MB quality from the 90's ?

[Pcn1]

Hi all,

Wanted a early 90's SL for a weekend toy a few years ago but budget didnt stretch to it, settled on a Audi Cabriolet instead. (last of the 80's).

Now Im itching to get that SL again and have a budget of upto £7K. Was there some opinion that the qualty of MB's product dipped a little sometime in the mid 90's, and if so is there a year to note ?
Ideally Im looking at a SL300 24 or a SL320 straight 6. I believe they went to a V6 sometime arouind 1996/7 ? Please advise.

Thanks

 

[millo777]

The model you're after is the r129 and if you do a search you'll find plenty of info. ihmo the dip in quality was on the later models that replaced the r129.

On the straight sixes you'll want to check the head gasket as they all go eventually, and a redesigned gasket pretty much cured the problem. If it hasn't been done yet, budget accordingly.

On 1994-1996 cars there may be an issue with the wiring loom as MB decided to make the wiring insulation out of a biodegradable material for eco reasons. Not sure if it affected the r129, but more than likely did. Have a search and I'm sure you'll find plenty of info out there about this problem. I would imagine most have had the looms replaced by now.

Hopefully others will chip in with more r129 SL specific stuff.

 

[BlackC55]

Get a 500. Much better engine and not much difference in economy to the 6 pots.

Buy a late one with the 113 engine and you cant go wrong.

 

[d w124]

Is this any good?1997 MERCEDES SL 280 black fmbsh 87k stunning car not 300 320 500 amg r129 | eBay
I know is only a 280 but it`s cheap I think

+1 on the V8 though

 

[BTB 500]

Yup I'd also recommend a 500

Anything post '96 should be OK, not sure whether you'd get a decent '99 onward car (M113 engine ... oval door mirrors) for £7k.

 

[Pcn1]

Yup I'd also recommend a 500

Anything post '96 should be OK, not sure whether you'd get a decent '99 onward car (M113 engine ... oval door mirrors) for £7k.

Ive seen a couple of add's for 1996 SL320 models not too far from me. Im looking to run the car on classic Insurance so a 15 year + model is ideal for me, and they all seem to drop into my budget.

Perhaps Im in the minority but I like the old skool amber indicators/original wheels and anything that dates the car back to when it came off the production line. Im not into "dressing up" an older car to look more modern.

I have a Grand Cherokee for a daily/winter hack.

 

[Mercator]

I agree go for a 500 but the problem is 320s and 280s are cheap and plentiful whilst good 500s are becoming hard to find. Relatively few 500s were sold in the first place as they were significantly more expensive.

 

[BTB 500]

Ive seen a couple of add's for 1996 SL320 models not too far from me. Im looking to run the car on classic Insurance so a 15 year + model is ideal for me, and they all seem to drop into my budget.

Perhaps Im in the minority but I like the old skool amber indicators/original wheels and anything that dates the car back to when it came off the production line. Im not into "dressing up" an older car to look more modern.

I looked briefly at classic insurance for mine but couldn't find anything particularly cheap so it's on a standard policy (insured for 3k miles per year).

I agree about keeping the looks original ... amber indicators would be a pre-facelift car though, which will have the older 4-speed gearbox.

This car used to park at the end of my road and is the reason I got my SL But even that one had clear indicators fitted.

 

[ed_d82]

Hi, if you're in the market for a nice SL320 then I can potentially help. The dip in quality you refer to allegedly (don't want to upset anyone) took place post 98 when Daimler-Chrysler bought out Mercedes - commonly know as the accountants taking over

Mine is the 96 facelift model. It has 77.5K on the clock, full MB service history and all original equipment, panoramic roof and genuine AMG alloys. I have the original 8 hole alloys available too - planned in using these for winter.

Photo's are here:

Pictures by ed_d82 - Photobucket

It's within your budget. PM me if you're interested.

 

[ed_d82]

duplicate

 

[swithin]

I'm finally trading my 97 sl320 after trying to sell it for over a year, this recession is no good for weekend cars. There are plenty out there so its well worth taking your time and seeing as much as possible. I bought a sweet 99 sl500 in 2011 with 34k genuine for £11k hence having to sell the beloved 320.

I am very sceptical about those who say there is little difference in mph between the 320 & 500 as I notice a very real difference. Knowing you have the noticeable power difference can give you a heavy right foot more often than not and as for that subtle exhaust note suffice to say I definitely notice a real difference in mpg.

The 500 more likely comes with the panoramic roof which is a bonus and servicing is very reasonable at a specialist for both models. I wouldn't bother with the 280 as its a false economy and you'll always wonder "what if....."

I'm now on my fourth r129 and the latest will probably go in my will to my kids. Beautiful car and a joy to own and drive.

Best of luck in your quest for a good one, there are plenty out there and don't forget to test and check everything electrical especially the roof.

