I bought a 1991 190e 2.6 with 75k miles on it from my best friend ( a former Huey Cobra pilot in the Nam). He maintained it religiously. I booked another 70k on it before my daughter totaled it by t-boning another car. At the end of it's life it was still going strong and I had planned on keeping it another 3 or 4 years. The cruise control gave up at about 120k and I never fixed it. The auxiliary cooling fans seemed to run a lot...maybe a sign of a failing water pump.

Apart from that, my only major gripe was in climbing in and out of it. I'm a 6 footer and had to drop in seat first and swing in...couldn't really step into in with right leg first.

FYI, the insurance settlement was $7,700 in Nov 2001....a fair price I guess....

Jim McLaughlin
Cape May NJ

My wife just sold her 1998 E300, and she's driving our 'ol reliable 1990 190E 2.6 until she finds a suitable SLK.

The 190E 2.6 has been in our family for years (I owned it, sold it to Dad, and now I've bought it back) and has been a solid car, never once leaving a driver stranded.

The engine is still strong and tight. The AC blows cold (though not like a "current" car, but enough for even hot days) and the car drives great.

190E vs C-Class? Well, I do like the C much better, mainly due to it's better handling and better ACC, but otherwise the 190E is still a great car.

One caveat with the 2.6 is the crowded engine bay making DIY repairs a little tougher than on the four banger versions.

http://forums.mercedesclub.org.uk/cgi-bin/ikonboard/topic.cgi?forum=1&topic=598

Have a check out of the aboeve post, its from a UK MB site. 1.8 and 2 litre versions are the norm here in the UK, but we do get the 2.6 version.

Allin all they are great cars, and i would highly recommend one.