A Toyota will most certainly cost you less in upkeep. They are both good choices, but I'd go with Toyota/Honda for my daughter. The Benz's are great cars, but there will be service issues that come up--and these issues will be expen$ive.

On your mileage longevity question, my '91 300E has 192K and runs perfect. These cars last a VERY long time with proper care.

Besides, if she buys a Benz-there will be one less for me:)

-GH

Ahhh yes the dreaded biodegradable plastic on the wiring, I forgot about that. What year did they start using that? Did it only affect the engine wiring harnesses?
What was the last year for the M103?

My favorite combination is the W124 with M103. Less power and less refined, but a pretty much bulletproof all-around package. No headgasket issue and no wiring harness issue. Possible valve stem seals issue, but that's easily fixed with about $65 and a few hours of spare time on a weekend. Less issues too with the older non-722.6 tranny. Get a 91 or 92!

Or he could get her the "ultimate" W124....the 300CE.

Two less doors to worry about.

Wiring harness:

http://tinyurl.com/8nx7v

Not just the M104, as you will see.

124 solid machine
 

My 86 124 300e has 440k kilometers on it and works well - I always have a little list of thing's that need doing - but I drive it every day - but it's as much a hobby as transportation. I was sold on MB when my old 123 300d was hit head on/but off centre - combined speed of maybe 50mph. Grill was ripped in half - front left side of car was completely crushed, floor was pushed up to the brake pedal so it couldn't be pushed down after the crash. Anyway, my front door opened and I stepped out - closed the door behind me, to see the fellow oppposite struggling to open his door (Dodge Aspen)
My 2 cents.

I'm up to 457000 km, on the original unopened engine.
I'm just about to pull the head off because of the amount of oil that is leaking otherwise I wouldn't be doing it.
The last 7000km have been on propane.
Best car I've owned, and I've had bmw's, porsche's, and locally made stuff.