w124 e280 vs 300 24v

[smoothcoupe]

hi guys my wife currently drives a 1995n e280 with 143k, drives silky smooth and faultless, it has leather aircon. my dillema is ive been offered a 1991 300 24v with the same miles in almandine cream leather cruise air con etc.. ive yet to view the car but im told is mint as is the e280 i have... how would the 300 differ in refinement,reliability,smoothness,fuel consumption etc.. i know the 300 is 5 years older but does this really matter... confused,, dont know what to do..

 

[grober]

Better The Devil You Know??

 

[Gollom]

The 300E is a wonderfully refined and smooth car that can - if so required - shift like a bat from hell! - Ask Mrs. Gollom! Strongly suggest that you get the sportline version though, handles much better

 

[Vlad]

I have the M104 280 engine and the 300-24v, albeit that the 300-24v is currently lurking in my SL.....have to say that the 280 is a great engine, but the wiring harness issues can be a bit of an issue.

In terms of comparing against the 300-24v...well the 300-24v has more power, ie 230bhp as opposed to 190bhp. You have to Rev the 300-24 to get the best out of it but when it comes on song at 4000rpm, to my ears it sounds even better than the 280!!!!

In the SL, which I think is roughly the same weight as the W124, it really flies and that coupled with the noise would make me hunt down a 300-24 W124 if I was in the market for such a car, especially as they were only made for a relatively short period of time......I specifically wanted a SL300-24V as opposed to a M104 280 or 320, due to its power characteristics and character and its simpler electronics.

In my opinion its a great engine....just have to look out for the usual head gasket problems common to all of the 6 cylinder cars.

 

[Ade B]

What Vlad says - the 300-24V really kicks in higher up the rev range which can be fun.. On the down side, it can feel a bit flat when trundling about in normal driving conditions ie. accelerating out of roundabouts etc. its far from slow but the difference between picking up from say 2k rpm and kicking down to 4-5k rpm is pretty marked. I believe the later generation of engine made the torque curve higher in the lower rev range.

The engine sounds great and keeps pulling to the 7000rpm redline which is surprising for such a barge.

I get around 16mpg around the city and up to 30mpg on open roads. I've never driven a 280 so can't really compare.

Having said all that only you can decide on the wisdom of swapping a reliable car which you know for a very similar older car which you don't...

Ade

 

[fnkhan68]

Driven all 3 types, the M104 engine for 2.8 and 3.2, i feel are better to drive than the 3.0 version, they are more torque throughout the rev range whereas the latter comes to life after 4000 revs and ultimately that leads to high fuel consumption for a already fuel thirsty car.

 

[Ian B Walker]

<------- My avitar says it all.

 

[KLP 92]

and most importantly the redline on the 300-24 starts at 7000rpm!!

Yes, the 320 M104 has more low down torque, but the 300-24 puts a smile on your face when you do let it rip. Beautiful sound, great top end power, very un-MB like!

 

[Subyland]

everyday driveability = M104 280
Driving pleasure = M104 300-24