Best smoker barges 1-5 large [Vol 14]

[Rubins4]

EarlOfHazard said:

There was a 190 for sale -last year I believe-that had been purchased new in Germany by a member of the armed forces.
It was proper poverty spec with manual windows, manual gearbox, and a carb. It was only about 1500 quid. Someone on pistonheads purchased it. May be the same car, may not be.

Wow, it sounds like it could be. Light blue, large MB badge on the centre grill, A-reg? (I think).

Do you have any idea of the PH’ers name on here or any other lead to follow?

[anonymous-user]

bolidemichael said:

Someone may have taken a NSFW screenshot, for posterity

[JOB2.5-16]

Rubins4 said:

EarlOfHazard said:

There was a 190 for sale -last year I believe-that had been purchased new in Germany by a member of the armed forces.
It was proper poverty spec with manual windows, manual gearbox, and a carb. It was only about 1500 quid. Someone on pistonheads purchased it. May be the same car, may not be.

Wow, it sounds like it could be. Light blue, large MB badge on the centre grill, A-reg? (I think).

Do you have any idea of the PH’ers name on here or any other lead to follow?

A reg?!?! Was it RHD?

[Croutons]

bolidemichael said:

nobrakes said:

Worth a post in:

Because Estate Car for its rarity,

Where can this thread be found?

Search really is dire on the mobile site, I ended up just using Google.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Although the fast estate thread has nicer pics, despite a 1 series appearing on page 1, and at one point someone asking if their Levorg (1.6) would fit in.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[tobinen]

Thanks Etypephil, bolidemichael and nobrakes

I can't go up there Friday due to work so it's Thursday for the visit

[W00DY]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-535iA-Oxford-Green-...

This looks like a great way into a cheap but lovely E39.




https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Volvo-940-Wentworth-Aut...

A lot of want for this, but I suspect it'll make decent money.

[derin100]

Rubins4 said:

dbdb said:

The 190 is a peculiar 'honorary barge', since though it is far too small, the spirit of the barge runs through it and they were a retirement barge-replacement for a lot of wealthy older people when new.

I met a wealthy old chap some time ago who I can only describe as a 90 year old James Bond in retirement. He had pictures of himself in full naval regalia with more service awards and pins on his lapel than there was strictly room for. He was not just present at, but actually standing on top of,the Berlin Wall the evening it came down. He speaks German and Russian fluently. He has grown up children ‘doing something for the government ‘ in Afghanistan and Belgrade, but won’t disclose exactly what. He is ‘proper’ in every sense of the word.

He acquired a w201 in West Germany which he purchased new I understand in the late 80’s. He had it imported to the UK when he returned and was, until around last year his daily driver (I happened to see him recently and he was driving some sort of modern Kia, adapted to cater for his increasingly immobile wife). Under his ownership, he was the only person to have driven it which must make it almost unique. I hope it didn’t get scrapped.

I met a similar chap a few years ago who was playing the organ at the church next to where I used to live. He parked his 190 outside my house and noticed that I was renovating one and we got chatting. He was a bit 'vague' about exactly what he done during his working career but had traveled all over Europe in his car that he'd also had from new having collected it himself from Mercedes in Germany.

His was a 2.6L manual. It had,at the time, something like 450,000 miles on the clock (I took a picture of the odometer and have it somewhere)...and it was still on its original clutch!

[The Don of Croy]

dbdb said:

...The 190 is a peculiar 'honorary barge', since though it is far too small, the spirit of the barge runs through it and they were a retirement barge-replacement for a lot of wealthy older people when new...

I feel the same way about Rover 400 models. Matched walnut door cappings dontcha kno. Proper saloon body. Could be had with leather and aircon.

Still a wallowy beast in the twisties but otherwise a cut above an Orion or Belmont at the time. And with added Honda.

I have never been in a 190, despite working for a company where two colleagues pootled about in 190/190e, mainly because I had a Rover at the time. I do recall though a contemporary magazine feature (1990'ish) and an interview with the head boy at Honda (Mr. Honda?) who was asked what car - if any - he admired that wasn't his own product. The answer - Merc 190, because it combined structural stiffness with a lightness his engineers couldn't match at that time (on a 4 door premium saloon). Nuff said.

