A used W124 E250D? EDIT : Now bought. Thanks!

[Ravindra M]

@Nandishpal : So you would like to own W124 only for a short while. Then it makes sense for me to wait till you sell yours to me. Anyway it will be well looked after, troblefree model and also a good bargain. Such opportunities don't come again. So I am the first on the list of potential buyers !

[Stetson]

My Treasurer (who is also my Comptroller & Auditor General) didn't think much of the idea : why a 13 year old heap when we already had two good cars? And how often will it be used (as well as : How often will it break down). She finally let me have my way when I explained that this set of wheels is sturdy, over engineered etc and especially that it is very safe on the highway and comfy. Also that someone paid over 2.5 Million for it 10 years back, we now get it for a fourth or a fifth of the price with plenty of life left in the old dog still.

I checked out only two and bought the first one of the two. I had used a 124 in the Middle East for sometime and the impression of extreme solidity and high build quality remained. The pedigree of the vehicle, the test drive and the apparent condition were enough to convince me of the claimed odo reading (54 K KM). The broker is an honest John to boot, young and with a degree in auto engineering. So, a quick selection as the previous owners are well known in the media business and in public life. One owner effectively, but switching through 3 of their companies over the years (for engineering tax write offs, I suppose), Here is the Eminence Grise as I have christened him (a metallic steel blue or steel grey) :













So, 13 years and 54000 KM later, what did I find :

1. Replica alloy wheels (Korean)
2. Wide Goodyear (205/55/R16) tyres, brand new. The owners manual recommends R15, is 16 OK?
3. Retrofit Alpine system with FM and CD player.
4. A broken front headlamp glass pane (the lights work just fine).
5. Wiper works fine except the wash and wipe.
6. New witing harness, changed 4 months back.
7. Else, all looks OK, a relatively clean engine bay, no oil or coolant change required as of now, body work and paint as in a 3 year old car but may give GE a water wash, grease-up and interior polish though.

Ride quality and suspension solid as ever but will test its paces in am onth or less on a long haul trip. Will keep you updated by and by as to the Pilgrim's Progress.

[Stetson]

Into the Stable : One Mercedes W124 D250 (Used) 1996 Metallic Blue Black

Sorry, I ought to have said "front interior overhead lamp pane". It is not the head lamp.

Also, the close-up shots of the doors are to show the panel fit of those times : thick (and safe) sheeting does not allow close fits as today's (thinner) sheeting.

One more thing , the tyres are nirogen filled. Is nitro fill as good an idea as it is touted to be?

[diffsoft]

Looks terrific Stetson, congratulations. The body looks dent-less and solid as new.

Enjoy and do post review!

[jubin]

seems its raining W124's .
same beauty as mine
love the Thud"

[Sahil]

Great looking car! Congrats!

May I suggest a pair of high security number plates which would add to the stately look

[Mpower]

Originally Posted by Stetson

Into the Stable : One Mercedes W124 D250 (Used) 1996 Metallic Blue Blac?

Congrats, could you give us an idea of price range. ie 3-4, 4-5 or 5-6

[CaliforniaKnight]

wow look at the charm on the 124.newer mercs just doesnt have it anymore.
Congrats, stetson.

[Stetson]

Thanks, Jubin and Sajil, for the enthusiasm and the interest. The High Sec plates are a good idea, will have'em fixed by and by. And M-Power, I paid in the high end of the 5 - 6 range. Could have had it in Bombay for no more than 5 but here in Madras people hold out for a little more. I read somewhere that 2465 W 124's were built in India (1995 - 98) and allowing for 20 % export (they didn't sell too well 'cos the W 210 was already out in Europe) that left about 2000 in the country, say 60 % Diesel or 1200 Diesles. I reckoned that we have maybe a 100 or less in Madras. Considering the good condition of the vehicle, I guess I paid abut 50 K premium. Thanks.

[E250Dreamcar]

Eminence Grise looks great ( I had to google the term, and I must say, it fits! - Éminence grise - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia))

Congratulations a great buy Stetson. Its awesome to see a good W124 find such new owners.May the tribe increase!

