Thousands of US buyers are plunking down their hard earned cash for hybrids, and plastic econoboxes of all shapes and sizes. Hybrids like the Toyota Prius, can go a bazzillion miles on a single drop of gas. But, it drives like a golf cart, and looks like a hand-held vacuum cleaner. More conventional economy cars like the Chevy Aveo, Toyota Yaris and Honda Fit offer 30+ MPG’s, and a reasonable price. But…do you really want to drive a car that looks like it came from Toys ‘R’ Us?
For those of us with taste, there’s a car that not only saves you money at the pump, but coddles you in luxury, and makes you look hot too. It’s called the Mercedes Diesel. Perhaps one of the most recognizable Mercedes ever made, the W123 Diesel was hewn from a solid block of German steel. While carving the car out, Mercedes engineers fitted it with all sorts of high quality extras. For instance, 4 wheel independent suspension, 4 wheel disk brakes, and a bullet proof diesel engine. Plus, all the wood, leather, and luxury that Mercedes could cram into a car. What resulted from all this German over-engineering was one stout piece of machinery. This car could literally run for a million miles. It endures harsh climates, saves you a ton of gas money, and, at the end of the day you still show up to a party looking like a million bucks.
To fully understand the appeal of these cars, you have to drive one. First of all, the handling is amazing. Simply point the steering wheel in the direction you want to go, and it obeys immediately. No frightening body roll, just confidence-inspiring grip. Then there’s the ride. A successful marriage of sharp handling, luxury and class. Soaking up the largest of bumps seems effortless for this car.
Acceleration
With handling like this, you’d think this thing would simply teleport you to 60mph, but it doesn’t. A turtle with a broken leg could beat the 240D and non-turbo 300 off the line. But the turbo 300 models save the day with adequate acceleration and fantastic passing power.
Once the non-turbo’s do finally hit 60mph, they’ll fly to 80-85mph. But it does feel like a long trip there. The 4 Cly 240D is even slower, but if you can find a 4sp, you’ll actually be able to control those 67 hamsters under the hood. The most livable of the MB diesels is definitely the turbo model. It has more power and still gets about the same gas mileage. Athough, the engine is more complicated and turbo’s do wear out.
What to look for
First of all, look for rust. early models (1976-80) are prone to it.
Check around the windshield and back window. The jack holes in the body are also prone to cancer, along with the floor/trunk pans and wheel arches in the fenders. Sunroof’s should be thoroughly inspected as well.
The engines hold up pretty well if they’re maintained properly, so ask about what’s been done to the car. Receipts and invoices verifying the service history are a definite plus.
Check valve cover gaskets and oil pan gaskets. These engines have very high compression ratios (basically the spring in the engine winds real tight) so oil quality and good seals are very important.
Fuel System
Be sure to check the condition of the rubber fuel return lines on the injectors. They tend to crack and leak fuel if they aren’t replaced every 5 years.
Also, look for leaks around the injection pump on the driver’s side of the motor.
Turbo
While turbo’s increase an engine’s power significantly, they are an added component and they will break. While the non-turbo is known to be more reliable, their lack of power makes them less suitable for urban and hilly environments than the turbo. If properly maintained however, a turbo diesel will last just as long as the regular diesel, but there are things to check when looking at a turbo model. First of all, drive it. The turbo should kick in and give you a nice burst of power in passing gear. If not, look for oil dripping from the tailpipe, and/or blue smoke. This means one or both of the seals are leaking. To see what condition the bearings are in, after the car’s cooled down, (engine off) remove the intake pipe and carefully stick your finger in and spin the turbo. It should spin freely. If not, the bearings need to be replaced.
Transmission
Transmissions in the turbo models tend to wear around 150-200k mikes (which really isn’t bad), so check for leaks and slippage. Keep in mind, the early non-turbo 123’s start off in 2nd gear, so anemic acceleration is normal. (To start off in first, accelerate normally, then release the gas and floor it.)
Vacuum
Key components of these cars are run off of vacuum. Namely the ignition shut off, heater/ac controls, central locking, power brake assist and cruise control.
A quick test is to check and see if the power door locks on the drivers side open all the doors. If not, have a qualified mechanic pull a vacuum reading. These cars suffer from cracked vacuum lines and weak vacuum pumps, so have it checked out. It’s better than suffering through the annoying inconveniences that will eventually develop. Like non-power brakes and the key not shutting the car off.
Climate Control
If the control switches don’t control the fan speed, or even work, see section on vacuum.
Electrical
If it has a fancy stereo with giant speakers in the trunk…Run! Odds are really good that the wiring is messed up somewhere. These cars have a tiny 35amp alternator and pushing unintended accessories doesn’t work. If the Becker radio doesn’t work (which it probably wont), just replace it with a Sony or Alpine and save the loud stuff for the club. Check all the accessories for proper functionality. There’s a bunch of relays under the dash and they’ll wear out every 100k miles or so.
Technical Factoid: In 1979 power rose from 64 hp to 71 hp in the 240D. The 300’s jumped to 88hp (from 77 hp).
The turbo diesel appeared in 1979 and the power jumped to 120 hp compared to 77 hp in the non-turbo. Transmission choices were limited to the 4-sp automatic.
In conclusion, if getting 30+ mpg while being surrounded in luxury sounds good, then the Mercedes W123 diesel is the car for you. You can choose from a number of body styles, including a sexy coupe, (which is what I drive), a family-friendly sedan, or a practical wagon, with the self-leveling rear suspension.
And if you want to save the environment, you can even run Bio-diesel, or recycled cooking oil (your exhaust will smell like french fries). So to sum it all up, these cars save you big money in the long run and are reliable, comfortable and classy.
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Automotive October 25th 2009
