W124 Porn - 500 TE

[adam917k]

Hello all.

This is the real deal - a 500E converted by Hanover tuner Gunter Artz (there were apparently a handful based on normal TE base cars with 500E bits added which didn't have the 500e DNA). €68k is a bargain for what must be the coolest estate car in the world bar none. A one-off opportunity for sure. Anyone tempted.......?

http://m.autoscout24.de/angebote/mercedes-benz-e-5...

[ClassicMercs]

Shame its LHD.
And quite a high mileage.

But what about the two Fiats in the background !!

[adam917k]

The mileage is getting on, but the early e500s are arguably some of the best built cars of all time, so if anything can wear it this probably can. All 500e were LHD too.

Given that a decent 500e saloon is around the 18-20k mark, the price of exclusivity is quite marked, but it is rather special.

I agree the showroom looks like an Aladdin's cave.

[anonymous-user]

I would have loved this car - 20 years ago - but time has not been kind to it. I drove one (saloon) in the nineties and was blown away but when I toyed with buying one last year I was not very impressed by the two I tried. Understated for what they are but not that quick and a touch of the Beirut taxi about them after all these years (and I say that as an old Merc owner).
Ended up getting this - which I think is the coolest estate car, bar none
Well it is certainly the fastest...

Edited by drmark on Thursday 3rd March 15:42

[r129sl]

This:

drmark said:

I would have loved this car - 20 years ago - but time has not been kind to it. I drove one (saloon) in the nineties and was blown away but when I toyed with buying one last year I was not very impressed by the two I tried. Understated for what they are but not that quick and a touch of the Beirut taxi about them after all these years (and I say that as an old Merc owner).

...is entirely explicable in the light of this:

drmark said:

Ended up getting this - which I think is the coolest estate car, bar none
Well it is certainly the fastest...

[adam917k]

drmark said:

I would have loved this car - 20 years ago - but time has not been kind to it. I drove one (saloon) in the nineties and was blown away but when I toyed with buying one last year I was not very impressed by the two I tried. Understated for what they are but not that quick and a touch of the Beirut taxi about them after all these years (and I say that as an old Merc owner).
Ended up getting this - which I think is the coolest estate car, bar none
Well it is certainly the fastest...

Edited by drmark on Thursday 3rd March 15:42

I agree that is lovely. It would certainly be my pick of the current crop of super estates.

They say never meet your heroes, and perhaps the same goes for cars of this era. They are almost classic, but not quite. As they seem more modern than classic there is a tendency to compare them with their more modern equivalents and of course they fall short, especially in the performance stakes. I can well remember how disappointed I was a while back when i tried an E30 M3 at Munich Legends. The other issue is that cars like an early 90s 500e probably need significant suspension, steering and other refreshments to bring them back up to scratch. 15-20k cars dont justify that sort of expensive refresh unless they are on their way to becoming 40-50k cars, which 500's aren't yet.