Ride quality W124 vs W126 vs W140

[Charles Morgan]

I appreciate subjective, the cars are somewhat old now, but in stock condition (W124 estate / W126 saloon / W140 or C140) which of these has the best ride? I am selling my Alpina as I have just taken out a brand new tyre and a refurbished alloy on a local pothole (of which there are numerous) and I just want a nice smoker to soak up the local hellholes.

I do have a 420SE that was bought for the engine transplant that will no longer happen on my 250 coupe, but that needs some work and I'd rather start from the best point.

Other factors will be considered separately. I love this era of MB so don't want something younger.

 

[gunning]

In my personal opinion the w140 or c140 is the motor that will give you the most comfort as a daily. A w126 can be a little "sloppy" for me on the road. The technology jump in the w140 is a biggy too.

W124 is a good all rounder, they aren't as soft as a s class/ se, sel though

 

[Charles Morgan]

I'm just after ride comfort, I'll assess all the other factors separately.

So for comfort you'd go W140/W126/W124 in that order.

 

[gunning]

For comfort alone it would be that order yes. Seats are slightly bigger and comfier in the w140 too

 

[C43AMG]

The W140 does have that Armchair appeal Charles,

 

[Charles Morgan]

How about on third world roads? (my council don't bother to maintain them in any way, the potholes are totally ubiquitous - it is now similar to Southern India road conditions).

 

[grober]

There are some fundamental differences between the W124 front suspension and the other two . Both the W126 and W140 have their engines and front suspensions mounted on a separate front subframe assembly affording another layer of resilience /insulation between the road and car body. The W124 on the other hand, being essentially a scaled up W201 [ 190] chassis makes-do with deep chassis rails, a cross member and Macpherson struts to feed loads into the car's main body structure. This gives a more agile feel to the W124 with a slightly lighter front end perhaps at the expense of insulation from the road. While all three have still have separately mounted subframes at the rear the later W124 and W140 have the more suphisticated multi link rear suspension. For both suspension and inertial [ SHEER BODY WEIGHT] reasons then I would suggest the W126 and W140 would have the better ride possibly at the expense of handling and fuel consumption.

ps this is assuming all suspension components are functioning as designed- this in particular wrt the myriad of rubber bushes involved in suspension compliance.
e.g. w140 front subframe

 

[John Jones Jr]

The one I'd put my hard earned into, is a W126 preferably a loaded 500SE. But the guys are right a W140 would offer greater ride quality, it's a 10 year newer design but hell it's a big smoker. Nice choice to have to make.

 

[Charles Morgan]

My preference is W126 but having seen a C140 in the flesh the other day it did completely shatter what had been a very entrenched dislike of the car. However this time I'm not going to jump to a conclusion. I've been in enough well-sorted W124s (and some equally badly sorted ones) to state that I could live with the ride easily round here. I also have sat in the back of my then employer's chauffeur W140 fleet to know they ride well on London roads, not so sure about Slough borders though.

 

[WDB124066]

Mercedes-Benz S500 L 1993 | Trade Me

 

[Stratman]

...............

I also have sat in the back of my then employer's chauffeur W140 fleet to know they ride well on London roads, not so sure about Slough borders though.

They did armoured and bulletproof W140s if that helps.

 

[Charles Morgan]

Mercedes-Benz S500 L 1993 | Trade Me

That's a seriously low miler even by JDM standards. At the new low price it might almost be worth thinking about shipping it, but I imagine the cost of that somewhat kills the deal as it would need a hefty space and another 20% minimum import duty.

 

[ianrandom]

I can't imagine the W126 could ever compete with the W140 for ride comfort. I wouldn't say overly sloppy for the W126 unless a bit worn, but definitely jiggly in comparison.

The W126 has old suspension design. And also need to be fresh to ride well. Love my W126's but around town they can be a bit wooden on the bumps.

 

[stwat]

There are some fundamental differences between the W124 front suspension and the other two . Both the W126 and W140 have their engines and front suspensions mounted on a separate front subframe assembly affording another layer of resilience /insulation between the road and car body. The W124 on the other hand, being essentially a scaled up W201 [ 190] chassis makes-do with deep chassis rails, a cross member and Macpherson struts to feed loads into the car's main body structure. This gives a more agile feel to the W124 with a slightly lighter front end perhaps at the expense of insulation from the road. While all three have still have separately mounted subframes at the rear the later W124 and W140 have the more suphisticated multi link rear suspension. For both suspension and inertial [ SHEER BODY WEIGHT] reasons then I would suggest the W126 and W140 would have the better ride possibly at the expense of handling and fuel consumption.

ps this is assuming all suspension components are functioning as designed- this in particular wrt the myriad of rubber bushes involved in suspension compliance.
e.g. w140 front subframe

The 126 is basically a scaled up 123 and is not like a 140 up front, sussy wise.. The 190 has separate springs and dampers up front, not MacPherson struts.

 

[w124nut]

In your quest for comfort, whatever model you choose, I suggest that you steer clear of vehicles with large wheels and low profile tyres.

 

[Niks]

I'd chose a W140 if I was purely looking for stock ride comfort.

 

[gbjeppm]

I agree with Niks, if it is purely comfort, go for the 140.

But................ They are so ugly, so i would go for the 126, but then i would say that

 

[grober]

The 126 is basically a scaled up 123 and is not like a 140 up front, sussy wise.. The 190 has separate springs and dampers up front, not MacPherson struts.

I'm sorry if I misled people I should have used the more accurate modified Macpherson strut term. I was focussing on the aspect of the design which uses the strut as part of the mechanism by which the front hub swivels. This has camber implications in terms of suspension movement unlike the twin parallel arm set up of the W126 and W140 suspension. As you correctly point out most people associate Macpherson strut with the combined shock absorber and spring arrangement. I would also agree the W126 suspension is a generation behind the W140.

 

[brigadier]

I reckon ride is better on W140 than on C140 Coupe. Just got mine recently and it's quite harsh over bumps, but might need to replace the front spring as the front seems too low. Anyway if you're after a C140 this looks nice if it's still for sale - Mercedes CL500 W140 model low mileage For Sale (1998) on Car And Classic UK [C524069]

 

[Charles Morgan]

The C140 I saw had AMG bodykit and big wheels, which made it look frankly amazing (I am still staggered that I found it so), but the latter in particular will be a fundamental problem so I shall confine my searches to saloons. I need to test a good one though. As I have found with W124s (and indeed 190s and Alpinas) getting them back to stock is a revelation in what they can do.