Btw, people who're looking to buy a W124 would do well to note down the VIN of the car they're looking at (its pretty easy to get the 17 digit number off the engine bay - i starts with WDB124xxxxxxxxxxx) and check it up at Mercedes-Benz Club Russia | Mercedes-Benz / VIN in order to get pretty good information about the details of your car as it was ordered (date of delivery, original parts and optionals ordered, the original color).

Regards,
NG

[PhantomLord]

Nice car, well maintained car is definitely worth the premium.

Originally Posted by Stetson

1. Replica alloy wheels (Korean)

> Replica alloys deform quickly compared to factory once's which are long lasting

Originally Posted by Stetson

2. Wide Goodyear (205/55/R16) tyres, brand new. The owners manual recommends R15, is 16 OK?

> 16 is OK and widely used on W124's. Looks, drives good and offer better Tyre choice.

Originally Posted by Stetson

3. Retrofit Alpine system with FM and CD player.

> You could move those tweeters on to mirror cover, passenger airbag looks slightly not aligned to dash(tricky to adjust since it uses single bolt).

Originally Posted by Stetson

4. A broken front headlamp glass pane (the lights work just fine).

> Easy to find used, check with local used part dealers.

Originally Posted by Stetson

6. New witing harness, changed 4 months back.

> Bonus, you might want to check if wiring to oil sensor is in good condition(not part of main engine harness).

Mirror rubber needs replacement? Try used, new ones are pretty expensive.

[PhantomLord]

Originally Posted by E250Dreamcar

Mercedes-Benz Club Russia | Mercedes-Benz / VIN

Site is pretty good but not complete as what dealer can see, members of some Merc forums have reported information shown as not accurate. But some W124's VIN's I have tried worked well.

[canonball]

Never knew that color was available on Indian built W124's is she repainted? I recall there was white, silver, met navy blue, and met grey this color?? Yes later 97/98 we had black, and maroon - taj

[canonball]

I am looking for W210 E250D auto and faced with a quandry whilst low miles cars like the one above look great are they better on realibilty? Or better to buy cars with say 80K a good average for 10+ yeas cars. Only issue I face is that 80K cars don't have the best body condition something I cannot see myself driving (All my cars notwithstanding age look like they just stepped out of the showroom )

I liked one car with 70k but her grey leather seat (grey's crack and deteriorate earlier) were changed to cloth and she had been professionally oversprayed. Added to which she did not have showroom history made me look away. I keep getting offered greenblacks (V16 ) somehow Greenblack's were sold in higher numbers (read forced onto customer) as a dealer insider tells me. I have seen 4 green blacks, 2 golds on a sad state and one black

GTO/V16 and all others your comments pls? My search continues.

[Stetson]

Thanks, Phantom Lord, for the acute observation : I did spot the frayed rubber mountings on the rear view mirrors on either side (the owners also pointed them out to me, they have not been able to get a replacement as they wanted to change the entire mirror assembly) but I would not have thought any one on the forum would spot it from the pic. You should have been at my side when I inspected Eminence Grise!!

It is interesting what you say re the passenger airbag but I noticed the same misfit in Jubin's pic (http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/luxury...ow-bought.html) of his D250 too : can it be a feature resulting from the CKD assembly in Poona?

Thanks too for the info re wide profile tyres.

CannonBall, the metallic blue black was very much a colour offered on intro in India (check Jubin's thread above). Also, I checked out the VIN number at the Russian site before buying the vehicle and it is listed there as Metallic Blue Black.

Having said this much, let me add :

1. Had EG checked out at the local dealer's pre buying. A waste of 2.5 K, that is all. They gave me a list of jobs adding to Rs 3.5 lakhs, going strictly by the book, i.e : what needed changing at the 50 K KM interval as per the service manual. All to do with shocks, suspension lower arms, engine mounts (but see below), injectors and so on, nothing to do with the power pack. And no insights, no answers to my specific queries!
2. Previous owner had changed the engine mounts some 6 months back, I saw the bill (so much for dealer's once over)!! And no vibes whatever.
3. The owners (plural 'cos it is a company) were awfully good. I was given the pen drive for the music system, the cig lighter coil (which had been removed for phone charging) and the set of 4 original steel wheels (as the car is now fitted with Replica alloys).

Will update on experience, fixing of wiper wash and wipe and the side view mirror rubbers, a few weeks later. All the Best.