Also, does anyone know of a site where I can browse through different years and models? I'd like to look at what each model has to offer since I seem to learning eveything through osmosis at the moment.

^^^^^^^Unfortunately, as per above, the 350 in the 91 and up car has been cursed with a design flaw so you are rolling the dice big time if you go for one of them....

It might be worth it to take a look into www.mbcoupes.com buyers guide for a little bit of advice on the W126 S class cars in general, though that was written for the gasser coupes in general.

The smaller W123 240 and 300 diesels are really excellent cars to look for if you are pursuing a diesel sedan, or a wagon.

The market is pretty hot for diesels and so bargains are hard to find, but there are lots of good cars still around, many of them very well kept up. Avoid rusty examples!

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

what about a 240D?

Thanks, mom. Haha.

http://home.hiwaay.net/~gbf/mbmodels.html

Their are not that many models to chose from.

You have three engine choices in the W126.125.

1981-85 300SD. They are all pretty similer cars, they all come with the usual options. They used the 5 cylinder diesel, called the 617.

Then in 1986-87 MB did a few updates to the W126 and installed the 603 in the LWB models. Hence the 300SDL's. They are all about the same, the year really doesn't matter with these.

Then the diesel was not avalible in the W126 for awhile, until 1990 actualy. Along came the 350SD/L. Both have the updated interior and can come with options like traction control, and SLS.

These are all pretty much the same car, just with different options, updates, and engines. The 300SD and 300SDL are different driving cars, the SD feels far more nimble around town. If you do a large amount of around town driving you should test drive a 300SD. For highway work the SDL's are king.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Thanks, Brian. That's definitely a start.

HatterasGuy, thanks for such a nice reply. That's some good info.

A buddy of mine has a 300SD and it's a pretty smooth car. And I agree about it being a good city car. My fiancee and I will be taking more trips here in the near future and I want something that is going to be comfortable and roomy, but reliable as well. I'm just looking at all my options at this point.

You have two engine choices in the 126.125 and one engine choice in the 126.120.

I really like the 350SD's, that is the only 3.5L 603 engined car I would ever consider. The SWB W126's are great around town, but the 603 is such a great highway engine. Plus they only built 2,300 of them one year, not going to pull up next to three at a stop light.

But for long trips the room of a LWB W126 is hard to beat.

Just so you are on the same page as we are throwing these names around, check this out:
The numbers and letters mean something, ie if you know what they mean you can know a lot about the car, for example:
300SDL
300=3L engine
S=S class
D=Diesel
L=Long wheel base.

560SEL
560= 5.6L
S=S class
E=einsprtizing(sp?) German word for fuel injection.
L=LWB

__________________
1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Hmm forgot that.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

I just got a reply back from the person selling the 350SD. They say it has around 168k miles on it. Apparently it has a brand new motor in it because the previous owner let the car overheat, cracking the heads and freezing the rings. It still sounds a bit steep, but I don't think it's unreasonable. Any thoughts?

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"I believe the government that governs best is the government that governs least. And by these standards, we have set up a fabulous government in Iraq."-Steven Colbert

You haven't provided any details regarding this vehicle other than "brand new motor". This needs further clarificatin as to the definition of "brand new". A rebuilt 350SDL engine isn't worth $.02.

Um, ok. If you read my posts above I posted a link to the listing, Also, you'll see that I wrote that it has 168k miles on it. I didn't ask how many miles the new motor has on it. Apparently the the car is in near mint condition as far as looks go. New tires. What else do you want to know? That's all the info I have thus far. I'm probably going to go drive it sometime this week.

__________________
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"I believe the government that governs best is the government that governs least. And by these standards, we have set up a fabulous government in Iraq."-Steven Colbert

OK, found the link.

Yep, it's a '91 SDL with 168K on it. Photos are worthless.

It's worth somewhere between $5K and $15K depending on maintenance history and condition.

The exact situation regarding the "new motor" needs to be thoroughly understood.

Maintenance records of what has been done over the years would be extremely valuable. Lacking same, the vehicle needs to go to an independent mechanic who is familiar with M/B's to thoroughly examine it for the items that currently need repairs.