ok guys, i am having a problem here, i owned a 115 220 in good condition( very rare in malaysia) and planning to trade it in for another benz, a 86' 300se! what do you all think?
i love my 220 but i think the 300se would be better performance deliverer and much refine!
my 220 is in good condition and is very rare in malaysia. if i keep this for another 5 years or so, i definitely can gain profit from the initial buy! on the other hand, i am afraid that the 300se price would decrease further.......

what do u think guys? any advice

Can you try it before you buy it?
I think the 300SEL would be smoother and more comfortable but it's a big boat! Can you get used to manouvering and parking a big car after your 220? If that 300SEL is like most W126 here in the US, it's loaded with lots more gadgets to go wrong - power windows, seats, sunroof and antenna, automatic climate control, fuel injection, Becker Grand Prix radio, etc... The 220 is relatively simple and easy to work on.(Except for the heater fan!) Maybe you could compromise and find a nice W114 250 or 280. (Preferably with a 5 speed)

Happy Motoring, Mark

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DrDKW

surely we can take the car for test drive before we get the deal!
there is not much good condition w114/115 model around here!
majority of them are 200 and 200 diesel model( serve as taxi in poorer province). that is why i say mine 220 is rather special and rare on the road!
if one really find hard on the w114( 6 cyclinder) model, the most you can get (i think) is the 230.6 manual( auto gear are rare in such model here)!

well for the w126, there isn't much toys you get in here as in the us. there are basically two kind of it, one in ckd form( knock down in parts and assemble in malaysia, selected model) and the cbu form( imported new or recondition mainly from uk) ckd model does not offer sunroof, power seats( early model) leather seat( optional)etc.....
i once saw a 82' 280se that even had screw on the wood panel! with thrashy sound engine and torn mb tex seats! at least the door still felt very solid!
cbu spec vary from individual car. many of them with sunroof and leather of course!

the price for a ckd 300se in 1991/92 here is around RM330k back then!

i think getting around with a s- class should not be a problem for me! i once drove a w116 280se and even a mitshubishi 7- seater van or even a honda cr-v

speaking about becker sound system, my 220 comes with a becker europa radio which i think is very neat and classy in appearance! i saw people putting up ad selling a similar set for 500 us dollar! is that true?

I've seen some of the late '50s - early '60s tube Becker Europa or Mexico radios sell on Ebay for about $200 - $400. The early '70s transistor Europas usualy sell for much less. I have a very nice Europa cassette-radio, from a W123 car, in my '72 250 that I got at a flea market for $20. Last year, for my '72 250C, I got an early '70s Becker Mexico cassette-radio off Ebay for $95. The '80s Becker Grand-Prix are the all-pushbutton radios that, I've heard, are trouble-prone and mediocre performers.

Happy Motoring, Mark

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DrDKW

Hello,
Keep your 220, the 300SEs are mostly cars from the UK with the odometers rolled wayyyy back (ask me how I know!).

If you reside in KL, perhaps we can get together and compare notes.

There are many 200/220/240Ds still running around, some on their third or forth engines (from *half cut* W123s) and I have seen a 230.6 with a Mazda engine and dash and many 200/220Ds with the Nissan Silvia 180SX/200SX twin cam engine !
The 230.6 I can understand as the M180 parts are difficult to source plus the hair raising fuel consumption of 17L/100km (14 mpusg) but the 200 with the Nissan engine does not make sense.
Have a good week.

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Nachi11744

well thanks for the advice, i might keep the 220 as it has a classical look of vintage mercedes! but i haven't see a 220 on the road of kl yet until i saw the ad on the motortrader! there are plenty of 240d in ipoh and alor setar though!

i saw a few 230.6 on the road but not aware of the modified engine! i am not sure of the price of these 115 in the market now?
i saw somw 200 asking for 18k ringgit or some asking for 5k!

on getting a second benz, what model would you think that suits the under 25k category?
a 116 450sel i saw is asking for 24k rm and a 200te w123 asking for 25k
or even some 123 230e auto ranging from 18k to 23k

i just came back from my mechanic and seems like there is a fault in the breathing space of the fuel tank that leads to the petrol leakage at the back fender!

