I'll have to admit that I'm not a fan of diesels, so I'm laying my cards on the table, and you'll have to excuse me for my bias.

Knowing that his wife drives with a lead foot and that her last car was a BMW, I can't imagine that if she has any input at all, she would ever want to own an older MB diesel, especially a 240D.

I know that diesels get better gas mileage than the combustion engines, but the maintenance and repairs that a 20 year old car will feasibly need has to be enormous. Even if he finds one that is a cream puff, it is still likely to need more than normal reconditioning than a late eighties to early nineties MB.

After reading all the posts (without him laying down a budget), I say with a reasonable budget, he should get a W124 or a 94-95 C class, or a Volvo (240 / 740 / 850 model). You get a car that has reasonable power, a good reputation for durability and longevity, and crash worthiness (it appears she needs it).

Respecfully,

Paul S.

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Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

Public transportation .................for EVERYONE'S safety!!

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Dale, R129
W202

Actually, the 240D is a pretty low maintenance car. Granted, mine has some pretty major issues, but I bought it that way, and it is not reflective of what other owners experience. My 240D has not one single power option, save for power steering. No automatic transmission to have to mess with, and has a rep for running several hundreds of thousands of miles. While I do feel that I overpaid for the problems I bought, I'm working towards having a vehicle that will run probably the rest of my life, (and I'm only 31), with very little maintenance once the problems are addressed.

These little cars are built like tanks, making for a safe ride. They are slow, helping to alleviate his wifes problem with the two setting gas pedal, and as reliable as gravity making for peace of mind.

No problem on your bias against diesels. They are not for everybody, just those who like a different kind of car, and tend to want to keep them for a long time. I'm getting tired of payments. I hate the Saturn that I bought. I'm getting rid of it next fall for a Jetta Wagon TDI. It will last twice as long as the payment book, even with my 30K miles per year driving habit.