W164 ML impossible spec to find?

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It was an HDJ100 with some fairly trick mods. In some ways a little too competent, it spent a lot of time rescuing others!

TyQQU1ul.jpg
 
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It was an HDJ100 with some fairly trick mods. In some ways a little too competent, it spent a lot of time rescuing others!

TyQQU1ul.jpg
That looks great, I’d consider having a 100 too but the air suspension on the back is a bit of a concern.
What’s the engine like in it?, I’ve never driven the 4.2 but heard it’s more akin to a lorry engine than a car one?, it doesn’t rev high and doesn’t make much worry for its size but will keep chugging along forever.
 
OP, stick at it, as someone who had the same battle with 164's a few years ago, finding the balance between the engine you want/need along with the trim/kit/toys - It is worth the wait.

The black leather was a must for me and as mentioned was rarely found away from SE's, but you'd commonly have to sacrifice other things like high mileage or terrible alloys! Keep going and good luck. Ps, the 420 is great! ;)
 
That looks great, I’d consider having a 100 too but the air suspension on the back is a bit of a concern.
What’s the engine like in it?, I’ve never driven the 4.2 but heard it’s more akin to a lorry engine than a car one?, it doesn’t rev high and doesn’t make much worry for its size but will keep chugging along forever.

It would be very concerning, it's not air! The 100 VX (which almost all UK examples are) uses a hybrid system, there's torsion bars at the front and coils at the rear that provide a base level of support. On top of that, there's a Citroen style system with spheres all round that handle the AHC (Active Height Control i.e. ride height/load levelling).

It was somewhat unfairly maligned, especially as they got cheaper - some owners would simply rip it out and fit heavier springs to replace the lost support the AHC provided rather than take the effort to properly service it (Pleaides are familiar with working on these) but it's actually fairly reliable and works really well in practice when paired with the adjustable damping.

It's also not necessarily the best choice for more extreme off-roading and overlanding. Mine was one of the latter, the system was replaced with lifted OME springs and some trick adjustable Fox shocks with adjustable reservoirs, but it was compromised for the road as a result. If I was using it as a general vehicle with moderate off-road expectations I'd look to keep the AHC and freshen it up.

The 1HD-FTE is definitely engineered for heavy duty, and the output is modest but it's still quite car-like. Redline is 4k, which is about the same as my A8 4.2TDI.
 
Sorry I thought they were air on the rear for some reason!, I really think I need to have a drive of the 4.2 before deciding as I’ve not had the pleasure yet, I’ve got the 3.0 TD in the 90 I’ve got now and I’ve had a 3.0 D4D in a 120 Series before which was ok.
I’m also still really considering the W164 and keeping the 90 for using when I go off road which would give me more choice in terms of MLs as I wouldn’t need to have the off road pack.
 

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