MrSpeedy
East Midlands
www.vintagediesels.co.uk
Posts: 4,786 
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Sept 13, 2011 15:36:34 GMT
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Sooo, good knowledgable people, I'm looking for a replacement semi daily. Whilst the Vitesse is immense fun, it's not the most practical (not to mention fuel efficient  of cars).It'll be used mostly for ferrying kids about at weekends and the odd trip to visit the GF. I'm having serious thoughts about the Mercedes W124 CE coupe in either 230/300 flavour. I'm familiar with the W201 190e having ran one for 3 1/2 years as a daily and it really swung me around to the merc fraternity! But, what are the W124's like ? Rust ? Reliability ? MPG's ? Any input greatly appreciated. Some inspiration;     You may have noticed that black is my favourite flavour ;D |
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Last Edit: Sept 13, 2011 15:38:15 GMT by MrSpeedy
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Sept 13, 2011 15:58:51 GMT
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Hi! Biggest rust issues are the jacking points, and the front mounts for the rear axle are known to rot away. The first are easy to fix, the latter - not so easy... Front wings are usually rotten between indicator & arch and the window frames can rust (mostly invisble). The thing is, Mercedes used a very tough PVC underseal which after some decades cracked and rust crawls underneath. Often rust starts from the corners of cavitiy plugs. Rust can often be found under tha battery tray and under the screen wash reservoir & expansion tank. And the basic stuff where every car can rust, wheel arches etc. - and it seems the later models are more prone to rust than the earlier ones (up to '94). Also watch out for play in the front suspension's ball joint - if they have any play or grind whilst turning the steering - replace them!! Because: data.motor-talk.de/data/galleries/0/36/2868/33048669/389-traggelenk-1-2116872581537695412.jpgAlso there are a lot of bushes on the rear suspension that can be worn. The engines are pretty much bomb proof and very reliable. Fed by a Bosch KE-Jetronic. 250.000+ are not to worry. Fuel pump relais can suffer from cold solder joints (repairable). Apart form that, they'r terribly reliable... Almost boring... ;D The newer engine generation (M111 & M104) is prone for engine loom failure. The loom cracks - replacement is mega money... So on these engines watch out for electrical faults. That's all that springs to mind right now...  Ah, steering boxes tend to be worn and have play. I've not yet driven a coupé, only sedan & estates. Handling is good, they can corner surprisingly well, but it's all setup more for comfort than precise cornering, so to say (that sad they do corner rather precise, but not like a 'sporty' car does). As for MPG, the 230 does seem to do 28 to 31 - not matter what you do ;D With auto box 28 to 23. The 300 is said to do less, unsurprisingly ;D But can't comment out of personal experience so I don't. A maual 5-speed would bebest for economy. Economy is not s strong point of those Mercs, though... Cheers, Jan |
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dubzi
Part of things
Posts: 711
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Sept 13, 2011 16:33:34 GMT
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I have 300CE-24. It had a lot of work done by the previous owner, so far it's been fairly reliable for me other than the ignition lock seizing.
If that does happen, don't snap the key (like I did!) otherwise it's a curse word of a job to grind out the pin on the steering lock to remove it. Basically, if the ignition key feels at all stiff or it jams even once, replace the lock immediatly as it's on it's way out.
Mine had a new radiator and gearbox before I got it. The cooler for the auto-box is in the bottom of the rad. If the antifreeze isn't kept up with, the cooler rusts and the gearbox oil gets mixed with water. If the coolant looks muddy brown, avoid.
If it's got self levelling rear suspension, make sure it's working. The spheres and pipes are a pig to replace without dropping the rear subframe, although it is possible even with my shovel like hands as I did it on our W124 estate.
It's not ecomomical at all! It is a very fast, comfortable armchair and it does handle well, given it's size. Mine has slightly lower, stiffer springs (apparently) so it doesn't roll so much. It's not sportscar-like but it does hold well and there's plenty of feel. Mine also has a limited slip diff but it's still all to easy to spin the rear wheels in the wet. The LSD keeps it in a (fairly!) straight line though.
Only other thing to look out for is the rear metal brake pipes, just before they go into the flexi pipe. They're in an exposed position just by the wheelarch. The coupe's got replaced at the last MOT, the only failure point. The ones on our estate were also looking rusty but one actually fractured during the MOT while on the brake tester!
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Happiness ain't at the end of the road. Happiness is the road.
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THE_Liam
Yorkshire and The Humber
If at first you don't succeed... HAMMERS.
Posts: 1,363
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Sept 13, 2011 20:27:04 GMT
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I've driven a 300E saloon, and that was an absolute pleasure! Turbine-smooth, torquey, powerful straight-six, smooth autobox with responsive kickdown, comfy, very quiet, good handling for a big luxury car although a bit rolly, and the usual brilliant build quality. It's my mates car, and he says he can just about get 30 mpg on a 60 mph run, but usually it's high 20's on the motorway and high teens in town, if it wasn't for that I'd buy it off him |
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MrSpeedy
East Midlands
www.vintagediesels.co.uk
Posts: 4,786
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Sept 15, 2011 10:49:18 GMT
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Thanks for that peoples. I'm currently bidding on a higher mileage one with full MB service history, so we'll see how it goes. I don't expect a 2 tonne 3.0ltr car to be sipping on fuel but If I get 30 MPG on a run I'll be happy! |
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of cars).It'll be used mostly for ferrying kids about at weekends and the odd trip to visit the GF.
Ah, steering boxes tend to be worn and have play.
