Educate me on Mercedes W123 cars

love me some W123. If you're not in a rush, it's a great drive. 

The suspension eats rough roads better than any sedan I've been in. I've hear them described as piloting a low-slung bus, and I'd have to agree. 

In reply to Cousin_Eddie (Forum Supporter) :

I have done this twice.

A w126 500SEL for which I flew to Ohio with my son and the seller met me at the airport, paid cash. The car was not as advertised, it was worse, but I pushed through and chucked it as a lesson learned. Paid cash drove to an Advance with my 6 year old in the back seat and fixed what I could there, bought a case of tranny fluid and drove south.

Second one I flew into Reagan in DC and took a subway to Maryland for an e36  M3. The car was not as advertised again, but this time it was WAY better. The owner was leary of the cash, so we went to a Bank of America where I deposited the cash and exchanged it for a cashier's check. The drove through a snowstorm with summer tires south.

Looking back, the Mercedes is gone and the BMW I still have, but both provided great memories and I would do again in a heartbeat.

volvoclearinghouse said:

Cousin_Eddie (Forum Supporter) said:

Y'all have painted a pretty positive picture of the cars. I did order a Bentley to look through while I'm hanging around at work. I thank everyone for the responses. I've added the W123 to my list of car searches. 

Now to learn about Volvos.

Volvo 240's are overrated piles of E36 M3. 

Fight me.

I rode shotgun in a 240 wagon forever ago and didn't think it was too bad, although my standards at the time were quite low. 

I owned a $500 1990 740 turbo wagon and loved it. Mine was a heap, but I still miss it enough to occasionally think about getting another one.

Slippery said:

In reply to JFW75 :

But it will do 75mph all day, forever  

Unless you find a hill.

Streetwiseguy said:

Slippery said:

In reply to JFW75 :

But it will do 75mph all day, forever  

Unless you find a hill.

I'm in Florida, what's a hill?

I had a modded 240d that I bought off this forum. It had a om617 swap with a manual and vgt turbo. Was fun but still slow but faster than stock. Daily drove it around SoCal for 3 years minus summer, it didn't have AC.

Look for a gas w123 with a manual. Coupe or wagon for bonus points and appreciation.

Other good cars from that era are w116's and w114/115 cars. 

I also had a 450SEL 4.5 at the same time that I bought for $600. That thing drove so amazing with modern tires. I would do it again, only thing I think of that drives better is a w126.