[Rubins4]

JOB2.5-16 said:

A reg?!?! Was it RHD?

You know, I honestly can’t nt remember.

Derin- great story. Probably not ‘my’ chap, but what part of the world was this in?

[derin100]

Rubins4 said:

JOB2.5-16 said:

A reg?!?! Was it RHD?

You know, I honestly can’t nt remember.

Derin- great story. Probably not ‘my’ chap, but what part of the world was this in?

It was in Shropshire. I had some subsequent contact with the chap a few times after as well.

[derin100]

Have we had this yet?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mercedes-W124-E300d/193...

[paulguitar]

derin100 said:

Have we had this yet?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mercedes-W124-E300d/193...

This sort of thing amazes me:




Can't even be arsed to remove the rubbish when selling a car. Unacceptable.

[SLog3]

paulguitar said:

derin100 said:

Have we had this yet?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mercedes-W124-E300d/193...

This sort of thing amazes me:




Can't even be arsed to remove the rubbish when selling a car. Unacceptable.

"The last 4 pictures are of how it looked the day I collected it ." - don't think I would have included them in a sales ad. Just revel in how good it looks now!

[bolidemichael]

Croutons said:

bolidemichael said:

nobrakes said:

Worth a post in:

Because Estate Car for its rarity,

Where can this thread be found?

Search really is dire on the mobile site, I ended up just using Google.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Although the fast estate thread has nicer pics, despite a 1 series appearing on page 1, and at one point someone asking if their Levorg (1.6) would fit in.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Thanks for the links and search tips! I was trying to find 'search' on mobile - quite baffling.

W00DY said:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-535iA-Oxford-Green-...

This looks like a great way into a cheap but lovely E39.

Wow! A single owner from new with a FBMWSH and fully rebuilt transmission in 2018. I love these finds.

[paulguitar]

SLog3 said:

"The last 4 pictures are of how it looked the day I collected it ." - don't think I would have included them in a sales ad. Just revel in how good it looks now!

My apologies, I'd missed that!

[EarlOfHazard]

Rubins4 said:

EarlOfHazard said:

There was a 190 for sale -last year I believe-that had been purchased new in Germany by a member of the armed forces.
It was proper poverty spec with manual windows, manual gearbox, and a carb. It was only about 1500 quid. Someone on pistonheads purchased it. May be the same car, may not be.

Wow, it sounds like it could be. Light blue, large MB badge on the centre grill, A-reg? (I think).

Do you have any idea of the PH’ers name on here or any other lead to follow?

Featured in Readers' Cars forum - see below. F reg though, so not the same I don;t think.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=17...

[tobinen]

bolidemichael said:

W00DY said:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-535iA-Oxford-Green-...

This looks like a great way into a cheap but lovely E39.

Wow! A single owner from new with a FBMWSH and fully rebuilt transmission in 2018. I love these finds.

£1,200 and a make offer. Why has that not sold already? (Zero feedback may be a concern)

[trooperiziz]

tobinen said:

£1,200 and a make offer. Why has that not sold already? (Zero feedback may be a concern)

I suspect the mileage is putting normal people off.

[Integroo]

trooperiziz said:

tobinen said:

£1,200 and a make offer. Why has that not sold already? (Zero feedback may be a concern)

I suspect the mileage is putting normal people off.

My question is why keep it to 180k and then sell for pennies? If it's a decent motor, why wouldn't he run it till it dies? He clearly liked it enough to keep it for 180k and then have the transmission rebuilt for probably more than the £1200 he is selling it for!

[SpeckledJim]

Integroo said:

trooperiziz said:

tobinen said:

£1,200 and a make offer. Why has that not sold already? (Zero feedback may be a concern)

I suspect the mileage is putting normal people off.

My question is why keep it to 180k and then sell for pennies? If it's a decent motor, why wouldn't he run it till it dies? He clearly liked it enough to keep it for 180k and then have the transmission rebuilt for probably more than the £1200 he is selling it for!

Because he's getting on a bit, and the Ghost of KIA came to him in a dream, and showed him the rounded-off corners on his cherished BMW that would happen if he didn't change his low-slung, high-tax, gas-guzzling ways.

We're all being quietly stalked by the Picanto. The only question is whether the i10 gets to us first.