Prior Purchase Questions

[Lawson1923]

Well, it's been a while since I posted. I'm in the market for a 124 series auto again. I have searched CL and Ebay all over the country and have found what to me will be the best auto for my budget. I prefer a coupe but have since found a nice '95 E420 with 108k. Here are my questions:

-Do I stay away from a car with ASR, like the E420 has? (as stated in the ad)
-Does the Russian VIN site tell me if a car has ASR? (for future searches)
-When viewing consoles of many cars over the last month, I've seen a switch that resembles a snow tire, is this ASR?

I cannot remember if my '95 E320 had ASR or not, it was a wonderful car. So, the other car that I've seen that fits within the budget is an '88 300CE with under 100k.

I've scoured these boards and I'm unable to come to an informed decision. I have also seen in this forum the ability to disable the ASR.

If you know of a nice vehicle for sale, I'd like to hear from you. The following are my preferences in order:
1-300 or 320 Coupe
2- '93-'95 E320 Sedan, I like the M104 just because I had one before
3- '94-'95 E420 Sedan

My budget is $3500 and perhaps higher if the right car appeared. Thanks for your help and I'll be checking back frequently. Now that I've previewed this, I guess I just could have asked "Do I buy a car with ASR or not". It's late, I'll let it ride.

[mbzman]

I think the general consensus here is to avoid early ASR cars. While some have had moderate success with the system, other have found it to be a pure annoyance. I went through a Canadian winter in my non ASR equipped '89 300CE and had no problems (never got stuck). I was equipped with four snow tires and some weight in the trunk. I believe the button on the dash with the tire is when you have the car equipped with snow chains and you need to inhibit ASR. ASR should come up in the Russian VIN decoder as it was an optional feature. Though I have never driven an M104, I enjoy the M103. Plenty of power, smooth and fairly durable (head gasket issues aside). You also won't have to worry about engine wiring harness like on the M104. On the E420, ASR will be a benefit since you will loose traction fairly quickly in wet or slippery conditions, and I think the majority of the 400Es and E420s have it anyways.

[deanyel]

On a 124 ASR will show up as option code 471. The instrument pod will have an ASR warning light and the center dash will have a snow tire button. Before you buy a car with ASR you should do a search here and on google and spend an hour or two reading the threads. Where are you? In some parts of the country ASR no real potential for meaningful benefit.

[clarkz71]

I'd say in any part of the country that gets rain, ASR is a benifit on the 400E/E420.
Mine doesn't have it and in the rain traction is at a minimum.

[Lawson1923]

I'm in SE MI, just across the line from Toledo, OH. We get our fair share of everything, weather-wise that is. I can see where a V-8 in the 124 chassis could benefit from it, again, my only experience is from the E320 I had. Now, I grew up with all RWD cars/trucks, didn't have my first FWD car until '91 (Jetta Diesel). So, most '94-'95 had ASR, is this true for the 300/320 series too? From what I have read, I don't believe that I want to have ASR. Even if I find a car that has no problems, the probability of ASR related gremlins in the future seem pretty high. This is a stressful purchase, I inherited my Father's pre-purchase analytical skills, which is both blessing and bane and I have a case of pre-purchase buyer's remorse. I'm laughing at myself right now too! The psyche of want versus need. Thanks for your replies and I hope that if you can't relate to what I'm going through, you're at least having a little chuckle right now.

ps-Happy Mother's Day to all out there.

[deanyel]

A person in MI should consider ASR, after the proper research. To need ASR in rain you would also need aggressive driving habits. I've driven non-ASR 124s in New York without problems. I always felt comfortable in the car with just two snow tires.

[clarkz71]

Originally Posted by deanyel

A person in MI should consider ASR, after the proper research. To need ASR in rain you would also need aggressive driving habits. I've driven non-ASR 124s in New York without problems. I always felt comfortable in the car with just two snow tires.

So what, you drive like a girl?? Normal driving (non aggressive) still results in wheel spin for me. Is your E420 weak??

[babymog]

The E420 and E320 are both fine cars. Be sure to check for engine wiring harness replacement though.

ASR is my friend. If you buy a car with no codes and properly functioning ASR, it'll be your friend also. If you are afraid of the possibility of something failing and requiring maintenance you should probably not be considering a '95 sport/luxury car of any design, ...

The ASR is IMO not necessary, but extremely useful in every day driving on wet, intersections with dirt on them, etc., etc. The 320 included, it is a fairly torquey engine and doesn't reward a heavy foot. With ASR you need to go, you floor it, everything will be fine. It also comes with 4-channel ABS vs the 3-channel on the non-ASR cars, and a much smoother throttle than even the best maintained and lubed cable throttle non-ASR cars.

Another thing I notice about my ASR cars vs my non-ASR cars is the way that the non-ASR cars can have problems, but since you don't have any dash light to indicate it, you just drive them that way. The only way to tell something is wrong is to interrogate the ECUs with the Dalton-light. The ASR cars will tell you something's wrong. Oh, the ASR cars also get brake wear indicators on all four corners, the nons get only front indicators.

Get a good car with ASR and records and you should be fine. All else can be solved here.