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  #1  
Old 02-26-2002, 01:11 PM
captaincrunch
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86 190E any good?

got a chance to buy a 86 190E. Don't know anything about them. Has 147000 miles, some rear fender damage, engine oil & tran fluid leak, A/C not working. They're wanting $1400 for it, may be able to get it for $1000.

Is is worth fooling with? What are the good and bads that I need to look for?

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  #2  
Old 02-26-2002, 02:41 PM
jfujimoto
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Thumbs down

Captain,

Well, you've already found out the bad. It'll cost you a few times the amount of the purchase price to bring your "find" up to par. Not worth it...IMHO.

Jeff
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  #3  
Old 02-26-2002, 03:58 PM
agupta
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its probably a car that has not been cared for that well, so it can be a real money pit - you could easily end up spending 10 grand on repairs over the next few years, and still have a lemon. Not worth it.
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  #4  
Old 02-26-2002, 07:03 PM
ymsin's Avatar
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Considering the cost that may be involved in bringing it back to glory, might not be worth it unless you're sure you could live on water and sunshine for the next few years ....
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126 tailed by a 203, 129 leading the pack.
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  #5  
Old 02-26-2002, 08:53 PM
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It amy not be TOO bad if you do your own wrenching, just time consuming

The tranny leak could just be from the pan gasket, but then again I bet it needs front and rear seals. That means you need to drop the tranny. While this isnt too technically difficult in itself, it is a bit of a pain to do in your driveway. Plus youll need a special triple square socket for the tail nut. But will that tranny live much linger? Maybe, maybe not.

And while you have the exhaust down and the drive shaft in order to get the tranny out, I bet you'll need to replace all the rubber flwx plates and center bearing support on the driveshaft. Will that exhaust be worth putting back up? Maybe.

The oil leak could be from anywhere, but I bet it is the cam cover gasket and the rear main seal. These wont be bad cause you'll have the tranny down anyway.

At a 147K I would also bet on a timing chain and rails. Since you'll have the tranny down, you may as well pull the whole damn motor cause its a real drag to do this job in thecar. 12 hours for the delear to do it.

The differential/pinion bearing like to start howling on the 190E. Careful on buying a used one. A dealer rebuilt unit is something like 1200 bucks. Unless you like pain, dont try setting up your own rear end.

Oh yeah, the body work too. How's the steering & front end suspension?

I have driven my 84 190E a long way and she has been very reliable. But when she needs me, it costs me. Not a bad relationship, eh?
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'84 190E 2.3
'83 Porsche 944 (track car)
'84 Porsche 944 (parts car)
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  #6  
Old 02-27-2002, 11:26 AM
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Patrick,

What does the diff/pinion bearing sound like when it starts to go? I have a whine that changes pitch with vehicle speed but does not change on accels or decels. When the diff went out on my Aerostar, it was a high pitch that would dissapear when you let off the gas. My 190E whine is not a real high pitch but does go away when making right turns. I was thinking is ia the right wheel bearing. I can't distinguish from the sound where the sound is coming from, just that it is behind me somewhere.
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'05 E320 CDI - 86,000 miles
'86 300SDL - 360,000 miles
'85 300SD - 150,000 miles (sold)
'89 190D - 120,000 miles (sold)
'85 300SD - 317,000 miles (sold)
'98 ML320 - 270,000 miles (sold)
'75 300D - 170,000 miles (sold)
'83 Harley Davidson FLTC (Broken again) :-(
'61 Plymouth Valiant - 60k mikes
2004 Papillon (Oliver)
2005 Tzitzu (Griffon)
2009 Welsh Corgi (Buba)

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  #7  
Old 02-27-2002, 01:51 PM
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All sound mainly typical of what you might expect on a high-mileage car, nothing to really say its been poorly maintained, except that the owners dont want to spend any more money on it, and the damage. A 190E wont be nearly as bad to bring back from poor repair as, say an SEL.

later,

Russ
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190E's:
2.5-16v 1990 90,000m Astral Silver
2.0E 8v 1986 107,000m Black 2nd owner
http://www.maylane.demon.co.uk/190esmall.jpghttp://www.maylane.demon.co.uk/190esmall2.jpg
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  #8  
Old 02-27-2002, 03:10 PM
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Quote:
Originally posted by pentoman
All sound mainly typical of what you might expect on a high-mileage car, nothing to really say its been poorly maintained, except that the owners dont want to spend any more money on it, and the damage. A 190E wont be nearly as bad to bring back from poor repair as, say an SEL.

