http://img72.imageshack.us/img72/4671/c7082.jpg
;)

Wow my head hurts from browsing Craigslist and reading so much info. I am going 86 or newer, that much is decided.

I found one 87 that was originally a California car. Its a 560SEL. Strangely the car has 130k but the engine has 80k. If I look at the car I will get the engine serial number to make sure its a 5.4 (ad says 5.8). The color is not my thing, gold with chrome MB wheels. Price is not high though at just $3k, so that give me plenty of extra cash for critical day-one repairs.

And the truth is that out of ALL the 20 or so cars I have on my list, this is the only one that gives me a good feeling in my gut about buying.

WALK AWAY, Mercedes never produced W126 with 5.4 or 5.8 L engine
On a V8 W126the engines are:3.8 L M116 : 4.2 L M116: 5.0 L M117 and the Daddy of them all 5.6 L M117 engines.

I don't know what is the car you are looking at, but for someone to put an AD with so many mistakes.....can you imagine what the car will look like?
The real Mercedes owner will know all this and will never put an ad with that.
As usual: Caveat Emptor

Well one type was mine. I am very used to typing 4.6, so I typed 5.6. But the ad does say 5.8. Well its one of many ads and more will come up.

Just saw a '80s something 380SE in Diamond Blue. Not for sale, paint a little ify, but a great car for the kind of money you're looking to spend.

If you buy a 560SEL, you will need an armored truck follow you around to afford to run a lot of gas through it.

Unless you have reason to buy a lot of gas - stick with a straight-six S-Class.

Post the California license plate number( if it's in a pic,) or the Vin# if you can get it, from the seller, and we will dig into it's California history a little bit for you....


Books and records are important, try and get them, I would hesitate purchasing anything, if they are missing....

Autocheck is better than CARFAX, it's said, nowadays. Run one of them.

That's true, the 560 drinks a LOT of that good old Persian Perrier, but then again, cost of fuel meant nothing - to their NEW buyers.....(or lessees)..

The six cylinder jobs, 300SE swb and the 300SEL lwb
are REALLY bog slow for merging and passing but up at 70 mph, and beyond, they DO cruise identically to the 560, and the straight six is ultra reliable and durable, if taken care of, and is said to be the best straight six Mercedes Benz ever made.

Though a well taken 560 will also last to interstellar mileage if kept up and th Timing chain, guide rails and tensioners are done each 100,000 miles.

But like the big 560 one, though, it too, drinks PREMIUM gas, (though a bit less than the 560,) and Chevron with Techron really is the preferred brand, (as with the 560,) because it really DOES clean the injectors as you go.

What are the 420s like? I see A LOT of those listed, easily a 10 to 1 ratio. But gas is not a huge concern, creature comforts are which is why I really took the 560.

I will see if I can get a VIN for the Cali car - well former Cali car which means nothing now.

I will also get a VIN and some details on the 300SE I saw that looked to be in prime interior and exterior condition.

By the way, saw my first SEL today. An new looking 420. What a sight!

Some say that a W126 looks like a Mercedes from far away... no mistaking it.

There are a lot of 420sel's out there. My brother has one and it will run circles around my 300SD. I get better MPG, a real concern in this day and age. Plus in the event of a nuclear holocaust my diesel will still run, even on veggie oil pilfered from the local grocery... remember it's the end of the world in my little scenario.

I like the look of the short W126's vs the long ones. But you gain something like 7 inches in the rear:eek: with the SEL/SDL. But I kinda doubt the "L's" can do the U-turns I can... A real benefit in the city. There is a pretty nice '85 SD here locally for $700, if you want something to play around with. '85's have the lower rear end so highway cruise is nicer... you can sure tell the difference between my '85 TD and my '83 SD. Yes the second generation('86+) W126's look very nice, inside and out.

Ok enough babbling from me.

Oh and FYI...

Your not going to find a W126 that will keep up with an intech V8... just keep that in mind.

Goodluck ;)

SEL = S-Series, gas, long (any model up to 560)
SDL = S-Series, diesel, long (ecludes 430, 500, 560)

Right?

Are all the options the same from all? For example if I find a fully loaded 300SDL will it have the same creature comforts as a fully loaded 560SEL?

Sorry, expect more newbie questions!

I realize I have had that Mark VIII for over 10 years now!!! I think its time I settle down (unless I put a Intech in a 500! :D )

Wow. SDLs are hard to find? CL turned up no results even in Chicago.

SDL's are hard to find, and your going to pay for a good example.

Most of the S class's of that vintage in this country are spec'd about the same. By todays standards they are pretty stripped.

The only difference is in the rear seats, the 560's had reclining and heated rear seats. Although some other models were optioned this way as well, my brokers SDL has them.

In the MB enthusiast world stripped Euro cars are more desirable than the American versions. Go figure, I rather have a 280SE with a stick and manual cloth seats.

The power stuff is a PITA to get working, the climate control while quite good when working is a PITA to fix and not cheap. The sunroofs are the same, and you should really try not to tilt them if you can, they simply are not designed to tilt all the time. The drivetrain is pretty solid, its the rest of the car that gets you. Its like super easy to dump $5k-$10k into getting everything up to spec on a so so example. Heck I had $20k into my SDL and it still needed all of another $5k to be 100%, cruise still didn't work.

The only W126 diesel you will want to see are 300SD's and 300SDL's. 3.0 inline 5 cylinder in the SD and 3.0 inline 6 cylinder in the SDL. The SDL will be a hot rod compared to the SD but will have the aluminum head. The SD head is cast iron(ie. tractor like). "Floor" the SD from a stop all day long no problem... the SDL would be a little more delicate. Basically you don't ever want to overheat an SDL... it MAY cracked the head.

All SD/SDL's will be just as nice as a 560SEL. The gassers tend to have things like reclining rear seats and heated seats... all will have leather and power seats, windows, moonroof, door locks, one power mirror. Later models will have airbags, swap in a newer steering wheel cause the old airbag wheels are ugly.