It that age and mileage, you would want to have the suspension examined, front and rear. This work can add up to real money.

Someone mentioned the A/C, which is another potential budget buster.

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1986 300E 5-Speed 240k mi.

Thanks.

Does anyone know the price of a replacement harness?
That way I will know what to expect incase it has not been replaced.

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2004 Toyota Sequoia Limited 4wd
1991 Lincoln Town Car Executive
1991 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1988 Mercedes 300SEL
1972 Chevrolet Caprice Kingswood Estate 9-passenger wagon
1973 Pontiac Grand Ville
(Prior MB's: 1974 240D, 1985 380SE, 1984 190D, 1993 400SEL)

I would say that if you buy the car, expect to put some serious money into it to keep it well maintained. I owned a 1990 w124 coupe with the w104 engine and I felt that the car had a lot of problems considering it only had 170k miles. I also had an '84 300D at the time, and I felt that the 300D was much better built, and certianly easier to work on. The quality of the interior was the same (very, very high quality that is), but the wiring harness on the w124 was failing, the suspension had lots of rattles (before your buy, price new struts, strut mounts, and little things like ball joints, you'll be surprised how expensive), the water pump failed, the a/c system had a couple leaks, the car would get hot very quickly in summer traffic (caused in part by a bad relay ($25), and fans that weren't working well anymore (2 X ~$150). the accessory belt tentioner failed (~$125), the cruise control didn't work properly (too expensive to bother fixing), the front timing chain cover was leaking and making a mess (which all of these engines do), and one rear wheel bearing failed (~$400). I felt that the list of problems with the car never ended, and I got tired of fixing it. Keep in mind, the prices I'm quoting are for parts only. I did the work myself, so you can double or triple those prices if you are paying someone to fix your car. I would also say that my coupe, like the sedan you are looking at, was in excellent condition and came with a service history dating back about 7 years (mostly serviced at the dealer). Even with excellent care and gentle owners, the car was just falling apart.

I would really like another Mercedes diesel and would love a w124 diesel, but based on my experience with the w124 coupe, I don't htink I would ever buy one. I would be very careful about this car if I were you. At least have it looked at very carefully by a mechanic you trust.

Greg

My 1993 300E 3.2 is the best car I've ever owned.

Yes, I had to get over the cost of the wiring harness and the head gasket, but once those two issues were resolved, the car has been bullet-proof.

FWIW, the 1990 300CE posted by GregS is a different engine. It is an early version of the M104 engine used only in the CE's. It's engine code is 104.990. It is a twin cam version of the M103 engine, has 3.0 liters, and uses the same mechanical fuel injection as M103 engines.

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Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

That's true about the w104 being particular to the '90 and '91 coupes, but I don't think it has anything to do with the overall fact that this car was falling apart. Maybe I just had a lemon? Its hopeful to to know that not everyone has so many problems with their w124s.

I also forgot to mention that I had to add a quart of oil every 1,000 miles to my car. Completely unacceptable in my book. Ugh. I was very happy the day I sold it.

Greg

I bought a new 300E2.8 in December, 1992. The car was made in August, 1992, if I remember right, so it was a very, very early 300E2.8 and it came with R134 in it from the factory. Hard to understand why any 2.8 would have anything other than R134. As others have said, it came with MB Tex interior. You could get the sunroof as a no cost option and most were equipped with it. The standard 2.8 did not have the wipers on the headlights, it did not have the power seat memory and a few other things that the 3.2 cars had but they were $5000 cheaper. I have heard that the transmisson was different, a smaller one, than the 3.2 liter 300E but I do not know. Most 2.8s had very few options but I suppose some did.

It was a very good car when I sold it to a friend with 80,000 miles (to sell to a friend should say something about what I thought of it reliability) and still is since he still has it with five years and about 80,000 more miles. In the time I had it, the only things of any consequence that I replaced was the head gasket and the MAF sensor. I never thought it was unpowered but that is a matter of opinion, I suppose.

It will seep oil at the front if the seals are not installed properly and it seems very few people will take the time to install them properly. Other than the mess, these leaks usually do not amount to much.

I have also heard all the horror stories about the wiring harness but my former car has never had it replaced so evidently some are OK even if most are not.

Remember it is a 12 or 13 year old car and you cannot expect zero repairs but if the price is right, go for it. It is a great car to drive.