Thoughts pn this W124 wagon?
 

Hi folks,

I've had my eye on this W124 that's for sale locally to me. Thinking of getting a wagon as a daily...

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...c5982158_z.jpg

The price is decent ($1300CAD ono) and the ad states a few issues:
- Speedometer is out by about 20% you get used to it.
- Missing rear door panel on drivers side
- Passenger window doesn't go all the way down but it always goes back up
- Transmission has a slow shift from 2-3 but it's probably just the vacuum control line leaking.
- Bring a battery if you want to drive it home.

Most of those things don't bother me. However, the slow shift between 2-3 sounds a little ominous. I've only ever owned W115s/W123s before so I'm far from an expert on the W124 chassis.

Any thoughts?

Also, is that front wing bolt-on or is it welded on? Could be a simple swap potentially..!

Thanks :)

Looks like it’s been driven pretty aggressively. See if they’ll take a low ball offer. More than likely the trans is not an easy fix. The window regulator are easy and cheap so that’s not an issue. I wonder why the speedo is off.. has the trans been replaced before? In the states I’ve come across wagons in mint shape for about the same price

Nicer examples are out there, for similar money.

It's been listed for a while - and it's also on Vancouver Island which is a ferry ride away for most people, so it's local but a little bit of a drag to get to. Given that it's been listed a while I could make a dangerously low offer and see if it's met with scorn or acceptance..!

I'm not looking for anything more than a workhorse for the next nine months really, although would be nice to sort out the problems.

Is it likely that the transmission issue is in fact a vacuum leak or could it be more sinister than that? If it is vacuum, what's the job to fix that like? I can do a lot of jobs myself, although I'm not exactly a professional mechanic!

Most likely not a vac leak. They’re referring to the transmission vacuum modulator which uses a green vac line near the fuse box. The modulator can be adjusted to trim the shifts however it’s for all shifts not just a 2-3

What year and model is it?

It's a 1995 E320

Then why is the front from a 1993 and older model? (hood, lights and stuff)

Cheap/Bad accident fix?

Ah, I would never have spotted that! This is why this forum is so good :)

I messaged buddy and mentioned the older front end, etc. and asked if there was any sign of structural damage, rust as a result of the accident or anything else. Apparently the car was like that upon purchase by the seller and he can't see any further issues.

He also said that there has been a replacement transmission installed at some point (whether it was him or not I don't know).

He also said he'd take $900 for it (approximately $700USD). Not a terrible deal although it needs some $ spent on it. Hmmmm

I think there is soppose to be a 722.369 transmission. There must be a different 722 in there for the speedo to be off but it’ll still work

Tell him you only have $700 ..

If it runs and drives gets you where you need to go for a few months .. sounds like a good car for the money ..

More like a different axle ratio. Unlikely that they would put a 722.4 in it.

I think that all 722.3 transmissions have the same gears that drive the cable.

The difference is just in the speedo itself

Small correction here: 94-95 W124 don't use a cable but have an electronic speedo with a magnetic pickup at the tranny tailshaft.

Still the number of pulses generated is the same for all of them I believe

Both my 94 and 95 have cable speedo

It would probably be fine for a while but when I came to sell it I'd probably end up stuck with the damn thing because of the weird transmission/speedo situation. Kind of a deal breaker :/