later,

Russ
From what i have seen for cost of parts I would have to say this is not true. I just bought a 1980 280se (w126) for around $500. body is not perfect but good, put in a new clutch and new tires and for about another 500 it is in very good shape. I have a few things like power locks and a window that still need attention. Parts for the 190 are about the same price as for any other MB. Only exception is the V8 motor. Once you put all the money into it you will never get it out, and it is not anywhere near as nice a car as a SEL. (IMHO) I would look for a better car. I see 190's in good shape for around 2000 around me all the time. From what you described i would think it is only worth a few hundred dollars, given what it needs. Even for that it is going to be a good learning tool! Just do not expect to get your money out of the car if you get in it.
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Currently
1991 Mazda Miata 174000
1991 Subaru 189,000 Winter beater

got rid of:
1984 VW Vanagon 195,000
1976 350SE Euro 185,000 KM
1973 280SE 4.5 (boy do I regret that)
1980 280SE European W126 4 speed manual (miss it)
1989 BMW 735iL 119000 (good riddance)
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  #9  
Old 02-27-2002, 06:25 PM
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Let me tell you that i have never driven (in my short driving days) a car nearly as nice as my 190E. I have an 86 190E2.3 16V and i love it to death. This car (the 16V with the cosworth head) is easily one of best cars that Mercedes ever made. Mine has 204K miles on it and my father took absolutely perfect and exceptional care of this car before he handed it over to me. We have had to do plenty of work on the car but its performance is worth every second of it. We recently did some body work to remove some rust and that ran me about 1600 for new fenders on all four and new paint on the sides. This is a great car, but i am afriad that an owner who can part with his for 1600 with 140K on it means that it was very poorly taken care of. Plus if you can get it for 1000 it really sounds a bit too sketchy. The owner obviously did not give that car the attention that it needed as far as serviceing it and careing for it on a regular basis. If i was you i would forget about that car because unless you are willing to spend at leat 4000 and are willing to put in a lot of hours into the car it is bound to give you a hassel for its entire life. BUt do not stop looking this car is wonderful and i would keep my eyes out for a 190E and keep an especially close eye to try to find a 190E 2.3 or 2.5 16 valve. They are awsome cars with one of Mercedes best engines.
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1986 Euro Black Metallic 190E 2.3 16V
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  #10  
Old 03-01-2002, 09:56 AM
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One thought would be to offer a few hundred dollars. Give him your card and and say if you do not find anyone to buy it call me. At that price it would make it a good project. You could work on it at your leisure. Once it is all finished it might make a nice commuter car. That is what I did for my 280. I offered 500, kind of pissed the guy off as he was asking 3500. One day 3 months later he said he was tired of waiting for some one to buy it and his rent was due. The main reason I did not want to put more money in is that there was no paper work for the importing of it, as it is a grey market car. No problems yet except the clutch going.
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Currently
1991 Mazda Miata 174000
1991 Subaru 189,000 Winter beater

got rid of:
1984 VW Vanagon 195,000
1976 350SE Euro 185,000 KM
1973 280SE 4.5 (boy do I regret that)
1980 280SE European W126 4 speed manual (miss it)
1989 BMW 735iL 119000 (good riddance)
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  #11  
Old 03-01-2002, 10:34 AM
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Michael LeFleur / Diff sounds

I went through a couple of diffs. Image a WWII era B-17 struggling to climb up to cruising altitude with a full bomb load. A constant whirring hum that is a function of road/whell speed. Worse when you are decelerationg.

Do a seach on my name for alot more on the diffs.
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Patrick Leber
'84 190E 2.3
'83 Porsche 944 (track car)
'84 Porsche 944 (parts car)
85.5 Porsche 944 (sled)
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  #12  
Old 03-01-2002, 10:43 AM
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Captain-

Did you say this was a 2.3-16 valver???

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'84 190E 2.3
'83 Porsche 944 (track car)
'84 Porsche 944 (parts car)
85.5 Porsche 944 (sled)
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