Why did I see so many W123Diesels in Seattle?

[Carrameow]

I just got back from visting my sister in Seattle and I swear, on every street of the city I saw a 240D or 300D parked.
I never saw so many W123's in one city.
Mostly they were 240D's, because Seattle is as Hilly as San Francisco....I swear this is not my imagination.
This is because I have OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Diesel) and I am drawn to W123's the way some guys are drawn to women with great novels with tight book covers or nice sweet genuinely sensitive smiles.

( I swear the Internet Police are going to bust down my door for saying something that offends someone and ship me back to my native country )

[AlexTheSeal]

Lots of them down here in Portland too. The Pacific Northwest is a great place for car collecting and or just for keeping old heaps running cheaply. The mild weather is easy on old cars---no salt in the winter to promote rust, and not a lot of sun in the summer to dry out leather and crack interior plastics.

Even notoriously rusty old Italian cars survive here---I see '70s and '80s Alfas and Fiats all the time. But you're right, W123s are completely unremarkable here, whereas you rarely see them in the Northeast and Midwest. (I was on a business trip to Des Moines for a few days last fall and didn't see a single M-B---I could count the total number of European cars I saw there on one hand!)

[gerryvz]

There are more old Benzes here in the NW per capita than anywhere else because the Northwest is the best climate for preserving them. Cars don't rust here because we don't use salt on the roads, and we don't have the sun that fades them into oblivion either.

You will see more finnies and 123s here than anywhere else. I see at least a Finnie every day, plenty of 108s too. 123s are more common than new MBs. I even see Pontons being driven as daily drivers, perhaps once or twice a month.

Here in Portland people aren't as status-conscious as in California and a certain "retro" attitude prevails, so people aren't so afraid to be seen in 123s and such. In fact in may circles it's considered "cool". In LA, nobody would be caught dead in an old Benz, they need to keep up with the Joneses and get that new 211 or a new ML.

Cheers,
Gerry

[BeachnCruz]

Let's face it....the northwest area of Seattle (Microsoft) is heavily populated with slide rule Computer Techies that recognize a vehicle that is economical and about as bullet proof as you can buy. I'm at 335k miles, no rattles, 30 miles per gallon of diesel and easy to work on. I'm not a techie, but I do recognize a heavily engineered vehicle built to last!

Jim....

When my brother was working in Seattle last summer, everytime I went to visit, I swear I would see at least one W123 every block. From his office building in Capital Hill (from the new office across from Seattle PI office, I could see even more), I could see at least 2 W123's, and from the place he was living, there were several. There are alot of them there, but the sad thing was that a lot of them had huge dents or other kind of body damage. Come over to Eastern Washington, they aren't seen as much, but most of them over here are much better cosmetically

[gerryvz]

I live in inner Northeast Portland, in the Irvington District. This is one of the most expensive areas of PDX, as far as home values are concerned.

Within a 5 block radius of my house, there are 14 123 diesel sedans and wagons, and these are only the cars that are parked on the street (I don't know how many are stashed away in garages). People in this area can afford to drive anything they want; it's telling about the percentage of 123s around.

Cheers,
Gerry

[Veloce300DT]

TONS of w123's reside here in the Bay Area too! I cant go out and NOT see at least a handful, and there are lots of "euro" w123's in the mix. Its interesting to compare northern Ca. to southern Ca. Up here, seems more people are into having the vintage Mercedes. Yes there are lots of new ones, but far more older models. Lots of them seem to be well kept. Then you go to So. Cal, and all you see are new C's, E's, M's, Sl's and S's. Vintage car of choice down there seems to be "exotics"- old ferraris, rolls royce, porsches, and the like.

Seems that the most popular new car in SF/Bay area are VW's and Audis, and if you see any european cars older than 5 years, they are mostly Mercedes-Benz.

[Jorn]

Originally Posted by gerryvz

Here in Portland people aren't as status-conscious as in California and a certain "retro" attitude prevails, so people aren't so afraid to be seen in 123s and such. In fact in may circles it's considered "cool". In LA, nobody would be caught dead in an old Benz, they need to keep up with the Joneses and get that new 211 or a new ML.

Cheers,
Gerry

You guys are on crack, every block here in LA you can find a W123, every third block you can find a 126.

