Taken the plunge - my new W124 E320 Coupe

[Grahamcol]

Thanks for the response Charles. Yes, it does look rather good but cars often do in pics. and then aren't so good when you get there. I'm sure that won't be the case here though, judging by the good comments made about the seller. The 190's ideal for me as I prefer the electric sunroof to aircon and I don't need a lot of room in the back. Trouble is I don't have room for 3 cars (got 2 already) so the C280 would have to go, a great pity as I love it dearly. Good luck with your purchase and I hope you'll be very pleased with it, it certainly looks the business.

 

[Charles Morgan]

I would say Graham that my car was even better in the flesh than the pics, so I think it might well be worth you visiting, assuming you can part with your C280!

I love the feel of a 190E 2.6, lovely cars.

 

[Grahamcol]

Just waiting response (still) to my email asking for some further info / details. Once I get this I can make the decision whether to go and view or not. I used to drive the boss's 190E 2.6 when he had a new one way back in the late 80's and beautiful it was. However, the C280 is also beautiful to drive, so refined and effortless with plenty of power when needed. It's going to be a wrench to part with the C280 if the time comes but my thinking is that I could have the 190 for occasional use only thus keeping the wear and tear + mileage down and have something which isn't going to depreciate. We'll see how it all pans out.

 

[blondebier]

Lovely car Charles. It looks a beauty!

How many miles has it done?

 

[Charles Morgan]

117k miles blondebier (which is your favourite of that ilk?), so decent usage.

Graham - it is worth calling him, as he is up to his eyeballs this week.

 

[blondebier]

117k miles blondebier (which is your favourite of that ilk?), so decent usage.

That's amazing. They certainly do the mileage without showing it. I thought you were going to report something like 20K! If looked after that will do triple that.

It's lovely, I really like it. That's one of my favourite colours.

 

[bh13coupe]

splendid car
I have attached a pic of my coupe, looks like a twin
i have had mine 6 years and i will never sell it. you will enjoy the sense of occasion when u drive it, also when summer comes, remember to drop those windows

 

[Charles Morgan]

Lovely car BH13Coupe! I shall certainly drop the windows - Nick demonstrated with a certain awestruck wonder how the rear windows describe an S shape arc as they lower. Amazing!

 

[Charles Morgan]

I hope this link is fine, but Nick has finished the photos for the car on his site, and they are far better than mine (plus they have the South Downs in the background)

My Coupe

I only have to wait a week now. The Beemer is booked in for remedial work to avoid being stung by the lease company and goes back on Wednesday. All I now need to do is insure, sort out resident's permit and congestion charge and pick up the car.

 

[bh13coupe]

its fabulous Charles, I never get bored of looking at nice merc coupes. please post your thoughts and experiences compared to a modern high end bmw after you have put some miles on the clock.

 

[Ade B]

Lovely car BH13Coupe! I shall certainly drop the windows - Nick demonstrated with a certain awestruck wonder how the rear windows describe an S shape arc as they lower. Amazing!

Make sure you've nothing loose and lightweight in the back then, at anything more than a dawdle it gets windy

I find on nice sunny days out of town, the windows stay up and the AC does its job.

The sunroof is also very good at quietly ventilating the car when tilted.

You really need a heritage grille though for a proper C124

Pics of mine here.


Ade.

 

[Charles Morgan]

Noted Ade! I wish MB had kept the grilles the same, but alas no. Like the heritage Westie as well as your car!

 

[bh13coupe]

Make sure you've nothing loose and lightweight in the back then, at anything more than a dawdle it gets windy

ha ha yes i have seen stuff flapping in the reaview mirror

i recall a post here telling a story about a german chap who took a cabriolet car on test and didnt notice all his cash he left on the backseat flying out of the envelope and flittering on the autobahn at high speed. ha ha

 

[Grahamcol]

117k miles blondebier (which is your favourite of that ilk?), so decent usage.

Graham - it is worth calling him, as he is up to his eyeballs this week.