G

 

[BTB 500]

The dip in quality you refer to allegedly (don't want to upset anyone) took place post 98 when Daimler-Chrysler bought out Mercedes - commonly know as the accountants taking over.

In the late 90s M-B switched to water-based paints for environmental reasons, however the R129 had galvanised body panels from the start so should have been less affected than other models. Anecdotally I have heard a few more stories of rust on later R129s but no real evidence and still nothing to worry about compared to other M-Bs of that era!

Don't know of any specific 'cost cutting' issues that affected the R129?

From 1998 R129s had variable service intervals (ASSYST) which is a plus if the car isn't used much and you want to keep the 'full service history' going. Otherwise it's meant to be serviced every 12 months even if it only does a couple of thousand miles inbetween.

 

[Bluebell]

All the talk of R129's being lower quality after the Chrysler merger always makes me smile, mainly as I spent most of my working life in a production environment.

When you make something as complex as a car and remember car manufacturers are really car assemblers, then each sub-contracted component (which will be a great deal of the total % of the car) is sourced against a carefully defined specification backed up by extensive drawings and quality control. Whilst this can be changed, each such change is very expensive to implement as its effect has to be considered on all of the other components influenced by and reacting with the part in question.

Thus when a manufacturing process is set, it normally stays that way especially when a new model is only a couple of years away, the paint may change its composition, the thickness of the steel, quality of the plastics etc won't and I am sure did not with the R129.

So, newer 1990's Mercs, designed with cost cutting in mind are of at best, poor quality, the R129 was pretty much the last surviving model designed in the 1980's and it shows. Even the engine changes, so derided by some were not a reduction in quality.

My family has a 1991 320SL and a 2001 Silver Arrow, I can see no difference in the build quality of either of them. In summary the usual rules apply, buy on condition and history, not age with cars like this.

 

[BTB 500]

While the general design of the R129 goes back to the 80s, the different paint process and new/revised components fitted after the 1999 facelift (interior trim, rear lights, door mirrors, engine, exhaust, ... ?) obviously *could* have been influenced by the cost-cutting taking place at that time.

My family has a 1991 320SL and a 2001 Silver Arrow, I can see no difference in the build quality of either of them.

That's good to hear. The only quality issue I know of with the Silver Arrow is the illuminated door sills.

 

[Danaf]

Ive seen a couple of add's for 1996 SL320 models not too far from me. Im looking to run the car on classic Insurance so a 15 year + model is ideal for me, and they all seem to drop into my budget.

Perhaps Im in the minority but I like the old skool amber indicators/original wheels and anything that dates the car back to when it came off the production line. Im not into "dressing up" an older car to look more modern.

I have a Grand Cherokee for a daily/winter hack.

Hi,

If you're looking for a classic car quote for the vehicle feel free to give us a try. We have schemes that cater for this vehicle as a classic.

Regards,

Dan.

 

[BTB 500]

Hi,

If you're looking for a classic car quote for the vehicle feel free to give us a try. We have schemes that cater for this vehicle as a classic.

Regards,

Dan.

Hi Dan

I filled in the form linked to from the 'members offers' area here; it said someone would get back to me re. a quote for my R129 but nobody ever did.

This was a couple of weeks ago - I was in a hurry to sort something out and had completely forgotten about it until I saw your post!

If I remember I will try you again next year.

 

[DanSL]

Get a 500. Much better engine and not much difference in economy to the 6 pots.

Buy a late one with the 113 engine and you cant go wrong.

Not arguing against what you say here as you are a Merc specialist after all, but I have read that the M119 is the superior engine - can you explain why the M113 is better please?

Cheers,

Dan

 

[dan1502]

Just be careful to check everything very very carefully. You will always miss something but bear in mind that the costs of putting even minor things right can add up to the point where you might as well have bought a better car for a bit more in the first place. Either way it's probably wise to budget on spending a couple of grand on TLC unless paying top dollar for a fully prepared one from one of the top specialists.

I looked at loads before buying mine and there were a lot of neglected examples. I'm not sure whether it is due to a paint change or just down to the way the cars had been kept but I found the 1999 on cars that I saw were worse for rust in the usual places (wheel arches, edge of wings, around aerial etc) and the early cars better. The interiors of the pre 1996 cars seem to last better too.

I narrowly missed out on about three enthusiast owned and cared for cars. Keep an eye out on here and on the official Mercedes Benz owners classifieds (worth joining for that) as well as the usual places.

 

[Doodle]

Not arguing against what you say here as you are a Merc specialist after all, but I have read that the M119 is the superior engine - can you explain why the M113 is better please?

Cheers,

Dan

If I'm not mistaken, the 119 is mechanically tougher, it's the attached electrics that let it down. Unless you hit that 2yr sweet spot where the 119 had Motronic injection, you're stuck with distributors.

 

[BTB 500]

The M119 won Le Mans and the M113 didn't