W123 - the finest saloon car of the 20th century?

[JHZR2]

Sponsored by Stahlwille.



Would love a totally renewed w123 coupe or sedan.

Mine are really nice, but that would be great.

 

[MrGraybeard]

I owned an '82 coupe and an '82 touring, both turbodiesels. The build quality was unmatched, but I always thought they were a bit wallowy on the road. Putting 15-inch wheels on the wagon helped, plus it had the hydropneumatic rear suspension.

Power was not impressive by US standards, but the turbodiesels kept up with freeway traffic just fine. Acceleration from a dead stop was leisurely.

 

[JHZR2]

I owned an '82 coupe and an '82 touring, both turbodiesels. The build quality was unmatched, but I always thought they were a bit wallowy on the road. Putting 15-inch wheels on the wagon helped, plus it had the hydropneumatic rear suspension.

Power was not impressive by US standards, but the turbodiesels kept up with freeway traffic just fine. Acceleration from a dead stop was leisurely.

I’ve put a few hundred thousand miles on MB diesels. Never had an issue, and I’ve been in plenty of diverse and stressing traffic. Agree that by us standards they aren’t powerful or fast, but they do the job. I like them. A lot.

I just bought a pretty nice w124, and while it scoots better, it’s not like a w123.

The steering boxes get a lot of play at top dead center. That is an issue with the steering box design.

 

[MrGraybeard]

I’ve put a few hundred thousand miles on MB diesels. Never had an issue, and I’ve been in plenty of diverse and stressing traffic. Agree that by us standards they aren’t powerful or fast, but they do the job. I like them. A lot.

I just bought a pretty nice w124, and while it scoots better, it’s not like a w123.

The steering boxes get a lot of play at top dead center. That is an issue with the steering box design.

I prefer the way the W124 handles. And I really liked driving the W114. My old 250/8 gasser was fiddly, though. I wish I'd had a W115 300d ... or even a 240d with a stick. Some minimalists consider that the ultimate car, W115 or W123.

 

[WylieCoyote]

A co-worker of my Dad's bought one of these when I was a kid. I remember my utter fascination with the way the doors worked. Even if you parked it on a hill, the doors stayed wherever you opened them to, unlike American cars which had mid-open and wide open detents and those were your only choices, but all bets were off if facing uphill. They "popped" open, and closed with a solid, muted thud. It rode like it was a solid piece of iron, and the diesel purred, rather than clunked and clattered. Stark contrast to the American cars I grew up with.

 

[Motu]

I bet if you check your W123 tail lamp bulbs right now, most of them will be original. It's not just the MB parts that were reliable, every German part was.

 

[eljefino]

The arcane 4-speed automatics were an annoyance, and the only tranny marketed in the US with the 3L turbodiesel. Yes everyone futzed with the kickdown cable because it was hard to get a "good pull" in 2nd gear without flooring the accelerator. I don't believe the automatics were known for efficient power transfer, there's no TCC either. Mine made a whine at 50 mph that sounded like it was going 100. When I had it up to 85 the mechanical din was the most glorious noise mankind has ever engineered, though.

As said the steering boxes got sloppy. My 25-35 year old examples dragged a bit on the power windows and sunroof, but then of course, still worked.

You did get amazing seats, with both supportive side bolsters and comfortable "whole body" springs. A Camry seat simply has foam, which doesn't give you the same experience over major bumps. You got way more suspension travel than most cars, but I can't find numbers to cite a specific source. Since the cars were so slow to accelerate I'd just grin and bear a bumpy spot in the road but the car would float over it.

The American diving-board bumpers and sealed beams were mediocre, but I put in "Autopal" e-code sealed beams with H3 halogens. Visibility out all the windows is amazing. The body's big inside, small outside, with a decent trunk, and perfect "3 box" styling. The fuel tank snuggles vertically between the rear seat and trunk forward bulkhead, safe, and giving a deep floor to the trunk. The diesel tank takes "big rig" nozzles for obscenely fast fuelings, although foam will burp out if you don't slow down near the top. The turning radius, being RWD, is tight. The car lacks a lower ball joint, allowing some "flex" when the front tire hits a curb-shaped obstacle. It's disconcerting torquing front lugs and having the tire roll on you though!

Finally the SRP on the Benz in the early 80's was $32k when a new Ford Fairmont was $6k. It'd be a 6-figure car today.

 

[ecotourist]

What do you suppose a fully restored W123 costs?

 

[MrGraybeard]

The wagons are insane. Here's one that sold on Bringatrailer last year for $56,000. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1985-mercedes-benz-300td-turbo-36/

 

[atikovi]

The wagons are insane. Here's one that sold on Bringatrailer last year for $56,000. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1985-mercedes-benz-300td-turbo-36/

Wonder if I can get over 10% of that for my nice one?

 

[MrGraybeard]

Wonder if I can get over 10% of that for my nice one?

View attachment 96785

That one looks pretty sweet. At a glance I'd bet it'd fetch in the upper teens at a minimum.

In 2004 I bought one (with 200k on the clock) for $2500.

 

[eljefino]

I'd put that wagon in the $8-10k range but maybe more if it has working AC.

Somehow, despite how fine they are, they only attract thrifty Ebeneezer types.

 

[KJH]

My buddy has a inherited W123 that is absolutely mint besides mice getting to some of the wires which has left it sitting for 15 years in his parents garage. Ive never ridden in it but the one thing that stood out to me was the thickness and quality of the frame, body panels, and paint. Thing is a tank.

 

[Carmudgeon]

"Merci dix": A swansong for Morocco's Mercedes Grand Taxis

In Morocco, people don't call for an Uber; instead, they pile into Grand Taxis – battered but colourful old diesel Mercedes that are North Africa's answer to Cuba's vintage cars.

www.bbc.com