i have to make an appointment with him to "rearrange the hose" of it and in the meantime, i have to settle with 3/4 tank of fuel everytime i visit the "pitstop".
:p

one questions, is this a common fault on older cars or it just happened on mine?

secondly, for those on this part of the world who are reading this, how came certain car are eligible of 80% reduction in roadtax while some other only 20%?
(talking about old cars which is 25 years old and above)

i recently saw an ad selling a 1975 rolls royce that claims there is 80% reduction in roadtax, my 220 is 3 years older and is only eligible for 20% reduction....
can anyone kind enough to tell me why

Many years ago, I had a '72 W115 220 that cracked and leaked.around the top of the gas tank, near where the gas guage sending unit was mounted. Later I got a '72 W114 250 that had the same crack in the tank. Both times I was able to find good used tanks to replace my damaged ones but that was over 14 years ago. Maybe yours can be repaired. Good luck.

Happy Motoring, Mark

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DrDKW

Hello,
Your first problem is caused by the plastic fuel tank vapour vent container. It is located above the spare wheel in the right fender area and has three plastic hoses sprouting from it..You need a new unit part number 115 471 0268, it cracks in the heat and then all the fuel is vented into the right side of the boot floor or out onto the road. I stress this will happen regardless of fuel level in the tank as the high temp (100-130 F) when cars are parked around here will cause the fuel to vapourize and fill the cracked vent container. It seems to me this will happen to any W111/108/114/115/113 that uses a plastic fuel tank vent container due to the extreme heat cars have to sit in year round. You must have the vent container, otherwise the risk of collapsing the fuel tank is virtually guaranteed, unless you like to fill only 20-30 litres at a time, instead of the car's 65 litre capacity.
BTW, I drove my car on a 500 mile round trip yesterday, averaging 70 mph and 27mpg (110 kmh and 10.4l/100km). Engine temp crept up to 185-190F, but that was about my only gripe for the whole trip.

As for your choice of *2nd Benz*, I would advise you to stay away from the 450SEL, unless you know the owner AND car from new, the S123s were only 200, no fuel injected engines, so that leaves the W123 230E, if it has documentation of maintainence and still is running the original 123 drivetrain, not a W124 engine/trans, then after the usual checks, a good buy at 24-27K.
Be prepared to spend big bucks on the K-Jet FI as water ingress would have messed up most components by now, quick check is to open fuel tank cap and inspect the condition of the cap gasket, if it is cracked, don't bother ! I stress the car MUST be in original condition, no 15, 16 or 17 inch wheels with huge tyres to overstress the pas and suspension components. This last statement is of course my personal opinion, you may think otherwise, but do ask yourself why DB did not put huge wheels and tyres on the cars from the factory.
The road tax issue is a complex one, there is a formula of some sort that the RTD (DMV for the Americans) is intent on keeping a closely guarded secret. Even RTD personnel themselves could not explain to me what I need to do to be eligible for the discount.
Hope that is of some help.

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Nachi11744

Nice to learn that the fuel consumption of W114/115 is also discussed here.
I own a '74 230.6 w/ dual carbs. Ignition timing corrected, new coil, new s/plugs+cables, new fuel pump (mechanical), tuned idling air/fuel mixture w/ 2.5 CO% measure at exhaust. No fuel leaks from carbs.

But so frustrated is the HEAVY fuel consumption of the car. City traffic only gets approx. 5 km/L. Especially after going uphill, the fuel gauge needle drop obviously. The car is propelling slow, lack of power. etc...

I notice very light fuel smell when driving. Traced fuel lines from fuel tank to carbs. No leaking found. My 230.6 has metallic fuel tank.

Would nachi11744 please advise tune-up tips.

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'74 W114 230.6
'87 W201 190E 2.3-16
'97 W210 E320 Avantgarde

ah, so that's what that little black thing in the boot does. I remember once taking the hoses off it and suddenly got hit with a massive amount of petrol fumes.

do MFI engines have a presurised fuel tank, or a non-presureised fuel tank?