Is your early 80’s merc (W123/201/124?) this good or better?

[clk208]

As well as my W208 I am the owner of an early 80’s Volvo 200 series auto (don’t laugh), an unusual combination of cars for a young man. It was bought new for my mum when I was a baby and became my first car when I was 17. I have tried various ways of getting rid of it over the past 12 years but have pretty much accepted it now as a part of my life, like a good pair of slippers. Anyway, it’s relatively low mileage not having hit 200k yet but apart from a temperamental carb and a bit of rust has been pretty much bomb-proof. Another owner on a Volvo forum posted about their experiences of durability of main components and I wondered how this compared with a Merc of similar vintage.

Most parts seem to last forever but some have a surprisingly short lifespan (eg ball joints, track rod ends). Anyway here is the text from the other Volvo owner (assume it is a petrol car as the diesels of this period were a VW unit which didn’t last very well).





Quote:
“Based on my previous 240 (420,000 miles) and current two, one on 150,000 miles and the other 250,000 miles, I would say:
Head gasket - 400,000 miles plus, as long as coolant/inhibitor changed every 2 years, and system maintained so that it never overheats.

Gearbox - 400,000 miles plus if oil changed and topped up.

Axle - begins to hum at about 200,000 miles but goes on indefinitely, if oil changed and topped up.

Clutch - never replaced. Depends entirely on driving style. With a low-reving engine the clutch does very little work.

Steering rack - 400, 000 miles plus, if oil changed every 100,000.

Prop shaft centre bush - indefinite if lubricated.

Reaction rod bushes - 50,000 miles

Trailing arm bushes - 200-300,000 miles

Front suspension bushes - big, 100,000 miles
small, 400,000 miles plus.

Suspension ball joints - 80,000 miles

Track rod ends - outer, 50,000 miles
inner, 300,000 miles

Starter motor - 400,000 miles plus

Alternator bushes - 200,000 miles.

Driver's seat - 200,000 miles

Radiator - original, 20 years
cheap replacement, 4 years.

Front wheel bearings - 400,000 miles plus, if greased and adjusted.

Rear wheel bearings - 400,000 miles plus with adjustment.

Headlamp wiper motors - 2 months

Windscreen washer jets blocking - 5 minutes.
“

 

[Vlad]

Like Mercs from the 80/early 90's, Volvo 200's come from a great period in Volvo's history, ie bombf proof build quality....safe to say that a modern V70 would never make those sort of mileages on those components, but saying that the mechanicals on the 200are from the stone age, hence the reason they last so long.....in my eyes thats no bad thing!

 

[JohnDeere8530]

I had a Volvo from 1979, again it was a family car and was handed to me in 1990 for my 17th bday.

It did 350k miles before someone stole it and pretty much needed nothing ever doing to it. It was a Volvo Thor a limited edition one that was just above a GLT totally in black, had lots of extra but no power steering The ulitmate bomb proof car, way better than anything else I have ever owned

 

[Sonny Burnett]

some one on 202club(rip) had a c280 I6 past 330,000 with not much changed.

 

[Sonny Burnett]

See a 1995 e320 with over 300k

 

[312 Sprinter]

I had a W210 E320 CDI; after it spent 6 weeks in the garage I bought a Volvo 940 Turbo. 170K miles later I still have it. It is now on 225K miles, is 100% rust free has never been welded and retains most of its original major components. It runs on LPG so fuel costs are reasonable.

I think it is fair to assume that had I retained the W210 it would now have severe corrosion issues. That isn't why I got rid of it though. It just wasn't reliable enough. Mercedes actually bought it back from me.

No doubt the Mercedes had the edge on refinement, but the Volvo is a vastly superior tool. I might consider a W124, but I can't envisage buying a new or nearly new Mercedes. There again a more moden Volvo than the 940 probably isn't as bullet proof as their mid 90's elder relatives.

 

[219]

I've always liked Volvos too . Have had friends with 1- series as well as 2- series cars - the engineering layout is very similar to Mercedes-Benz of the same period .

The highest mileage vehicle I've owned was my 430,000 mile 300TE-24 ( which had a new engine at 380,000 miles before I bought it ) . I've had numerous cars up to and beyond 200,000 , including my current S-Class which is past 190,000 now and still drives like new with minimal oil consumption and no noises from back end .

The engines and mechanical components on Mercs have always been strong , needing only routine maintenance and replacement of wearing parts like brakes etc . Sadly the transition from grease nipples and metal bushes to rubber everywhere in the late 1960s did cut down on the maintenance regime but brought in a whole new raft of wearing parts ( I used to religiously grease all the lube points on my Ponton every six months or so , much sooner than the specified 3000 miles , and have never had to replace any suspension components ) . No doubt the 'A service' would cost much , much more if this were still part of it ! While brake technology may have come on a lot , they also need much more maintenance - the unassisted Alfin drums on my Ponton are surprisingly efficient ( although I did have to have the wheel cylinders bored and sleeved following a hydraulic failure not long after I bought the car in 1982 ) and , even close to 30 years on I have NEVER had to replace the massive shoes which look as though they belong on a truck , the drums are fine too ) . I have a full set of spare brakes off another Ponton I broke for spares some years back so doubt if I'll ever need to buy any .

