W124 - last of the proper mercs....

[Ade B]

They're built like tanks, not built to a budget, last of the properly engineered, bullet proof, run forever mercedes cars before the accountants got their way... allegedly..

Why does mine keep playing up then

Full MB and MB specialist service history, no expense spared maintenance regime - 60k miles in 17 years (9k in the last year by me)..

Ade.

Waiting for the next problem....

 

[Vlad]

The problems being.......

 

[Ade B]

Nothing that can't be sorted, just moaning - currently suffering slumped suspension, and a couple of minor intermittent issues..

Having earmarked some cash for cosmetic stuff, the car appears to have decided to refocus my finances. I seem to be undertaking a rolling restoration on the car, which was not really the original intention when I bought it...

By this time next year I think I will have experienced and repaired all known W124 gremlins and should have a nice car..

Ade

 

[A210AMG]

Hello

At the end of the day it is 17 years old.....

Most cars built at the same time are probably in the scrapy...

 

[TonyVianoAmbiente]

At the end of the day it is 17 years old.....

Most cars built at the same time are probably in the scrapy...

Yes, it is 17 years old and it has a very low annual average mileage of a little over 3500. Cars that don't do much mileage tend to have been used intermittently, or for short runs, or both. And that is not so good for reliability.

My own W124 is almost 13 years old and has covered 116,000 miles. I would expect some niggling faults but in fact the car has been very reliable in the 12 months since I bought it.

I cannot imagine another comparable brand of car whose 13 year old models are remotely as reliable as a Mercedes W124.

Audi? BMW? Jaguar? Forget it!

 

[Mudster]

I have a 17 year old SEC, it's realistically beyond maintenance now, but I bought it as such, It will have a total rebuild.

Built extremely well, one or two design flaws, awful rust but so robust and such a nice design it warrants saving.

W126 SEC's have reached an all time low in price as even the latest models available were 1991'. There are a huge amount of junkers, as a result these can be picked up for less than the sum total of their parts.

I'm building this car for myself as I've always wanted one, but I have a feeling that genuine originals or proper restorations will be sought after in years to come.

W124's will go the same way to an extent, but probably need another 10 years or so....

 

[Seamster15]

As you have said before I suppose that you could go and buy a 3 year old Ford Focus, it would of course cost less to run.....

But then thats why you drive a Merc, and a proper one at that.

If you want to sell it let me know, I'm sure it would be cheaper to run than my current daily drive...

 

[IanA2]

My 500SL is 17 years old. Drives like new. Very few problems. How many cars of that age could you say the same?

 

[Ade B]

thanks guys, it helps to be reminded of these things..

I've no intention of selling it, in reality its only needed a cylinder head gasket in the last 12 months which is a known w124 failing - everything else has been maintenance or niggles. The car was stored for 7 years and if it had higher miles, a few of the issues I've had may have come up earlier in its life.

when I bought the car, it was a bit of an experiment/adventure, and despite my grumblings I still enjoy getting into it...

if it was an old banger I'd live with the minor issues, but its not and its got under my skin and I want to get it up to scratch, unfortunately its competing with several other things for attention at the mo...

Ade

 

[glojo]

Yes, it is 17 years old and it has a very low annual average mileage of a little over 3500. Cars that don't do much mileage tend to have been used intermittently, or for short runs, or both. And that is not so good for reliability.

My own W124 is almost 13 years old and has covered 116,000 miles. I would expect some niggling faults but in fact the car has been very reliable in the 12 months since I bought it.

I cannot imagine another comparable brand of car whose 13 year old models are remotely as reliable as a Mercedes W124.

Audi? BMW? Jaguar? Forget it!

The official life expectancy of a 'modern' car is 13.5 yrs but I reckon they should have a seperate assessment for Mercedes-Benz

Regards
John

 

[Ade B]

The official life expectancy of a 'modern' car is 13.5 yrs but I reckon they should have a seperate assessment for Mercedes-Benz

Regards
John

I read 30 years somewhere (for MB), mines only just half way...

Ade

 

[glojo]

I read 30 years somewhere, mines only just half way...

Ade

There you go

Regards
John

 

[verytalldave]

To get back to the core of the threads title.......
What does actually constitute a "proper Merc"?
I have seen many posts discussing this very subject but nothing definative ever seems to be concluded.
I would stick my neck out and boldly suggest that ALL Mercedes are proper Mercedes and there is no such thing as "the last of the proper Mercs".
Some models seem to be able to resist corrosion better than others. Some engines seem to be able to run for higher mileages than others. Some interiors seem to weather better than others and some just simply "Look" better for longer.
But as for the label "proper", I think thats totally misleading and actully devalues the engineering and development which goes into the range of the modern and current crop of cars.
Emphasis has changed I agree, but who nowadays would buy a new car that weighs close on 2 tons and struggles to acheive 10mpg? Times and trends move on and Mercedes has to keep and eye to the future otherwise it will suffer the fate that befell makes such as Alvis, Jowett and many others.
True Mercedes has changed in the last 20-30 years, but if you ask me, for the better.

