AzzMan

http://orlando.craigslist.org/car/521543697.html

Called about it yesterday, owner said everything checked except the radio didnt work. Engine apparently died or blew or God knows what and was replaced with another 3.0l M103. I thought all the W124s in that price range were disasterous salvage title cars with unrepaired damage that had already been gutted. I was going to go look at it today but decided to register here, as I've been meaning to for a while, so I might as well ask you guys!

Thanks

Silverback

As far as looks ago, it seems like a pretty clean car for $1500. And if it runs as good as he says it does...I'd jump on it for sure. Too bad I'm a couple states away...lol.

capthook

$1500 is a good purchase price, but what are the (total) miles on her? The 60k m103 engine not give you any problems, but obviously a original transmission with over 200k will

Was the engine replaced, or rebuilt 60k ago? I would ask for the complete service history, then make your decision

MBFORCE

That is a hell of a deal...i just wondeing on why so cheap?

AzzMan

I'm going to take a look at it right now, I'll see if he doesn't have the history. If not I still might make the purchase, but if it's got 150k or something I might have to consider. I'm bringing what cash I have on hand, which is $1070 exactly. Hopefully if the miles are in that range then he'll consider that offer. I really don't plan to spend more than $1200 on the car, and even if I do, I'd imagine that extra $300 could go a long way for maintenance on an old Benz. I've heard nothing but how plentiful and cheap parts are for W124s and 190Es, and how they're bulletproof to the true sense of the word.

I'm coming from an E30 which has given me more problems than I could handle, because of the state I bought it in, and I was led to believe that this car would be more reliable in the long run. Plus the initial purchase is cheaper. But, how much are some maintenance items for these?

shdoug

It seems too good to be true. Also, you've been mislead somewhat. Parts are anything but cheap. They may be bulletproof as in literally firing a rifle at them, but daily driving seems to destroy them quite nicely. $300 might pay for a couple months worth of repairs, but in my experience there is absolutely nothing cheap about these cars. Plan to spend $1500-$2000 per year in repairs; more than that if you pay someone else to do the repairs. If you like things to work perfectly it can cost you a small fortune. If you need air conditioning that's a minimum of $2,000 that you will probably have to cough up in the near future if it even works now. The transmission is another weak area and another $1500 or so. Head gasket leaks are common and that's another $1500. Great cars, though. I'd buy that one if it were me.

neanderthal

OP
should do your research BEFORE you decide what to buy so that you are informed. this is a screaming deal, but if you are only starting to do your research now,......
i was researching different cars for 3 months before i settled on an E30, W190 or volvo 850. i was coming from a BMW 2002 daily driver so all those were an upgrade relatively speaking. i wanted bigger, safer, sporty-ish, reliable. i realised that the W124 was in my price range and crossed the others off it. i found my current car after looking at many different cars. some had too many miles, some had too few for the condition they appeared to be in (ratty interior and less than one hundred thousand miles?!?!?!?!?) some had obvious mechanical headaches just waiting to jump out and grab me. some were too good to be true.
and mind you, i looked far and wide. i considered cars from as far away as 200 miles. why, id rather drive for three hours one way and get a really good car, than save those three hours and end up with a maintenance and repair hog.
i lucked into my car. found it parked on a street with a for sale sign and phone number. looked clean. MB Tex interior. light colour. called, saw, didnt act excited. called back a few days later. offered $1000 less, cash. he agreed on meeting me halfway.
mind you, i passed on an E30 M3 that was 90% of my available money. it ran well, the owner needed to get rid of it or another car (wifes conditions) but surprises can come up when you spend all your dosh on a car. didnt want to be catching a bus with a new to me car sitting at home, so i passed. the least expensive one ive seen for sale the last few months has been at twice what i would have paid for that M3. im semi kicking myself, but i also have a reliable daily driver.
as for reliability.


i guess im lucky then coz my car seems to just run and run and run.

of course i just get in it, drive to work, work, drive home, maybe go to the gym, rugby practise, park to ride my bike, and dont do anything crazy in the car. i do the occasional long distance (denver or summat) and my mom lives in phoenix so i do a lot of freeway long distance driving. including away games for rugby (vegas, san luis obispo etc.)

as for reliability, my car is a bastion of reliability. i expect things to go south; its 19 years old for crying out loud. so maybe im lucky its just been a waterpump, cylinder head, transmission mount, a hole in the exhaust (couldnt be helped i guess,) and a ruptured non- essential pipe (warms the windshield washer fluid.)

i do about 99% freeway driving though, accelerate relatively fast (get to cruising as quickly as possible to save fuel. not a drag race start, but quickly enough.) cruise as much as possible, coast to stops, anticipate traffic etc. i dont play around with windows and AC (keep the thermostat at 75, EC mode, fan on auto, windows up for less drag) and so on.
i almost dont even change the oil. its consuming about a quart per 1000, so im always putting in a new quart. an oil change once a year.

maybe im lucky. knock on wood.

question for all is. what percentage of city vs freeway driving do you do.
how much do you play with AC, windows, sunroof, etc
how hard do you drive (scale of one to ten. ten is banzai, suicide wish get the hell out of my way im gonna beat you to that bus stop and beyond. one is everybody is honking at you coz you not only take off so slow but you are impeding traffic everywhere you go.)

i think these things may have something to do with the frequency of breakdowns.

AzzMan

Yeah, this one was a pass. Not only would I need to invest in a new head unit, but the odo showed 180k, no paperwork, AC comp worked but didn't blow, needed new tint, original paint that could have used a decent amount of work, rear headrests wouldn't pop, car took a bit to cold start... and I probably couldn't have gotten it for a penny under 1400.

Eff that. Gonna have to go with another E30 I guess.

Rio Z Lander

wow looks nicer them mine but that motor is junk from the looks of it and i would pass to. mine runs grate EX for the the alternator and tires. odd to me my car is going on 20 years old and 274k miles.

BrabusBenz300E

I'm really not sure how some of you guys spend 2k per year on maintenance...I've had 3 diff 124s now over the span of about 3 years and spent a maximum of $400. And except for my current car, the previous two both had over 140k on them. I guess I've just had it lucky...

danholm

I haven't spent $2000 total in the 10 years and 120K miles I've owned my 95' 124. Now the 91', that's another story. Maybe an average of $1000. a year is about right. Had that for 9 years and 110K miles.

shdoug

^ Nice collection, BTW Dan. Any sunroof rattles in the X3? Mine is starting to do that and my previous one did as well.

Perhaps build consistency with the W124 is to blame, or more likely you have cars that were properly maintained previously. But there are some who did everything right and spent many thousands in the first 100,000 miles such as ksing44. He had his from new and it has cost him a fortune. Who knows?

Rio Z Lander

that is true. it take money to maintain the car but in the long run you get the joy of owning a piece of art and history.i have spent over 300 on my car and now need to dump 850 in to keep it running for a few more years. i am lucky in the fact that my dad dumed the 12k in to the car and not me before he gave it to me. my dad thinks i am a dumb **** for keeping the thing