Even stock Civics will give you a run!!!! Badinfo man, you gotta have something wrong with your w124 if you're losing to stock 4 cylinder 1.6L Civics. I drive an 87 300E. Granted, the earlier ones were faster than the later ones, but you still shouldn't be having anyyyyy trouble with stock civics (unless they're SI in which case you might have trouble, but even still I've burnt stock SI's before). Anyways, I'm 17 and I first got my 124 about a year ago. I thought it was the greatest thing ever. I was the envy of all my friends and allllllllll the girls in the school wanted a ride. Not the dirty, slutty girls that have enough STD's to be quarantined... but the gorgeous, intelligent, well refined, classy girls that make for great dates. Let's just face it, American vehicles just don't cut it in a world market. German engineering is far superior to anything else in the world when it comes to automobiles. Personally, I think the only people I've seen cruising around in souped up mustangs and chevies are big hicks (those are the ones the dirty girls go for). A mercedes is a mercedes is a mercedes and that's the bottom line. Even at age 17, I know that I will probably only be able to drive a Mercedes my entire life. Going down to a chevy or a ford would be like dropping down from fine wine to cheap beer. What's next after you've experienced heaven? The answer is obvious=> MORE HEAVEN!

Just my thoughts,
ShuPIMPsky

Woa now... whoever was driving that SI can't shift... just look at the specs http://www.missouri.edu/~apcb20/times.html#Mercedes

use poor 300Ers get beat by lowly SIs :-( But yea, as far as a normal run of the mill civic goes... a 300E can beat it... but its just not very dramatic... I mean... youd think youd leave him in the dust... but its not that great. See, the thing about Austin is, people driving Suburbans and Expeditions think they can race. That is where the real fun is. You just toy with them till like 60... where the SUVs start shaking... and then put a quarter throttle on and leave them far behind :-) Now... back to whats more important... benzes grow on you. I know when I first got mine, I was dissapointed at how slow it was. (I had saved up for a 300ZX twin turbo... but the insurance simply said no...hehehe) But over the past couple months.... I just settle more and more into the car.... or should I say... I have developed a more and more exclusive (snobbish???) attitude towards other cars. I mean... a benz is a benz... everything else is rubbish.

But a 300E should pull away from a Si on the highway since Si's are geared just for acceleration and how so little torque at high rpm's.

V-TEC does kick in at 5500 rpm though. This would produce the extra thrust at higher rpms.

My thoughst....
Shubs

Yea.... lets just face it... at legal... or near legal speeds... the 300E just can't compete... its a total wussy car. It does, however, shine at higher 100+ speeds. Oh well, I should have put more thought into buying a "performance" car, but I was just so taken in by the benz! I guess you have to pay in someway for a Mercedes, you lose performance, but you get one heck of a car...

Hey now!!! The 300E is definetly not a wussy car!! Badinfo, you drive a 92, which happen to be the slower of the 300s produced. Sure, the car might be slow when you're comparing it to something that is made for performance like a porsche or a corvette, but it is definelty not slow compared to anything else on the road that is NOT made for performance. I like to think of it as the best of both worlds, it is a blend of performance and luxury. I went down to the track and dragged mine (pretty much stock except for exhaust modifications) and ran 16.2 . Not too shabby. Everybody has the rice rockets, everybody has the American thunder cars (ie camaro and mustang), but very few have a 300E that runs fast. Uniqueness is quite appealing

Shubs

Ditto. I love the older cars and my favourites are from 1985 - 1995. I was 5 when I rode in a 300E and even then I knew I shouldn't drool on those seats :p . The 400E was a nice, powerful step up and the SL500? Well, I like it!

Too much plastic, cost cutting and money making have turned the best luxury car company into something less, but still good. Quality is down and price is down. A Benz used to be something unique, but thats changing everyday as the newer models get slightly less and less regard. The new models aren't necessarily "bad" or "cheap", but they lack a little something. A little something the 560 SEC still has. Go for it!

- Arju

EDIT: No offense, but as a high school student try not to ding it. I know soooo many people with nice cars in high school who like them but have to put u the idiots that ding them. Keep an eye out for your car!

__________________
1997 SL500R
315hp | 345 lb-ft
Black | Two Tone Leather | Disappearing Roof

hehehe... I still maintain that my mercedes is a wussy car as far as low end performance in conserned. But then again, nobody even pretended that it was a performance car to start off with. But you know... its a bad feeling knowing the grand marquis sitting next to you can beat you off the line... hehe, but in the end, it doesn't matter, my car is a Benz, and therefore, it will always be a Benz, something that no other type of car can claim. (And, I am always comparing my car to every car I see on the road... just cause I can, and sadly, most of them (Oldsmobile Intrigues, Buick Regals) accelerate faster. And no, I don't see a lot of Intrigues or Regals, I live in Westlake, the notoriously wealthy part of Austin where my classmates drive Saleen Mustangs and f350 superheavy duties with 10 inch lifts... yes, life is TOUGH And no, my family is not wonderously rich either, we are happily well off, thanks to my dads Phd and years of hard work. Right, not quite sure why I went off on a tangent there, I was going to say that I mentioned regals and intrigues because those are some of the more humiliating cars to get burned by...)

Im 19, and have a 1990 300E. I must say, this is probably NOT the right car for someone this age. I agree, it sure stands out from your average Mustang or Civic, but I've realized all the raving thats done about this car are all in consolatory vain.

While my buds are having blasts rolling there M3's, A4's, Integra's, supercharged Civic SI's etc., I can only shake my head in disgust as I realize there are very few cars I can take off stoplights. But then again, whats the fun in beating a Saturn or Dodge Neon.

I agree the car flies in high RPMs, but how often do u get the chance to show it?

And all this talk about how it handles so well. Well it sure doesn't handle like my friend's Integra that just zigs and zags through the narrow roads in some of the hills around here. Impossible to keep up with, and its got nothing to do with my driving skills either.

Unless you have 4-5k to deck the car out with premium rims, lighting, tint, body kits, and just make it look good, then this is a pretty average car. Maybe when Im 50 or something I would like to have a Mercedes again, but at this age, where speed, fun, and sportiness is everything, I wish I'd opted for an Integra GSR or something.

hmmmm....civic, integra, m3 or 500e...

I'll take the benz...thnks

__________________
'94 W124.036 249/040 leder; 8.25x17 EvoIIs
'93 W124.036 199/040 leder; 8.25x17 EvoIIs, up in flames...LITERALLY!
'93 W124.036 481/040 leder; euro delivery; 8.25x17 EvoIIs
'88 R107.048 441/409 leder; Euro lights
'87 W201.034 199/040 leder; Euro lights; EvoII brakes; 8x16 EvoIs - soon: 500E rear brakes
'70 R113.044 050/526; factory alloys; Euro lights

Obviously a 300E which was developed in the early 80's isn't going to handle as well as early 90's developed cars that you mentioned. Put it this way, what car model year 1980-1990 can really outrun a 300E? If you're looking to beat civic's, integra's, v-6 mustangs, and v-6 camaro's then look for a W202 C280.

I have driven this car in Dubai in 1993 and it was awesome! It might not be the fastest car in the world especially after owning a 2003 SL55 AMG with 493 horses, but if you are in a well maintained Mercedes Benz 560 SEC, then you are in a nice fast car.


Enjoy!