430k miles when I sold it. It was the most reliable car I ever had! Great fuel mileage, good power, Very few issues, all original engine and trans.

Ok since then I've been driving a 99 VW TDI

However, I'm considering looking at Mercedes diesels again.

Any good info or recommendations for the best diesel models? I'd love to get another 123 body 300d but they are very hard to find.

How are the 1st gen or 2nd gen E-class diesels? I was considering a 97 E300D but then read that they are notorious for transmission issues and rusting. Also I'd prefer to have a turbo.

Thanks!

1982 - 1985 300DTs are great cars. That said, some of the parts are showing up at the dealer as NLA. Unfortunately this trend began around five years ago and shows no hope of improving. I've heard of people owning 4 -5 W123s just so they can have extra cars for parts. I would think you would need an extra large garage or storage area to do this......

"Best" is a very subjective word. I'm sure if you asked everyone on this forum, THEIR car would be the "best".

Each version has it's own strengths and weaknesses. The 123's are getting old and parts are harder to come by. The early 126's are in a similar boat, the late 126's (300SDL, 350SD, 350SDL) have a different engine that seems to carry a love/hate reputation (I love my 300SDL for the record). The 124's were broken into a couple of generations, the earlier ones had the same engine/transmission as the 2nd gen 126's, the later generation had the 2.5L. The 1995 had the N/A 606. '96/97 210s had the N/A 606 and the wimpy transmission you mention. The '98/99 was turbocharged and came with the much improved 722.6. Some here love the '05/06 CDI's, but be aware of the SBC issues and the injector "black death" that requires attention. They seem to be pretty solid cars otherwise. The later diesels just don't seem to be as well made. Issues with oil coolers, transmission problems, electronics, emissions controls, etc.

Making a long story short, there is no "best", it's subjective to who asked the question!

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Current stable:
1995 E320 149K (Nancy)
1983 500SL 120K (SLoL)

Black Sheep:
1985 524TD 167K (TotalDumpster™)

Gone but not forgotten:
1986 300SDL (RIP)
1991 350SD
1991 560SEL
1990 560SEL
1986 500SEL Euro (Rusted to nothing at 47K!)

1st generation (124.1xx) are not far behind the 123 cars in terms of reliability. More plastic (inside and out), more analog electronics to go bad, but far better handling, faster acceleration, cleaner exhaust. Overall they are a little cheaper in terms of interior quality. Engine and transmission are much improved for performance but a little more fragile. Big difference: hydraulic lifters so you don't need to adjust the valves every year.


2nd generation (210.1xx) I have no experience with, but I think they move further along the continuum away from the 123 (cheapening / lower quality, but improved performance).


I think the 124 cars hit a peak as far as rust-resistance, comparing 123 / 124 / 210.


Don't knock the non-turbo 124 and 210, the OM606 is a very nice engine and you may like it. I've got a '95 E300 (124.131) with that engine and she does just fine accelerating off the line and holding her own in city and highway traffic. Not going to win too many races, but far from the slowest car on the road today.

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Respectfully,
/s/
M. Dillon
'87 124.193 (300TD) "White Whale", ~392k miles, 3.5l IP fitted
'95 124.131 (E300) "Sapphire", 380k miles
'73 Balboa 20 "Sanctification"
Charleston SC

OM617 is a solid and reliable German motor.


Up until 2006 is when Mercedes became an regular car company. Most cars they made before still have that genuine Mercedes touch.

__________________
Nosce Te Ipsum "Know thyself"

1978-1980 W116 300SD if you convert the climate control, sunroof, and windows to manual. c:

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Stop paying for animal enslavement, cruelty, and slaughter. Save your health and the planet. Go vegan! I did 18 years ago. https://challenge22.com/

DON'T MESS WITH MY MERCEDES!


1967 W110 Universal Wagon, Euro, Turbo Diesel, Tail Fins, 4 Speed Manual Column Shift, A/C
1980 W116 300SD Turbo Diesel, DB479 Walnut Brown, Sunroof, Highly Optioned, 350,000+ Miles

1) If you like W123 then stay with them.
2) W124 1987 300D
3) W126 1986-1987 300SDL
4) W124 1990-1993 2.5L 300D
5) W201 probably all model years.

I would not care much about the other diesels. New diesels have too many electronic and is nothing but trouble. The list above is easy to DIY and have above average reliability. The bottom line, "Best" is relative plus how deep is your pocket to make it "Best".

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Not MBZ nor A/C trained professional but a die-hard DIY and green engineer. Use the info at your own peril. Picked up 2 Infractions because of disagreements. NOW reversed.

W124 Keyless remote, PM for details. http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/mercedes-used-parts-sale-wanted/334620-fs-w124-chasis-keyless-remote-%2450-shipped.html

1 X 2006 CDI
1 x 87 300SDL
1 x 87 300D
1 x 87 300TDT wagon
1 x 83 300D
1 x 84 190D ( 5 sp ) - All R134 converted + keyless entry.

