Want anvil like reliability and easy to work on...take the 123.
More refined and powerful but also more complex and, while not hard to work on not as simple either, take the 124.

For me I'll take the 123 for around town safety and reliability. For high speed cruising and comfort, I'll take the 124. The 123 vs 124 debate is the embodiment of the expression, "there is no such thing as a free lunch."

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LRG
1987 300D Turbo 175K
2006 Toyota Prius, efficent but no soul
1985 300 TDT(130K miles of trouble free motoring)now sold