C..Mr Amg

Happy New Year all...Good Morning..im interested in looking at this W126...for fun..I wanna know what i need to look out for to make sure that its not gonna be a money pit...Its dealer owned but he's had it for a long time..

Rmac58

Do all the functions work, such as windows, HVAC, sunroof.

Does the transmission shift well?

Gasser or diesel?

C..Mr Amg

Its gas and no i haven't seen or driven it as yet...im asking the questions now so when i do go to look at it..i know what I'm looking at.

Rmac58

I can't help with the engine, but the other items I brought up are worth looking into.

C..Mr Amg

Okay cool..im gonna go by there and check it out...

Rmac58

Being as old as it is, check the suspension components as well.

Does this car have the SLS suspension in back? If so, that needs to operate properly, otherwise it can be a substantial amount of investment to correct.

C..Mr Amg

What do you mean by self leveling suspension..huh..imma have to check...again great feedback.

Rmac58

Yes, the Self Leveling System.

The rear suspension is hydraulically operated, by this time it may malfunction.

There is an engine driven pump, if there is enough weight in the back, that will trip a switch telling the system to pump more fluid back to level it out.

See the attachment.

BENZITCH

Ask if and at what miles was the timing chain replaced.

Look for rust in the trunk under the rear window. Also look for delamination of the glass.

Ask when the transmission and brake fluids were changed, and what kind/type of fluid was used.

C..Mr Amg

Thanks again !!!

C..Mr Amg

Thanks for the feedback..

Question if the tranny fluid wasn't change..im assuming change it...and whats a good period to change the tranny fluids..like every 15k miles, 30k miles..

BENZITCH

30k

C..Mr Amg

Gotcha

schurmann

Don't know if someone told you this but, real important the check the coolant overflow tank for any HINT of black staining inside. This would indicate traces of oil in the coolant, which means a head gasket failing. The 87-89 300se has a problem with this because the tolerances of the gasket were just too close, and they pretty much all leaked eventually. That's why you don't see alot of the Inline-6 gas engines from that time around anymore- head gasket failure. If you do buy a I6 from 85-92 ask about it.
Head gasket jobs run from 2500 to 5000, depending on where you go to do it.