Best smoker barges 1-5 large [vol11]

[Motorrad]

LewG said:

As you say chaps yes the Jag is mine, a shame to get rid but as long as it goes to a decent new owner I'll be a happy man. It's been a good old steed, still never fails to make me giggle with how daft the thrust is on putting your foot down
It's not perfect but more than anything it's just small niggly things that could pretty much be sorted in a weekend, nothing that actually stops it working as a car. Priced it accordingly though as has been said, a lot of car for not a lot of money.

Only concerns I have are advisories for rust in suspension mounting points and my normal fetish for working air conditioning. I'll be looking for a barge in short order if yours is still available then I'll be in touch.

[JF87]

Not entirely convinced that E430 can be real. Sounds too much like a confection from r129's W210 fantasy wishlist. Low-mile, no-rust Elegance, more fully loaded than a Tokyo subway train in rush-hour.

I have serious button envy. Heated rear seats is just taking the piss! Makes my old one look like a Trabant.

Very well done.

[olly755]

Really like the E430. Well done.

As an aside, the seller has had ::this:: 12,000 miler up for sale forever. Surely the advertising costs have exceeded the asking price: I had black hair when it first went up.

Shame you're not picking the Benz up in person R129 otherwise I'd ask for an appraisal!

[bob-lad]

"thread max overpriced."

[0a]

A commendable purchase r129, I look forward to how it turns out in the end!

[SilverStar]

Congratulations on the 430, it looks super, very understated. And heated rear chairs is something I've only ever seen in ex-Japanese 210's.

I collected this on Saturday







Some of you guys may recognise it from eBay. Picked up for less than barge budget. Bought purely to do a euro trip in August, it's certainly not worth sorting the quite frankly hanging bodywork! The pictures do massively flatter it.

Does have Xenons, heated/ventilated/orthopaedic seats and a fire extinguisher, oh and a car phone!

[Stegel]

The 210s both look good (for their respective price points) and it's good they get exposure here as there's a danger the mid-weight MB barge mantle passes straight from the 124 to the 211 due to the 210's propensity to rust.

R129sl - little does your car realise the life of intense mileage and rigorous servicing that lies ahead. The MOT history suggests it had a very easy early life and has piled on the miles more recently. Is it an addition to the fleet or a replacement for one member of the fleet?

[r129sl]

My wife likes that estate car. That has quite some spec on it, too. Mine lacks ventilated and orthopaedic seats. I'll live, if marginally less comfortably.

Mine is an addition to the fleet intended to reduce motoring costs. The 190 is fine and my wife's use of it (which amounts to 15,000miles a year) imposes little cost on my pocket, less than a grand a year. But the 129 with 266k miles and the 124 with 357k miles cost a lot to keep on the road when they are covering 40,000miles a year between them. And as I get older, I find the driving I do for work tires me out more and more: neither the 129 nor the 124 is the last word in refinement and a day trip to Swansea and back in either (750miles) leaves me knackered.

So the theory goes—here comes some starred-first, "Peterhouse"-grade man maths for you—is that the 129 will be retired from business use and everyday commuting and kept for high days and holidays, possibly even laid up over winter; the 124 will be reduced somewhat to family and holiday touring duties; and the 210 will be my personal car for everyday commuting and business travel. Its low mileage (77k) and decent history (especially recently) should avoid substantial expenditure for a few years; and its big petrol V8, relative modernity, saloon body shell and "Elegance" spec should give it the refinement edge.

Now, where do I get my certificate?

[cat220]

r129sl said:

My wife likes that estate car. That has quite some spec on it, too. Mine lacks ventilated and orthopaedic seats. I'll live, if marginally less comfortably.

Mine is an addition to the fleet intended to reduce motoring costs. The 190 is fine and my wife's use of it (which amounts to 15,000miles a year) imposes little cost on my pocket, less than a grand a year. But the 129 with 266k miles and the 124 with 357k miles cost a lot to keep on the road when they are covering 40,000miles a year between them. And as I get older, I find the driving I do for work tires me out more and more: neither the 129 nor the 124 is the last word in refinement and a day trip to Swansea and back in either (750miles) leaves me knackered.

So the theory goes—here comes some starred-first, "Peterhouse"-grade man maths for you—is that the 129 will be retired from business use and everyday commuting and kept for high days and holidays, possibly even laid up over winter; the 124 will be reduced somewhat to family and holiday touring duties; and the 210 will be my personal car for everyday commuting and business travel. Its low mileage (77k) and decent history (especially recently) should avoid substantial expenditure for a few years; and its big petrol V8, relative modernity, saloon body shell and "Elegance" spec should give it the refinement edge.

Now, where do I get my certificate?

Congrats on the 210 it looks very nice indeed. Keen to hear your thoughts when you get it. I've been flying the flag for the 210 for some time. Good ones do exist, they provide a far more modern feel than the 124 yet give that old school mercedes feel. The 430 is a lovely power plant too. Hope it treats you well.

[W00DY]

430 looks very fresh. Nicely done!




http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Saab-9000-Aero-/16253492...

Don't see many green ones. I'm really starting to fall for mine and my wallet has now been opened to begin the improvements.

[Oak Green]

Nice buy R129. I bought a car from that dealer a few years ago and they seemed like a decent bunch despite the less than salubrious location. Hopefully it's as good as it looks.