[gerryvz]

Don't think so.

I agree 100% with Veloce300DT; I used to live in the Bay Area and I always see far more 123s up north than I did in the south.

Here in Portland I saw two 108s today while I was driving around doing errands.

There are defintely "areas" in portland where the w123's reside..
I feel weird driving around in my w126 becuase I get shrugged off as a newbie even though my w126 is probably older than their car

There are a few in my town (Newberg) but old Portland housing areas defintely have a high concentration of these fine autos.

[KCampbell]

I haven't seen mentioned a few other factors:

There is a comparatively large previously-Northern-European population around Seattle, folks who are very familiar with diesels.

There's a pretty large eco-aware community who realize that burning less fuel is a good thing.

Houses are very expensive, so being frugal with a car is a good idea.

Kevin

[Zeitgeist]

Seattle The Most College-Educated City In The Nation

May 10, 2004

By KOMO Staff & News Services


SEATTLE - Seattle is one of the most college-educated big cities in the nation, according to a survey released Monday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The 2002 survey shows that 48.8 percent of Seattle's 25-and-older population has at least a bachelor's degree, compared to a national college graduation rate of 25.9 percent.

Experts credit Seattle's concentration of high-technology companies, as well as the influence of the University of Washington, for boosting the education level of the city.

Raleigh and San Francisco also ranked near the top. Seattle has the highest proportion of college graduates, but the survey's margin of error means that any one of the three cities could be No. 1. The survey looked only at cities with 250,000 or more people; Seattle is the only city in Washington with a population that large.

Washington ranks 11th among states, with 29.7 percent of residents having earned at least a bachelor's degree. Massachusetts has the highest concentration of college graduates, at 35.5 percent.

College graduates can expect to earn, on average, $2.1 million over their lifetimes, according to the Census Bureau. That's nearly twice what the average high school graduate can expect to make.

However, life with a college degree isn't always easy. A 2001 survey by a national hunger relief group called America's Second Harvest found that 48 percent of food bank clients in Western Washington had completed at least some college. Nationally, the average is 23 percent.

For More Information:

Census Report -- www.census.gov

[PatrickW]

I was in Seattle over Christmas.

It's amazing that I was telling my wife the same thing, "Do you notice how many MB diesels there are around here?"

My wife was driving and I made her pull into a grocery store parking lot so I could check out a 240D that I'd spotted. On the way back out to the highway we saw another one. We saw *two* 240D's in one day!

Around where I live, you might see a W126 every couple weeks, but half of 'em are gassers. W123's are quite rare. Anything older - forget it, or go to a car show and maybe see one if your lucky.

You guys that live in that area (or down South), you got it good......

- Patrick

[Carrameow]

(Sigh, wistfully) I always seem to visit cities lik Seattle, NYC, San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Albuquerque, but I never end up living in those places.
I' ve lived and worked in NJ and Louisiana and places where you always wish you were somewhere else, Louisaina was nice, but Hot..Of course you'll probably guess what I will say next....
NJ and Louisana are the humidity capitols of the world, and I could fill Barrels with the sweat I have sweated over the years..but they are still better than lots of other places in the world, I am very very lucky to have a roof over my head and a roof on my car

[Veloce300DT]

Speaking of seeing w123's, I was on westbound highway 80 yesterday in Vallejo, coming down from the hill by the 37 interchange. I was in my C280, since it has been raining here alot and the 300DT is kept all detailed and dressed up at home in the garage. I saw a familiar face approaching rapidly in my rear view mirror, and as it passed my jaw dropped!

The car appeared to be an 83-85 300DT sedan, in BEAUTIFUL shape. but what really set this one apart was that it was that dark chocolate brown, with a black interior. SHARP color combo. The wheels appeared to be freshly painted or excellent originals, and the driver was wearing a crisp white dress shirt and black bowtie... which contrasted beautifully with the brrown and black coloring of the car. Driver looked to be in his 40's.
The license plate frame on it was one of the new ones issued by the Sacramento Mercedes-Benz dealer... perhaps the owner is a tech, or salesman who knows a good MB from a bad MB.

Love seeing a nice w123, one that is obviously loved. When I saw this w123 it made me wish I was behind the wheel of mine!