As with the Volvos , both Solex and Stromberg carbs have always been seen as a weak point - the Solex on my 219 loves to ice up given the chance . Some later carbs got to be so complicated they were a nightmare .

I've had cars of every generation from the Ponton up to the W124 series ( I won't go any newer as I then lose the ability to maintain myself ) and the main thing that has got better over the years is the bodywork - older cars had serious rust issues ( I can remember both Fintails and W114/115 series cars having serious rust issues before they were even 10 years old ; the W123 seemed to be the first series to really crack this , improved on by W201 and W124 - even my W126s at 24 and 26 years old respectively have no serious rust - although I have seen a few rusty ones in breakers yards it does not seem so common ) .

 

[kth286]

in the OP it says rear wheel bearings are adjustable, as well as the front.

is that the case ?


on a similar US Merc forum most items are listed at 100k miles and on my 1995124 E320 coupe I would say much work needs doing at 100k too.

If you are to keep it feeling like new.

I bet the volve at those 400k figs will not be feeling anything like new and will likely be positively dangerous above 50 mph.

 

[grober]

The key here is surely simplicity and reasonable rustproofing. Carb problems = probably some sort of automatic choke problem. Large capacity 4 cylinder in line engine manual transmission and a conventional fore and powertrain seem to be recipes for longevity and easy maintenance. That said its probably a death trap in a collision [ witness that 5th gear test with a renault espace /modus people carrier thingy a couple of years back http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBDyeWofcLY ] despite its safety reputation and I would wager its emissions are through the roof and before people start labelling me a "tree hugger" high emissions= high fuel consumption over the years [ not mentioned ??] =high cost [ unless you convert to LPG which lots of people do since normally there's plenty room under the bonnet of these fore and aft motors]. And don't start me on the electronics!!! which probably only stretch to a car radio on the Volvo= yet another recipe for longevity.

 

[grober]

duplicate post

 

[219]

in the OP it says rear wheel bearings are adjustable, as well as the front.

is that the case ?.

They are/have been on all my Mercs . Volvo always had a similar rear hub/brake arrangement with combination disc/drum unit for service/parking brakes - I'd expect they probably use a similar bearing setup with inner and outer races . Adjusted up with a castellated nut which is then locked off with a split-pin ?

My 430K W124 truly drove like a new car with no knocks , rattles or squeaks - everyone who ever went in it commented on the smoothnessand quietness of it .

 

[kth286]

They are/have been on all my Mercs . Volvo always had a similar rear hub/brake arrangement with combination disc/drum unit for service/parking brakes - I'd expect they probably use a similar bearing setup with inner and outer races . Adjusted up with a castellated nut which is then locked off with a split-pin ?

My 430K W124 truly drove like a new car with no knocks , rattles or squeaks - everyone who ever went in it commented on the smoothnessand quietness of it .

But what was it like in the twisties ???

Had my 15 year old coupe approx 9 years and gradually changed every suspension component :

all arms - front and rear

all springs

all shocks

diff bushes - all three

subframe bushes - all four.


So that now at 176,000 miles it drives and feel like new.

(the bodywork this year)

 

[Sonny Burnett]

I had a W210 E320 CDI; after it spent 6 weeks in the garage I bought a Volvo 940 Turbo. 170K miles later I still have it. It is now on 225K miles, is 100% rust free has never been welded and retains most of its original major components. It runs on LPG so fuel costs are reasonable.

I think it is fair to assume that had I retained the W210 it would now have severe corrosion issues. That isn't why I got rid of it though. It just wasn't reliable enough. Mercedes actually bought it back from me.

No doubt the Mercedes had the edge on refinement, but the Volvo is a vastly superior tool. I might consider a W124, but I can't envisage buying a new or nearly new Mercedes. There again a more moden Volvo than the 940 probably isn't as bullet proof as their mid 90's elder relatives.

id of kept the 210 you must of bought a lemon i know plenty of 320cdis doing 250k miles before anything really goes wrong.. on the other hand my cousin has baught a new s60 and its utter crap hes getting rid of it to get a 210 320 petrol swear on my life

 

[renault12ts]

My mother also had a 245, new in 1975, turned out to be a rusty heap, and was completely resprayed in 1980. Kept it until 1984, then sold.

 

[219]

But what was it like in the twisties ???

It cornered 'like it was on rails' .

To be fair , it had much more than FMBSH - the one previous owner had maintained it regardless of cost at MB Glasgow , from new right up to a month before I got it - even to the extent of spending six grand on a genuine new Mercedes engine when the car was about 14 or 15 years old !

Although I got nothing with the car when I bought it , on discovering it was a one owner car , I contacted the previous owner , who directed me to the dealership ; they kindly printed out the service history - of which there was reams - and it looked as though the car had carte blanche to just gat anything done that was ever found needing . I expect that included suspension bushes .

The owner traded it in on his retiral for a new SL and the dealership put it out to auction .