THIS is one of the best reasons to drive a 126
 

Check out this video :eek:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fw6VUwG9nOo

I'll bet the doors will still open.

Wow That is totaly awesome. That Mercedes looks to be an SEL, which means Gas (and 70MPH whenever it wants to go that fast) Our Heavier Diesel's wouldn't get that high in the air because a)the engine is heavier and b) the car more then likely couldn't be going that fast.

But truly amazing to see what happens in a "Real Life" situation.

Good job finding that one.

Marty

That's sad to see a lovely red W126 SE bite the dust.

But, they will save your life in the BIG crash, as evidenced by this one-passenger cage TOTALLY intact. Passenger(s) would be unhurt if wearing their seatbelts. Look at the ford and other cars, intrusion INSIDE the passenger compartment, serious injuries or death to the passenger(s)/driver, was it worth it just to save a few dollars on gasoline?

Read of another crash on another forum, poster was on the autobahn, and passed by a W126 coupe, flying by them at about 110 mph plus, several miles ahead they caught up, the car had crashed head on into an underpass abutment, the front end was pancaked to the firewall, passenger cell intact, driver and passenger were outside the car walking around and scratching their heads.!!!

This kind of thing DEFINATELY was one factor in deciding to go ahead and buy the Mercedes W126 when I finally did it. But I hope I never put the car to that kind of test.

very nice. I love my SD even more
 

I like this video for tons of reasons, but really, look at this MB video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPGiYVsoJxk&NR
well done transition, and great content. gotta love the SLR.
John
Sorry for the hijack of the post.

Seeing this video makes me glad that my wife and kids and dog are riding around in a W123 300TD turbo. It is 3,800 lbs. of well engineered car. I saw a post a while back where a new Toyota Corolla slid in to the back of a W123 wagon in the ice. The Mercedes needed a new bumper and the Toyota was totalled.

Can't wait to get the head on the W124 300TD turbo so my wife has and airbag and ABS.

Speak for yourself. I have my car up to at least 70 every day(85 the other day) Otherwise I will get ran over by everyone doing 70 and up. It is a 1985 300TD. It doesn't get to 70 quickly, but once it is there it is as rock solid as if it were going 30.

yeah, what are you smoking?
 

I find it hard to belive that ANY 126 gas or diesel would have ANY trouble going 70MPH.
my 82 easilly accelerates to 70, 80, pegs the speedo, and beyond!
don't forget that all the 126 vehicles have the turbo! and if it has the 6cyl, and the turbo, 120 should be no problem.
sorry you must be driving one of the older 4cyl non turbo diesels... the larger diesels really are MUCH faster.
John

This video was talked about in the W126 forum over at BenzWorld. As pointed out, its a SE not SEL. The video was definately filmed in Europe, precisely England (RHD and English speaking). No diesel W126 were offered in Europe either. The comment on how a diesel wouldn't go up high because its heavier doesn't make sense. It would have crashed and reacted in the same manner. Diesel W126's are also capable of going 100+ mph. May not get their as fast as a 560, but it certainly will get up their.

The SE did not have a driver which would add say 180-200 pounds (average male weight) and figure in the weight difference between a SE and SEL chassis on top of that.

Wow. I have nothing to add, but that is just amazing how the passenger compartment remains completely intact.

Phenomenal engineering.

vtech,

Yes U need more MBs and less GMs.

P E H

I completely agree with that statement. :D

Seeing those videos only solidifies the reason I drive a W126/MB, I want to walk away someday if I should be in an accident like that. The extra cost of the car/fuel/anything is never worth more than a person's life.

Hey, I commute at 75 in my 240D for 110 miles a day. Just a testament to their durability.

That's where I stole it. ;) I thought it might be nice to share it over here.

Notice the blue little pos car that was originally hit by the red pos car that was moving at what 70mph they say? There was nothing left, certainly if the driver survived the injury would be life changing.


Notice how the W126's crumple zones worked as designed. The front of the car deformed disapating some of the energy and leaving the important passanger compartment intact. Actualy I see no reason that all 4 doors would not work. If there was a person in the car the seat belt pre tensioners would have fired and held them against the seat. I think its safe to say that out of all the cars involved in that film the people in the W126 would have faired the best. The W126 got into the air a bit because I suspect it road up over the remains of the other cars. Which would probably not have been such a bad thing for everyone in said W126, but not for the people in the tin cans under it.