Charles, yes I guess you're right but I particularly wanted lots of little questions answered to avoid mutual time wasting. In order to achieve this I think I need to wait until he's a little less preoccupied. I was planning on perhaps going to view the 190 over next weekend rather than this forthcoming one so I'm not desperate yet for a response. Good luck with yours but I'm sure you're going to be delighted with it !

 

[Charles Morgan]

Got it insured, which in terms of cost wasn't too painful, given I park it on street and it has business use included. However, if I get stuck on hold listening to total dross again, I shall go mad. It certainly worked in that I decided to take a policy from a nice young lady (most probably from Essex) rather than endure yet another call centre queue with some hideous D list band from the 80s. That and any call centre in South Wales (no, I am not anti-Welsh, I am indeed of that ilk) but bad experiences with one call centre there left me scarred for life.

So only the congestion charge and residents parking to go....

 

[Pottering]

Charles,

I've had the car about a year. It had only done 150,000 km when I bought it. It had a full service history, so it must have been reasonably lightly driven for 15 years @ 10,000km per year. I've done about 15,000km since I got it with a couple of fairly long country trips of about 1,500km each contributing to that. I'm due for retirement soon so maybe the long run across the country to Sydney/Melbourne via the Nullarbor Plain could be considered (about 3,000km each way). It would the perfect car to do such a trip, but I'd hate to have any mechanical hitches, it would a ******* getting anything done to it out there.

Pottering

 

[Charles Morgan]

Pottering - I think I would hesitate to do such a trip in anything other than a Land Cruiser or similar. I assume there is a 3000km gap between people with the right kit and knowledge to sort out a problem should it occur - rather more than the likely average of 50 miles across most of Western Europe!

 

[Pottering]

Charles,

I take your point, but sometimes you've go to give these things a go. I drove my first car across the nullarbor about 35 years ago. It was a Datsun 240Z and the bitumen ended at the Western Australian border, followed by about 500km of gravel road till the hard stuff returned. It just about shook my teeth out, but I made it to Sydney and back with only 1 flat tyre to worry about. The road's a good one these days, especially one section that is about 100 miles dead straight and dead flat and not a tree in sight. Back then I did that stretch in one hour, ie 100 mph all the way. Part way across I saw this car coming up fast behind me. It then whistled by doing about 120 mph. It was a Jaguar XJ12! I didn't try to match him as the front end of the 240Z was barely making contact with the road at that speed.

I'll soon see if driving a Merc from one side of the country to the other is the way to go. The Mercedes national rally is on in Perth in late April and I think a few are driving across from over east. The cautious ones will ship their cars over on the train to avoid the chance of breaking down 1,500kms from anyone who knows how to fix a Merc. The hardy ones will put their faith in German engineering. Most people wouldn't give a second thought to driving a Holden (Vauxhall) ,Ford or Toyota Camry across, should be a doddle in a Merc?

Pottering

 

[Sorry Pete]

It looks like a sound purchase Charles, I'm sure you won't look back! The 124 models (1985 to 1995 version of the Mercedes-Benz E-Class) have a strong following on this forum for very good reason. With the youngest car getting-on for 15 years old now, and that many of us here consider them as an everyday car, is testament to that.

I agree that they should have kept the heritage grille! Hey-ho.

I'd suggest you have a look at this as it commonly gets missed on regular service schedules: howto-lubricate-windscreen-wiper-mechanism

I don't know how 'prepared' the car is, but as a matter of course, I'd also make sure the drainage holes are clear, (I'm sure it's detailed on here) and also lube the sunroof rails (use a quality ptfe grease, I use Molykote 33 for the wiper and sunroof) and aerial (with silicone spray) should put you in good stead for starters. All are likely to have been neglected.

Welcome to the club!

 

[Oily Rag]

I hope this link is fine, but Nick has finished the photos for the car on his site, and they are far better than mine (plus they have the South Downs in the background)

My Coupe

I only have to wait a week now. The Beemer is booked in for remedial work to avoid being stung by the lease company and goes back on Wednesday. All I now need to do is insure, sort out resident's permit and congestion charge and pick up the car.

Stunning motor Charles, Enjoy.