[r129sl]

My friend delivered the 210 to me at 10pm. Given that he left Slough at 5.30pm and—inexplicably—stopped at Rotherham for a McDonald's, that's good going. It gave him 27mpg, too. I've just run him home.

First impressions. It's as good as it looks in the pictures, really clean and free from rust. It's not as refined as the w211 E500. It's a lot more refined than the 124 and 129. It drives like a w140 should: it feels the same, only tighter and smaller. And the air con doesn't work. Despite the promise that it did. That's like the first rule of barging, isn't it? the air con shalt not work.

For the expenditure, I'd recommend one.

[tog]

W00DY said:

430 looks very fresh. Nicely done!




http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Saab-9000-Aero-/16253492...

Don't see many green ones. I'm really starting to fall for mine and my wallet has now been opened to begin the improvements.

That's been advertised a couple of times recently. First in Scotland in the autumn I think, then London just before Christmas, now Stoke. Mileage and price creeping up! There were only 36 built in that Eucalyptus green, all 1994 cars. Scarabe green was much more common (148).

[Pvapour]

bit of a lurker here...

i see lots of love for the ls400 on here but thats a bit big for me, but theres quite a few GS450H dropping into the 5k area now, some with recon batteries by lexus with warranty, any reason not to?

350 odd hp with the motors working, no folding seats is my only stickin point, SE-L a must obviously, and I think ACC was standard on early cars in the SEL trim

were the massage seats available on these?

but love the XJRs to..

[Pothole]

W00DY said:

430 looks very fresh. Nicely done!




http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Saab-9000-Aero-/16253492...

Don't see many green ones. I'm really starting to fall for mine and my wallet has now been opened to begin the improvements.

Are the seats attached to the bulkhead as standard?

[Jimmy Recard]

j4ck100 said:

I saw this the other day, very interesting. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DAstRj8XYAIbC6R.jpg:la...

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DAssc69WAAEFmw0.jpg:la...

£32k in 1999 was a hell of a lot of money. Equivalent to £51k today according to BoE inflation calculator. Incredible, for an Omega!

Edited by j4ck100 on Tuesday 30th May 11:06

Interesting - they weren't a cheap car in their day. They were good but not cheap.

Does anyone know the price for a similar E320 or 528i in 1999?

The Elite was top spec (the replacement for the Vauxhall Senator), I'd love to know the options on that car. Some options that were incredibly expensive in 1999 (phone stuff, for instance, which could've been something like 10% the total price of the car) are standard on basic superminis now, so that would skew it a bit.

[olly755]

Pvapour said:

bit of a lurker here...

i see lots of love for the ls400 on here but thats a bit big for me, but theres quite a few GS450H dropping into the 5k area now, some with recon batteries by lexus with warranty, any reason not to?

350 odd hp with the motors working, no folding seats is my only stickin point, SE-L a must obviously, and I think ACC was standard on early cars in the SEL trim

were the massage seats available on these?

but love the XJRs to..

I wouldn't worry to much about the size of the LS compared to the GS. You sit pretty high in the LS, the glass area is large, the pillars are thinner in common with the era, and they are extremely manoeuvrable thanks to the steering lock of a London taxi. My other half has only owned 3 successive Clios since she passed her test, yet still comments that the LS is just as easy to get into tight spaces. She's right.

Plus your £5k gets a pretty worn GS, compared to easily the freshest LS from the top of the market. Or one for every day of the week from the bottom

That said, I would like to own (amongst lots of other things) a '450H one day. Great cars.

[Krikkit]

Jimmy Recard said:

j4ck100 said:

I saw this the other day, very interesting. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DAstRj8XYAIbC6R.jpg:la...

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DAssc69WAAEFmw0.jpg:la...

£32k in 1999 was a hell of a lot of money. Equivalent to £51k today according to BoE inflation calculator. Incredible, for an Omega!

Edited by j4ck100 on Tuesday 30th May 11:06

Interesting - they weren't a cheap car in their day. They were good but not cheap.

Does anyone know the price for a similar E320 or 528i in 1999?

The Elite was top spec (the replacement for the Vauxhall Senator), I'd love to know the options on that car. Some options that were incredibly expensive in 1999 (phone stuff, for instance, which could've been something like 10% the total price of the car) are standard on basic superminis now, so that would skew it a bit.

Quite a bit more - according to this thread which is about as much as I can find a modestly-optioned 523 would be about 35k, probably nearer £40k for a 528/530. I'm sure a beard will be along with the price list shortly.

[j4ck100]

r129sl said:

My wife likes that estate car. That has quite some spec on it, too. Mine lacks ventilated and orthopaedic seats. I'll live, if marginally less comfortably.

I thought orthopaedic seats was a joke! Is it essentially an electric lumbar support system?

[j4ck100]

Krikkit said:

Quite a bit more - according to this thread which is about as much as I can find a modestly-optioned 523 would be about 35k, probably nearer £40k for a 528/530. I'm sure a beard will be along with the price list shortly.

New cars really have got comparatively much cheaper haven't they!

The 2003 Volvo S80 brochure that came with my car says a 2.9 Auto SE would have been ~£28k with all the bits.

4 years of inflation and it was still cheaper than the Omega, and I see Volvo as a more premium brand than Vauxhall. Sounds like the Omega was expensive by anyones reckoning?

Edited by j4ck100 on Wednesday 31st May 15:54