RE: SOTW: Mercedes-Benz 190E
Discussion
Why do I want this so much, I am sure it isnt a scintilating driving experience but I love old Mercs, especially ones with MB Tex, plastic wheel disks and originality, I cannot abide the things people do to old Mercs to make them look current or flashy, the big wheels, body kits, chrome arches, AMG badges and massive grilles, if someone wants to look like 90s pimp, that is fine but I will take mine as plain jane as possible.
It goes back to older Mercs as well, three box saloon, made well, job done.
There is an old boy down our road what has had an E class since it was new I think, a 300 E I think, we have been here 15 plus years and he had it then, it never looks any different and gets left outside, I see it trundle past a few times a day, when either he or it expires there will be something missing. I think it is the sense of solidity and permanence these cars in a world of disposable trinkets festooned with gadgets, Merc arent immune to this now and they go where the market is, the luxury in the past was more from the engineering than the gadgets.
It goes back to older Mercs as well, three box saloon, made well, job done.
There is an old boy down our road what has had an E class since it was new I think, a 300 E I think, we have been here 15 plus years and he had it then, it never looks any different and gets left outside, I see it trundle past a few times a day, when either he or it expires there will be something missing. I think it is the sense of solidity and permanence these cars in a world of disposable trinkets festooned with gadgets, Merc arent immune to this now and they go where the market is, the luxury in the past was more from the engineering than the gadgets.
Could be a very cheap car to own,
Tax will be what £220
An Mot £40
Potentially only £100 for classic insurance, my 944 cab is £175, this wont be dearer, maybe even cheaper.
Bits, Ebay and Euro Car Parts, cheap, nothing exotic here and they dont generally break, I am guessing here but it doesnt look rotten in any way.
Depreciation, there wont be any.
Fuel, wont be great but you arent paying a £600 a month PCP, would imagine late twenties on average
Service it yourself for about thirty quid, brakes and suspension will be cheap, tyres will be cheap
Would make an epic second/third car, for occasional use
Tax will be what £220
An Mot £40
Potentially only £100 for classic insurance, my 944 cab is £175, this wont be dearer, maybe even cheaper.
Bits, Ebay and Euro Car Parts, cheap, nothing exotic here and they dont generally break, I am guessing here but it doesnt look rotten in any way.
Depreciation, there wont be any.
Fuel, wont be great but you arent paying a £600 a month PCP, would imagine late twenties on average
Service it yourself for about thirty quid, brakes and suspension will be cheap, tyres will be cheap
Would make an epic second/third car, for occasional use
Lovely!
My father had a B reg 190e brand new back in 1984 - I remember the spec: astral silver, blue cloth, auto, elec front windows, manual roof, front armrest, and....er, that was it. It would have cost more than a contemporary Scorpio 2.9 Ghia X with every toy on the list. It was such a majestic car and every drive was an occasion. It was replaced by a blue black 190e 2.6 facelift, which made a lovely noise and was pretty swift when you poked it. By this time I was old enough to drive it occasionally, and I still recall the gigantic steering wheel. The whole ambiance of the thing made you waft about with your arm propped on the armrest, gently pointing the star through the traffic as the rest of the world plebbed about in their Sierras....
My father had a B reg 190e brand new back in 1984 - I remember the spec: astral silver, blue cloth, auto, elec front windows, manual roof, front armrest, and....er, that was it. It would have cost more than a contemporary Scorpio 2.9 Ghia X with every toy on the list. It was such a majestic car and every drive was an occasion. It was replaced by a blue black 190e 2.6 facelift, which made a lovely noise and was pretty swift when you poked it. By this time I was old enough to drive it occasionally, and I still recall the gigantic steering wheel. The whole ambiance of the thing made you waft about with your arm propped on the armrest, gently pointing the star through the traffic as the rest of the world plebbed about in their Sierras....
had a 2.0 carb one about 6 years ago in that so shiny black merc used to do. No toys but also none of the placcy cladding so after a good polish looked gorgeous as long as you didn't look close up. Came with an 'original' AMG spoiler and rep AMG wheels. Got rid as needed a hatchback plus rust was starting to take a hold - rear parcel shelf was going big time. Hope someone looking after it.