I said it before and I'll say it again, thats one of the reasons I drive MB's. They are one of the safest cars in the world, MB invests massive amounts of time and money to ensure this.

RIETHOVEN....I think what mespe was talking about was not that MB can't go 70 mph, high speed.....he was talking about high IN THE AIR like the test car because of our heavier diesel motor weight holding down the front of the car.

I hope all that is just a mote point....I never wanna be a crash like that.

BTW, as a young ARMY medic we were called out on several Autobahn pile ups caused by dense fog. It is the stuff really bad dreams are made of....

Focus on the point being made. SLOW DOWN IN BAD DRIVING CONDITIONS. Just because your car will dunk the speedo needle does not mean it is a smart thing to do....any time. There are other drivers on the road besides yourself. Lets all watch out for each other.

thats crazy... it reminds me of a vid that looks like it was done by the same folks (brits in guessing) in the same location of a offset head on wreck between a BMW 7-series and some kind of volvo sedan... a 740 maybe... the results are rather sobering :eek:

this is old news, but here's photos of what happened when my W124 got rear-ended at about 50mph. I had a sore neck for weeks but was otherwise unhurt:

http://www.w124performance.com/images/cars/87_300D_white/wreck_june_2003/

I also rolled/flipped a W201 at freeway speeds in 1995 and walked away without a scratch. Glad I don't drive a Fiat. (I wonder if a Kia, Hyundai, or Geo would fare much better.)

:(

Top speed
 

I drive my car on average at about 75 on the free way. with no problems.
there is a section of road on the way back to my dads house that is only about 8 years old... nice smoothe pavement. its 4 lanes and you can see the whole lenghts of road... kind of an odd spot for a country highway. anyway. i punched my car on that section of highway one night and she topped out at 102MPH. that is a little faster then 70... I have the 617 5 cyl Turbo... i think that is the smallest diesel in a 126. so i would assume that pretty much any diesel 126 can do at least 100MPH.

as for the crash... i like the feeling that i'm driveing around in a solid block of steel... very safe feeling, and i know its a very safe car.

I have had my 84 300tdt(290k) up to
90mph but that was before the valve
adjustment and rebuilt injectors.
I'm sure it will go faster now.

But I don't have the need to go that
fast but just wanted to see if it could
get up there.

Louis.

Agree. Same car, different coast.

California's central valley has the same problem, horrible chain-reaction crashes every winter. Good place not to be.

First. I want an R/C W126! :D

Second. Perfect example of why you need to get out of your car (If possible) and away from a highway pileup ASAP. No amount of airbags in the world could save somebody inside that Fiat.

Third. Don't be stupid, slow down in fog.

video is gone !
any one know how to find it ?

wow. guess I don't want a Fiat.

And this is one of the best reason to NOT be in a Smart during a crash....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02eghIfyHP0

ForcedInduction, getting out is not always the best idea in chain reaction pileups in fog. If you do decide to get out, get WAY out and off the road fast. Many have been injured or killed after they have gotten out of the crash OK and are hit outside of the vehicle. I live with the fog in the Central Valley. Best thing to do is not drive or slow down and be super careful if you have to drive.

As far as toughness in the Benz, I figured this thing was a Brick S-house when I jacked it at the front jackpoint and rear tires came off the ground(with fronts) then decided to open all the doors. All of them opened and closed with no hangup whatsoever!

No. The longer and closer you are to the vehicle the higher the chance of further impacts causing even more damage/injury.

.

Of course the powers-that-be demanding 50+ MPG want all of us to be driving a Smart-like car.

.

.

Not sure.

Here's one set of choices:

Be inside of my 2-ton German tank and be hit or be outside and be hit.

Not necessarily the only two choices but at times it might be.

.

Actually if you consider the size of the Smart it did very well against an S-Class.

However, though the structure protects the occupant relatively well, it's hard to imagine what effect the transfer of all that force would have to the occupant's body.