RE: SOTW: Mercedes 230TE

RE: SOTW: Mercedes 230TE

Friday 25th November 2011

SOTW: Mercedes 230TE

You'll be winning the space race with today's Shed (but any other sort of race is off the table)



You would think, given Shed's historical penchant for a German barge, that a Merc W124 wagon would have been covered in these virtual pages many times. But you would be wrong.

Curiously, a Mercedes Shed of the Week is actually relative rarity, and the only coverage we've given to the W124 estate (S124 if we're being pedantic) has been Garlick's (now-departed) PH Fleet E220 estate.

But the time for the load-lugging 124 has finally come. Its coupe and saloon brethren have been dipping into SOTW territory for some time now, but the estate, for so long the darling of antique dealers and upper middle-class families, has always commanded a fair bit more cash.

Now, though, there are W124 estates dribbling below that magic £1k barrier. And some of them are even in ostensibly rather lovely nick.


Which is where today's SOTW comes in. The vendor claims to have bought it solely for a European road trip back in 2008 and, before covering 3500 miles (and most EU countries, from the sounds of things) in just 10 days, seems to have had a good go at replacing anything remotely worn-out. Which means (deep breath) new brakes, exhaust, radiator, thermostat & housing, suspension pipes, gearbox oil & filter change, electric aerial, fuel filter, air filter and spark plugs.

Since then it's not done all that many miles - a mere 89 since its MOT in June - and the overall condition of the seems to consequently rather good. In fact, apart from a small spot of corrosion on the nearside front wing, a knackered electric driver's mirror and a no-longer-remote-locking alarm, there seems to be precious little wrong with the chunky Merc.


And if you want to waft around looking like old money, we can't think of a classier way to do it - especially not one with the ability to swallow six passengers or a Chesterfield sofa (albeit not at the same time...). Okay, you won't go very fast, with an auto gearbox and only 125hp to call upon, but speed really isn't the point of a car like this...

Ps - This was sent to me by an eagle-eyed PHer, so thank you for the spot. Unfortunately I've lost the original e-mail you sent, and I've forgotten your PH name, but ta muchly - whoever you are...!

Advert is reproduced below

1991 MERCEDES-BENZ E CLASS 230 TE Auto 7 SEATER Estate (1991)
145,000 miles £1,000

145,000 miles, Metallic grey, 1 previous owner.

A rare timewarp car with an interesting story.

I bought this in 2008 for a European trip as a 1 owner car with the rare factory 7 seat option, with just 132,000 miles and Mercedes service history.


Needing it to be 100% reliable I had a full service carried out & lots of other bits, some would say overkill but I think I proved myself right as it's been 100% reliable for over 3 years.

It's had routine services and MOTs since but initially it had new brakes, exhaust, radiator, thermostat & housing, suspension pipes, gearbox oil & filter change, electric aerial, fuel filter, air filter, spark plugs - you name it, if it didn't look 100% it got replaced.

We took it round France to Monaco, across to Venice, Rome & Perugia in Italy, Lucerne in Switzerland, through Germany to Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium (where I was racing) & back home via Lille - around 3500 miles in 10 days & the car performed impeccably, the perfect autoroute/autostrada/autobahn cruiser. We actually called him Mercules as no matter what he just keeps going.


Since then it's been regularly used as my brother's winter car (whilst his Morris Minor hibernates) and was most recently MOT'd in June and hasn't really been used since, having covered only another 89 miles.

Besides the rather rare factory option of being a 7 seater with 2 rear facing seats in the boot (that fold down completely flat when not needed) there's a CD player, electric sunroof, electric windows all round, electric passenger mirror & everything works (bar the driver's mirror adjuster) & it drives exceptionally well. The tyres are fine, the toolkit and spare wheel are all there, there's a First Aid Kit (albeit an Audi one, but it fits in the correct compartment so it could well be the same kit with a different name on the case) and there's a spare key (with an original Mercedes leather key fob no less!). It did have a working remote locking alarm, but this ceased to work whilst my brother had it (I'm not lending him a car again!). However, I do have two spare remotes that came with the car so it may just need batteries in them to reactivate it but I haven't tried.