Having owned a 1992 2.5 Turbo w124, j will say that engin was fairly complicated vacuum system wise and it ALWAYS had a leak someplace and it was getting tough to find parts at a decent price. Now I have a 1999 E300D with the Turbo OM606 and I find it honestly be to WAY more maintenance friendly and yes it's electronic but with it still being IDI it's a super simple system. Parts are dirt cheap and available everywhere, transmission is flawless, others will agree the 722.6 tranny is a beast and was light-years ahead if it's time. Efficiancy and power have a great middle ground and the suspension is a dream, this car can handle anything you throw at it. (I'm biased, but there are others that will agree) sure the interior has plastic, but I have found you can readily replace any of it for cheap and the Auto Climate Control is a very reliable system. It will tell you exactly what's wrong if anything should fail and you can test the entire system, without any equipment. I would say 1998 and 1999 w210 are best bang for buck, picked mine up for $2100 l and it has 179,000 miles. (One downside is glowplugs but if you do it right there will be no issue)

Thank you! Great info.

Thanks, appreciate the details! Glad to hear good things about the 722.6 tranny. This car would be for my daughter & grandson, but I'll be helping with the maintenance so it's good to hear reviews like this to get some idea what were in for.

The climate control is Chrysler junk, yes does need conversion
Sunroof and Windows have given few problems, just need to be cleaned and lubricated, as well as the switches and your good for another 20 years.


What everyone has said in this thread though is spot on.

__________________
Nosce Te Ipsum "Know thyself"

True, but a late-1950's system used only in prestige Chryslers. 1960-80's Chryslers has basic manual temperature controls (some cable-actuated, some vacuum pods), based on the cars I owned (1964 thru 1982). The automatic temperature control in my 1984 & 85 M-B cars is also unreliable and erratic, but at least has a better chance of being fixable by swapping parts.

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1984 & 1985 CA 300D's
1964 & 65 Mopar's - Valiant, Dart, Newport
1996 & 2002 Chrysler minivans

One thing I would add is that much of the decision will come down to what is available to you in your area, price point, timeframe, etc. The vast majority of the older diesels will require a lot of maintenance to get them up to a daily driver status and are probably overpriced even at lower prices. Some of them IMO are just parts cars that haven't died yet. But, I would take the time to find the gem if it meets your specs. I got my 1984 300D with no rust at 108K miles and it has been my only daily driver since (now at 180K miles). Everything on the car is better than when I bought it except for a few small fender dents.

Dkr.

I'm like you... had an '84 300D, went to an '02 TDI and recently picked up a '91 300D.

I wanted another w123, but finding one that could serve as a daily driver (with a 70 mile daily commute) was difficult. I found plenty that were mechanically ok, but all that I looked at were rust buckets, had body damage or serious paint issues, interiors were a wreck. A couple nice ones popped up that were relatively rust free, but the owners were asking large sums that I wasn't prepared to spend.

I stumbled across my w124. Rust free. One owner. 113,000 miles. Not exactly what I wanted, but I got it anyway. I am very happy. Still easy to work on. Parts are widely available. And it is an order of magnitude more comfortable to drive than my w123 (I know... heresy). And it gets 38 mpg on road trips (my w123 got 30 exactly once). My average mpg is 33 (my w123, 26).

I can't say that the w124 is the "best" but it deserves serious consideration.

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1991 300D 2.5 "Rocinante"
2002 Golf TDI "Teen Spirit"
--------------------
1984 300D
1966 Mustang I6 3sp
1985 Mazda RX-7 GSLSE
1982 Toyota Supra
1977 Datsun 280z
1971 Datsun 240z

I've owned MB diesels from 83 to 06. All have their strengths and weaknesses. The W210 (98 and 99 E300) are wonderful and can be picked up cheap...but be prepared to spend money on rust repair over the years (and the spring perches in particular are a safety concern). In the five years we've owned ours, I've probably spend $1200 solely on rust repair.

If you can spend $6-7,000, I don't see how you can do better than an 05/06 CDI (unless you need/want a car with a "retro" feel). Performance, reliability, comfort....you name it, it has it.

Don't let anyone scare you off with the SBC. It's a feature, not a flaw. Once every 200,000 miles or so the car tells you you need to replace the SBC pump. And so you do. No big deal. Better still, you rebuild both the pump and the accumulator at the same time for $430 plus labor. Hardly an expensive repair.

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14 E250 Bluetec "Sinclair", Palladium Silver on Black, 153k miles
06 E320 CDI "Rutherford", Black on Tan, 171k mi, Stage 1 tune, tuned TCU
91 300D "Otis", Smoke Silver, 142k mi, wastegate conversion

19 Honda CR-V EX 61k mi
Fourteen other MB's owned and sold
1961 Very Tolerant Wife