Came with private/irish plate NBZ1852 which was a bit of a fail.
Will have another some day
Came with private/irish plate NBZ1852 which was a bit of a fail.
Will have another some day
I bought a faded red carbed 2.0 one for £411 on Ebay. Didnt miss a beat for 2 years and sold for £300. Lovely to drive round town bit wheezy on faster roads. Great auto box. Good in snow for some reason perhaps cheap knobbly looking tyres. I though I killed it by leaving the oil filler cap off and driving to work in a cloud of smoke. The cap was still sitting on the inner wing when I pulled over so I bunged some more oil in and no problems resulted. Under the bonnet looked a bit messy though. Massive boot. I wouldn't mind another one. 2.6 though.
I own a 1992 190E 1.8 which is my daily driver.
Superb car, no rust anywhere, showroom condition.
It took me a long time to find a good one
.
Rust is the problem with cars of this age not the mechanics
To get a shed, at this money will have rust believe me, if not on the wings it will be at the jacking points.
All expensive to fix and a MOT failure.
Mine is perfect but cost a hell of a lot more, but it is an appreciating classic car.
Running costs excluding road tax ,insurance and fuel was £68 for service only needing oil change and filter.
Happy days
Steady Eddie
Superb car, no rust anywhere, showroom condition.
It took me a long time to find a good one
.
Rust is the problem with cars of this age not the mechanics
To get a shed, at this money will have rust believe me, if not on the wings it will be at the jacking points.
All expensive to fix and a MOT failure.
Mine is perfect but cost a hell of a lot more, but it is an appreciating classic car.
Running costs excluding road tax ,insurance and fuel was £68 for service only needing oil change and filter.
Happy days
Steady Eddie
I've got one. They are quite something. I've had loads of old Mercs but this 200,000 mile sportline car, bought as a station hack for £500 off my Merc mechanic (it was his courtesy car) is the best. My girlfriends daily driver. She is a bit of a hand and won't drive anything else. The W124 is never as reliable as people say - but the 190 is and they don't rust anywhere near as much. I'm not sure that qualifies as a shed though - if it's as corrosion free as it looks, you could drive it to Tibet if the mood took you. And it'll appreciate as well. Easily the best car Mercedes have made, maybe the best car, period.
These pop up on ebay quite a bit, but they are nearly always the wheezy 1.8 version. That said, they rarely reach this amount of money, the running costs seem to deter people, but they'll pay thousands for noisy, thirsty 1.6 Mk 2 Escorts etc. 
I drove one about 10 years ago while I was considering one or a Mondeo. It was a bit wallowy in comparison, but then it was very quiet.
I drove one about 10 years ago while I was considering one or a Mondeo. It was a bit wallowy in comparison, but then it was very quiet.
My late Dad bought a 190 new in 1987. It was a 190, not a 190E as he was Northern man and liked reliability not trusting new fangled ideas like fuel injection. He ordered it in hearing-aid beige and had no options at all which must have raised eyebrows at Mercedes when they received the spec sheet for it.
He kept saying he wanted a "bog-standard" one and was teased unmercifully by the family for that, but took in good part when the initials BS appeared next on the 190 badge on the bootlid.
I drove it and apart from the truly enormous steering wheel remember it as one of the dullest cars I've ever driven in over 40 years driving. Its probably still plodding along somewhere
He kept saying he wanted a "bog-standard" one and was teased unmercifully by the family for that, but took in good part when the initials BS appeared next on the 190 badge on the bootlid.
I drove it and apart from the truly enormous steering wheel remember it as one of the dullest cars I've ever driven in over 40 years driving. Its probably still plodding along somewhere
joncon said:
a couple of years ago, helped my son purchase one to take to the le mans 24hr, aged 21 , his insurance was 280 quid including euro breakdown cover , it never missed a beat , great car for wafting around the roads of france...oh and it was the 2.3 16v cosworth !
fantastic car !
That is lovely. So much want.fantastic car !
How come I only ever see gold ones when I try buying one?
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