 

[Ade B]

I quite agree, my original post was questioning the truth behind the 'legend'
The W124 series is now recognised as one of the best-built and most reliable of Mercedes models. The W210, its successor, was one of the first products of a new regime that stopped the "over engineering" of Mercedes cars to reduce costs[citation needed]
To say Mercedes stopped 'over engineering' is too simple as the 210 was built with much the same engineering as the 124. The 210's problems with component failure and rust issues were due to the use of more environmentally friendly paints and delivery of sub-standard components.


I suspect that much car development today relates to environmental and economy issues (both for manufacturers and end users), the basic format of the car has stayed the same for quite a while now..




Ade

 

[glojo]

I read 30 years somewhere (for MB), mines only just half way...

Ade

Hi Ade,
I have been thinking about what you have said and in a way you are correct.

MobiloLife was so called because Mercedes-Benz wanted to gaurantee their cars for life.

The legal boffins at Merecedes-Benz decided that 'Life' was to vague and decided to put a number to the word.

Yup,
You've guessed. The number they came up with was THIRTY years. That would fit in with what you have read (hopefully) 30yrs equates to life of vehicle

This forum is hopefully always about helping and not about contradicting. We may disagree but it is always hopefully for the best of reasons.

spot on with the thirty year recollection

Yours sincerely
John

 

[mattc]

Hi Ade

I have a C124 from 94. 127K up in a few miles but she still feels taut and bomb proof. Since i bought it in Aug its had new fluids and filters, the ARB's and the original alloys renovated. She starts first time and is not giving me any grief. I really wonder if the storage and lack of use has done yours more harm than good.

that said I am going to have some rust work done this year (nothing major; just want to catch it know before it does turn bad.

i also intend to replace a bunch of the components (all will be MB originals) which do wear - rolling preventative maintenance i guess you call it.

I suppose what i am saying is i expect to have to pay to keep her servicable - some of these bills i expect to be quite serious too - but thats the price i am prepared to pay to run that vehicle rather than an anodine vauxhall box with zero character. We must face the fact that these vehicles are getting on in age - long after others have gone to the scrap yard in the sky.

Clearly its a personal choice thing but you may want to unload your low miler to one of the dealers that prefer those cars and get one with a few more miles on the clock

matt

 

[Ade B]

Hi Ade

I have a C124 from 94. 127K up in a few miles but she still feels taut and bomb proof. Since i bought it in Aug its had new fluids and filters, the ARB's and the original alloys renovated. She starts first time and is not giving me any grief. I really wonder if the storage and lack of use has done yours more harm than good.

that said I am going to have some rust work done this year (nothing major; just want to catch it know before it does turn bad.

i also intend to replace a bunch of the components (all will be MB originals) which do wear - rolling preventative maintenance i guess you call it.

I suppose what i am saying is i expect to have to pay to keep her servicable - some of these bills i expect to be quite serious too - but thats the price i am prepared to pay to run that vehicle rather than an anodine vauxhall box with zero character. We must face the fact that these vehicles are getting on in age - long after others have gone to the scrap yard in the sky.

Clearly its a personal choice thing but you may want to unload your low miler to one of the dealers that prefer those cars and get one with a few more miles on the clock

matt

Don't get me wrong, the car is staying (which was always part of the plan), and now I have the bit between my teeth the springs should be sorted in a week. The car is far from knackered and words like beyond economic repair don't really apply in this case.

I had 6-7k of trouble free motoring before the CHG issue and like you I expect to spend money on the car and happily pay for essential and preventative maintenance - it was just the frequency of said maintenance which was a bit unexpected...

If I look on the bright side (touch wood) I'm running out of 'significant consumables' to replace...

The other issue, is the car is in all other respects excellent and little things become an irritation that would be ignored on say a 17 year old Peugeot.

Ade

 

[Howard]

If I look on the bright side (touch wood) I'm running out of 'significant consumables' to replace...



Ade

Wait until you have to have the rear subframe welded

 

[Ade B]

And the rest, based on what I've seen on this and other forums its likely to need the following at some point in the next few years....

AC compressor
Water pump
Radiator hoses
Window seals
Brake pipes, master cylinder
ECU
Dizzy cap
Plugs and leads
Wiper motor
Window regulators
Gearbox overhaul
Exhaust and cats
Camchain
Valves and tappets....

Rusty bits...

All fine for now - lets hope they don't all go at once..

 

[Howard]

Don't forget the rear subframe mounts ....

God , i sound like the prophet of doom ....