1995 E320 Wagon Potential Purchase: Talk me out of this one too
 

Since I've decided to pass on the 420SEL, I'm traveling a few hours away on Friday to look at a 1995 E320 wagon. It has 149,000, with the current owner only contributing 10,000 over his 3 years of ownership. The previous owner was apparently a female bank executive who traveled in it extensively, and did replace the wiring harness along with decent maintenance. As far as the current owner knows, the evaporator and head gasket are original to the car. The only known issue by the owner is non-functional head light wipers which he thought not worth fixing, but has had some non-scheduled maintenance work done over the years.

The seller was initially asking $5,000, but explained that he is very motivated to sell, and was planning on dropping the price $1,000 due to lack of interest. He claims to be a professional photographer whose business has slowed down considerably and needs cash.

The car looks to be in, and the seller attests to, excellent condition inside and out, but there is always a drawback.

Since the car has heated seats, Its likely to have the lovely ASR system. At least you know what to do with a bad head gasket or evaporator, but from what I've read, following fault codes in these electronic systems can be expensive or exhausting for a DIY. Is ASR really that bad, by the way?

So, here I go again... Is this car a good deal at 3-4k?
http://images.craigslist.org/12b13a1...5822461c78.jpg http://images.craigslist.org/1141fc1...29547a17d8.jpg
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...=newthread&f=1
http://images.craigslist.org/1131471...af094e1914.jpg
http://images.craigslist.org/1181431...ded5f81404.jpg

To best of my knowledge, all 94 & 95 Wagons have ASR. Leather, Heated seats, memory seats were options. There was no '96 w124 Wagon in US.
I had throttle valve actuator rebuilt for about $450 [4Mercedes.com] for my 1994 e320 wagon. It's actually an easy R&R with only a little patience to wiggle it out between the 3rd and 4th intake tubes.

Where the SEL gives you a smoother ride and much greater rear seat legroom; the 124 Wagon has more cargo space and better handling IMHO and better fuel economy [high teens in city, mid to high 20s hwy].

For more info, regarding "wagon" model, see my posts in these threads:

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=230511&highlight=wagon

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=222445

I have simple choices regarding models; roadster or wagon. You either like them or you don't.

At $4,ooo the price is right. I'd be very interested if I lived in KS.

Nada,kbb
 

see attachment(s):

I'm so used to my older cars and dismissing book, I never thought to look. Thanks.

So, I take it you think its a good deal?

*edit* I'm not sure a "fair" condition vehicle with some mechanical and visual blemishes would be worth near that much, though. I could be wrong.

Like any used car. Take it out for a really long test drive on smooth and bumpy roads. Then take it to a good inde or dealer who has the computer system to read ALL the codes.
Have them check the suspension thoroughly. 94 and 95 Wagons must replace entire front A arm, bushings in it not replaceable! Lots of control arms in rear suspension. Clunk when changing gears is usually diff bushings.
Make sure Climate Control Heat & AC ok. I know how cold it gets in Ft. Riley Manhattan [courtesy US Army 1968].
Actuator's attached cable has same dreaded wire insulation as harness.
Trans Control Pressure Cable another expensive "wear" item on 124.

What else can you buy for $4 and have all these wonderful people help you fix???

I am assuming its the same engine, but my uncle had a 1990 300 wagon with about 197K on the original headgasket.

Good luck... looks like a nice car!

Its not... 300TEs have 12 valves while E320s have 24 valves. Since we only encounter people with problems on the forum, we tend to think common issues are almost a certainty.

I'm fairly sure I can do everything you list, with the exception of the fault codes. I'm considering my options there. Surely some generic auto places will have a compatible code reader.

I don't plan on using this vehicle as a daily driver, rather for cold weather, hauling, and around town errands.

Ol' Turbo will remain the flagship for quite some time, I hope.

95s are good cars. Its not unheard of for M104s to go 250k on the original head gasket. Although, you may possibly run into problems with the wiring harness.



ASR is not really that bad of a system. Its just 500E drivers and the like wish it were not on their 300+HP monsters.



Whats the body look like underneath? Any rust? A well sorted E320T is a good solid daily driver.

What do you want to know about wagons? I have fixed everything on my car.... And then some.

Tyler, as mentioned have a PPI (pre-purchase inspection) done by a MB-trained tech. The 1995 E320 wagon appears to have Tex seats, not leather. Tex wears well, but has a different feel than leather. Rear suspension has accumulators that are more expensive to replace than shocks. A MB-trained tech will spot any pending problems. In my opinion $3k or $4k is a steal for a well-maintained 1995 E320 wagon.

If I were looking for another I'd buy it. Late W124 are much more refined than the early ones. PPI is of course most important. There will always be issues, but nothing that can't be fixed if you've got a solid, rust free example to keep your spirts up. Price is right also.

Anyone considering an ASR car should do some research on the subject. Search this forum and other Mercedes forums and spend a while reading the results. If you google "ASR light" you get 1.7 million hits. I'm not sure how someone says to themselves "hmmm, only 1.7 miillion hits - not really a problem". Actually VW also has an ASR system, which is also problematic, so it's not all Mercedes, but it's a perversely widespread issue. It's wise to do the research to understand what you're getting and whether it's worth it to you.

By way of price point,

I paid $3,200 for a '00 300TE with 124k miles a few months ago. The interior was a conservative 8/10 (MB Tex is awesome) and the exterior was a 9/10. The prior owner was an elderly gentleman and was very diligent with service. Head gasket was replaced a few years ago. All the car needed was a set of tires and I replaced the self-leveling air cells as a preventative measure. The PPI noted a RMS weep and tranny weep, but I'm not losing any fluids and thus not losing any sleep.

The later W124's seem to be in greater favor, so anything around $4k would be a good deal.

My goodness, people. I spent 3 hours yesterday researching ASR and other issues common with these vehicles. I have a pretty good idea what I'm getting myself into, but was looking for a little encouragement.

One would assume that someone with 3 other Benzes and nearly 1400 posts would use the search feature before they post, know that a PPI is money well spent, and can know what to look for when test driving a vehicle.

This really isn't my first rodeo friends, or second, or third.

My wife's car is a 95' E320 Wagon that has 200K miles on it and she drives 150 miles a day round trip to work. We've never had it in a shop for anything other than it's monthly oil changes and it rides and drives like the day we bought it

I drive an 88' 300TE Wagon with over 300k miles and I just replaced the transmission and am putting on new shocks. Except for batteries, alternator, thermostat, etc., I've never had mine in the shop other than oil changes.

I bought mine 1st and we were so impressed with it we bought hers. They appear to be the exact same car other than the engine and grill. If I needed a car I'd buy another one in a second, particularly if you drive heavy monthly miles.