Besides the mirror (which was damaged by some oik who broke the 3 pointed star off the front grille too (which has since been replaced) there's a little corrosion started on the nearside front wing in the usual place. This has happened in the time my brother's had it - I told him to throughly jet wash under there to remove road salt and preserve the car but sadly he never did. A shame, but I'm told brand new wings are only £40. There is also a deepish scratch near the aerial but probably not something that's worth doing anything with and whilst there will be a few marks around the car here and there I think you'll agree it looks incredible for being over 20 years old. It's also remarkably original - I can't see any signs of it ever having had any paintwork whatsoever and it still has the Mercedes dealer's number plates on it and the original windscreen with its factory stickers (see photo gallery for close-ups).


So that you can appreciate the car fully, please go to my separate photo-hosting site at WWW.AUTOPERFORM.CO.UK where there's a gallery of around 40 photos in high resolution, including close-ups of the bad bits as well as the good!

I'll be sad to see it go and would love to keep it but it simply won't get any use (as proven by doing under 100 miles since June!), and as with any car it's better that it's used, so it's for sale and someone else can get some enjoyment out of it.

Just for clarity, this is being sold as a private sale. I am a car dealer, my company is Autoperform Ltd but this was bought as my own personal car in 2008 and then given to my brother, to whom it is currently registered (I didn't register it in my name so it is still a one previous keeper car, two in total) so it qualifies as a privately owned and advertised car, hence the private advertisement - the point being it there is no warranty (it's up to you to view, inspect, test drive and scrutinise the car and make your purchasing decision), no dealer back up and come to think of it, no bunch of flowers on the passenger seat either.


If you have anything to part exchange I will be happy to consider it. I'd rather just sell the car outright though, so anything you trade in will have to either be something I like the look of and might keep or that I can see a way of selling easily to achieve the same sale price for the Mercedes. I will consider anything, cars/motorbikes/bicycles/iPads etc - try me!

Please call or email if you have any questions or to arrange to view & test drive this car.

 

Author
Discussion

Hellbound

Original Poster:

2,500 posts

175 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Waiting for the 'interesting story'.

Wonder if he'll take a HP Touchpad for it. :^|

v15ben

15,774 posts

240 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Very nice. I'd love to buy it and go for another long European jaunt hehe

johnpeat

5,326 posts

264 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Looks very tidy - I just have to say one thing tho

CLOTH!

I mean cmon - old money would have leather, this is Lovejoy(*) territory smile

(*) Still - he went on to be Al Swearengen so maybe it's not all bad...

BlueMR2

8,640 posts

201 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Only one previous owner, except for the unregistered ones hehe.

johnpeat

5,326 posts

264 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
I don't want to start a habit of posting alternative SOTWs but then I saw this

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C266840

THAT



I mean, cmon...

loudlashadjuster

5,078 posts

183 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Lovely, apart from the colour. Looks in decent nick too. I don't think the 7-seats are "rare" in the slightest though; try finding one without them!

The wings aren't £40, more like £150 painted and fitted from memory, and even though one side ostensibly looks OK on the outside, if it's not been replaced at some point then £10 says it'll be bubbling up within 12 months anyway.

Most of the things that he says have been replaced are the kinds of things that go so kudos there. Engine mounts and propshaft couplings are other things I'd check for history on, the mounts in particular make a huge difference to refinement.

I ran an L-reg 300TD for a few years, had nearly 300k on it when we parted. Slow, but I loved it anyway.

hornetrider

63,161 posts

204 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Lovely old thing, will probably be gone by lunchtime. Shame its only a 4 pot mind.

Edit: thought I recognised the location - its goose's motor.

Edited by hornetrider on Friday 25th November 02:16

mull1974

18 posts

166 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Before we all go posting alternatives again surely the point that is being made with this one is that the estates are now in shed territory.
So if these float your boat there now on your radar.
Not my cup of tea though purely as I have no need for one.

