Sad to say the old 380SE, my dad's legacy, has jumped its timing chain and bent two valves. Dad used to change the oil when he had it, and fixed what broke but didn't do much to keep up the overall condition. I inherited a car that was in mediocre shape but kept it slugging along for another 50K miles. It was a good run.

Now I am considering upgrading to a mid-90s MB. I want to narrow the choice to an I-6 engine because they seem to have more room to work on and I don't want another V8 car. So it would be an E-class or S320. I have read all the warnings about wiring harnesses, transmissions, head gaskets, ASR, A/C systems, etc., and frankly my head is spinning. Is a 96-97 model a good choice, considering my engine limitation? Did MB really go downhill across the board in 96, or just with certain cars?

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1985 380SE Blue/Blue - 230,000 miles
2012 Subaru Forester 5-speed
2005 Toyota Sienna
2004 Chrysler Sebring convertible
1999 Toyota Tacoma

Don't forget the evaporator (20-30 billable hour job if IIRC)

I wouldn't touch the W140s. If you must go newer, I'd suggest seeking out a late W124 to early W210, which are equipped with inline 6 M104 (very good motors)

A GenII W126 (especially '89-91) had some very nice upgrades from the Gen Is, and are worth looking at as well.

Here is my old one (now sold). Nice examples are able to be had relatively cheaply.
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=269097

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1985 500SL Euro w/ AMG bits 130k
1984 300SD Turbodiesel 192k
1980 240D Stick China 188k
2001 CLK55 AMG 101k
2007 S600 Biturbo 149k Overheated Project, IT'S ALIVE!!!

Late (GenII) W126 or Late W124 (90-95). W210's are a downgrade, unless it's an E55.

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http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z...-RESIZED-1.jpg
1991 300E - 212K and rising fast...

I basically agree with the above with the caution that the W210 models came out at the beginning of the downard quality control, durability and longevity spiral of Mercedes Benz that more or less began around 1995-1996.

Though there are lots of good W210s out there, they are basically decent, if only passably so, and of course had to be, they were the basic German and european taxicab for many years. I rode in many of them when I was over there about 10 years ago.









The ones in Copenhagen were all "wrapped" in colorful advertisements.

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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)

W124 E320 for the win

I love my E300, the w124 is the most pleasant car I've ever driven as the perfect combination of sporty and smooth.

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TC
Current stable:
- 2004 Mazda RALLYWANKEL
- 2007 Saturn sky redline
- 2004 Explorer...under surgery.

Past: 135i, GTI, 300E, 300SD, 300SD, Stealth

Don't you have spring perch problems with the W210s?

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01 Ford Excursion Powerstroke
99 E300 Turbodiesel
91 Vette with 383 motor
05 Polaris Sportsman 800 EFI
06 Polaris Sportsman 500 EFI
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Red
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Yellow
04 Tailgator 21 ft Toy Hauler
11 Harley Davidson 883 SuperLow

If you live in the rust belt, you might.

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1985 500SL Euro w/ AMG bits 130k
1984 300SD Turbodiesel 192k
1980 240D Stick China 188k
2001 CLK55 AMG 101k
2007 S600 Biturbo 149k Overheated Project, IT'S ALIVE!!!

Sounds like everyones favorite would be a 90-95 E. Sound good to me too, though I like the more modern look of the W210 body. I've never driven either one.

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1985 380SE Blue/Blue - 230,000 miles
2012 Subaru Forester 5-speed
2005 Toyota Sienna
2004 Chrysler Sebring convertible
1999 Toyota Tacoma

If you get a W124, the M104-powered one is a hell of a lot faster than the M103...kinda tight back seat either way, compared to even a short wheelbase W126.

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2002 Ford ZX2
2 x 2013 Honda Civics

The later 124s all have the engine wiring and bad A/C evaporator issues. I had to fix both on my '95. Now that's done the car is absolutley wonderful.

There is more rear legroom in a W124 than in a short wheelbase W126 IMHO.

Also, the M103 is not slow....the M104 is not that much more powerful.

I held my own in a flat out 0-70mph race against an older VW Gti not too long ago in the 300E.....not too bad!

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-diesel is not just a fuel, its a way of life-
'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)

So is it safe to presume that a good running '95 had those issues taken care of? Repair records aren't always available.

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1985 380SE Blue/Blue - 230,000 miles
2012 Subaru Forester 5-speed
2005 Toyota Sienna
2004 Chrysler Sebring convertible
1999 Toyota Tacoma

No. Evaporators don't have a near certain failure rate like wiring harness and head gaskets. Wiring harnesses are usually done by now, and are easy to pick out if they're not (date tags and inspecting insulation). Head gaskets can fail early or make it well over the 150k hump, you never know.

My first E320 wagon I purchased cheap. Though it had a new wiring harness, the head gasket was leaking oil externally. The car had 150k when I had it done. The AC always blew cold, no record of an evaporator replacement.

My second E320 wagon got a brand new head from Mercedes at 70k, and the wiring harness looked old, but perhaps not original (date tag was rubbed and illegible) AC always blew cold, once again, no record of an evaporator replacement. Purchased at 110k, sold at 120k.

My 300SEL (M103 motor) recieved a new head gasket and valve seals at about 110k.

That's the other thing to consider. If you go M103, valve seals are a certain repair if they haven't been done already.

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1985 500SL Euro w/ AMG bits 130k
1984 300SD Turbodiesel 192k
1980 240D Stick China 188k
2001 CLK55 AMG 101k
2007 S600 Biturbo 149k Overheated Project, IT'S ALIVE!!!

I think by now some of the wiring harness would be replaced. There are at least 3 harnesses under the hood- the main harness, which is the one normally replaced-the harness for the throttle actuator, which may not be a problem if cruise control is not important or if the traction control is not present-the harness that runs to the trans and possibly the starter.
According to the parts manager at the local dealer, virtually every Benz made in the early to mid '90s will have a wire harness and A/C evaporator issue. And of course the oil leaks from the head gasket. My car has the leak, but it's quite small and very ignorable.