S3_Graham

12,830 posts

198 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Merc at their best. This era i like... the current stuff is take it or leave it... Meh.

peteA

2,677 posts

233 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
top sotw in my opinion

B.J.W

5,782 posts

214 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
johnpeat said:
Looks very tidy - I just have to say one thing tho

CLOTH!

I mean cmon - old money would have leather, this is Lovejoy(*) territory smile

(*) Still - he went on to be Al Swearengen so maybe it's not all bad...
Disagree biggrin - Old money would definitely have cloth, simply on the basis that they would consider spending money on optional extras to be needless waste of the money they probably can't access anyway, because it is tied up elswhere

The majority of old money people I know tool around in basic spec cars, because status is not important to them. One, in particular, drove around in an old peugeot 307 which had never been cleaned, and which sported a seriously dented and non opening passenger door. It never occured to him that it could be fixed.

Anyway. Love the big old mercs - and for well looked after versions you will pay considerably more than 1k. A well specced version (aircon etc) is, in my opinion a genuine alternative to any modern day estate that would cost you 5k.

court

1,485 posts

215 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Surely this wont still be for sale by lunchtime?

A useable, classy classic that's not located in the Outer Hebrides and for sale by a prolific PHer.

It'll fly out the door!


Edited by court on Friday 25th November 07:51

Malevik22

24 posts

148 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Not suggesting I would contemplate canabalising this rather wonderful original barge BUT IF there was a less pristine Estate lying around how much work to insert a V8??? And am I missing something - I can't see the price listed anywhere....?

Harrythespider

5 posts

210 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
It is actually fairly cheap at that money IMHO. I hope I won't have to let my 2 owner, full historied 280TE go for that money, but we'll have to wait and see.

Right about 7 seats, they've all got 'em. Other things to watch for (which I have replaced on mine) are the self-levelling spheres (pig of a job) and the duo-valves for the heater controls (£250 for the set - ouch). If you are going to replace the wings, you should spend the money on genuine wings as the pattern parts never fit properly. It is otherwise a very straightforward job (took me two hours last one I did)

I've been privilaged enough to own a lot of nice cars in my time, but the 280TE is the best car I have ever owned by some margin. I've had mine 8 years now. She's gotta go though, keep an eye out in the classifieds next week!

chazola

459 posts

156 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Top shed, but the engine is ancient- the 12v 4-pot 2.0 and 2.3 engines were old hat when the 124 was launched- they'd already been around in the 123 for a while and are underpowered for a big estate. Mercedes used to be quite lazy with their engines- build a good one then fit it/variants of it to everything for aaaaages, even a new model. The 124 really needs a 6-pot to get a move on smile

stuckmojo

2,946 posts

187 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
I'd be surprised if that doesn't sell in a nano-second.

Great shed.

thinfourth2

32,414 posts

203 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
court said:
Surely this wont still be for sale by lunchtime?

A useable, classy classic that's not located in the Outer Hebrides and for sale by a prolific PHer.
If it was in the north of scotland i would of bought it by now

The Donster

163 posts

204 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Harrythespider said:
It is actually fairly cheap at that money IMHO. I hope I won't have to let my 2 owner, full historied 280TE go for that money, but we'll have to wait and see.

Right about 7 seats, they've all got 'em. Other things to watch for (which I have replaced on mine) are the self-levelling spheres (pig of a job) and the duo-valves for the heater controls (£250 for the set - ouch). If you are going to replace the wings, you should spend the money on genuine wings as the pattern parts never fit properly. It is otherwise a very straightforward job (took me two hours last one I did)

I've been privilaged enough to own a lot of nice cars in my time, but the 280TE is the best car I have ever owned by some margin. I've had mine 8 years now. She's gotta go though, keep an eye out in the classifieds next week!
Thought you might be posting on something like this.

I'll give you a grand for yours any day of the week, Harry wink

irish boy

3,509 posts

235 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Mum bought one of these new in 1990, specced it well with leather etc....still has it and still pretty much as new even the drivers seat despite living outside it's whole life. Great cars.

confused_buyer

6,606 posts

180 months

Friday 25th November 2011
quotequote all
Quite agree on the cloth. Leather is an unnecessary extravagance and the cloth lasts longer so is the old money choice.