Well, yesterday was a sad day in the family as we gave up our lovely 1992 W124 200TE after more than four years of ownership.. 
I bought this car, our first Mercedes, back in March 2004 when I volunteered to help my mother to find a car that she could use in Italy, where she lives. The requirements where that it should be inexpensive to purchase (sub £3k), preferably with good loading space (she gardens a lot) and reliable; I immediately shortlisted the Mercedes W124 T series and the Volvos 740/760 of the same period. A day spent driving in both cars clearly pointed towards the Mercedes as the more appropriate choice given better dynamics and general solidity of the examples I tested (the Volvo’s interior rattled like crazy and it didn’t ‘do’ corners); it was 'love at first sight' with the W124. It didn't hurt that secretly I had always liked the shape of the S124, finding it very elegant and stylish, even though living in London meant that I was stuck with only one car parking permit and, at 26, found the Merc was a bit 'old man' to be my only car – this was the perfect way to own and see what the S124 is like.
Time constraints meant that, as soon as I found a decent example I purchased it. As it turned out this was a Beryl blue 200TE (see my avatar) with the 8 hole alloys and not many other options (7 seats, sunroof, 4 speakers, etc). Back then I hadn't really given too much thought to what engine was most suited to the car (a mistake we regretted many times over), we just needed something quickly and, I thought, for just under a year until my mom could get something else. I paid £1600 for the car on a private buy and, two days later, a further £1000 at the first service - not a great bargain then, but at least the car was very well sorted and valeted too, hopefully making a good impression for my mom.
That same weekend I set off for the 1000mi trip to Como in Italy to deliver the car. I was slightly concerned at first as it was a used car which I didn’t know but, by midday, I was beginning to understand what a Mercedes is really made of and why such a premium was attached to these cars over the competition when new with ‘everything’ being an optional extra, even electric windows! I had set aside two days for the trip but, as the W124 was comfortable and went so well (100mph stuck on the speedo didn’t seem to faze it at all), I did the whole trip in one go. I soon realized that this was probably one of the best cars we had owned and what a bargain it had been. In the ensuing four years of ownership the car has been utterly reliable and never gone wrong (apart from a dead battery one year), it was a reliable and trusty friend that took us on several long trips across Italy and Europe.
Since then, my love for these 80’s and 90’s Mercedes has only grown. I bought a W123 (sold due to house move) and another W124 (stolen) but my mom’s W124 stayed with us, she too growing very fond of her rare and reliable ‘turquoise blue’ Mercedes (an RHD in an LHD country were most people drive boring stuff like Puntos, Fiestas, Corsas, Audis, etc). I started buying the ‘Mercedes Enthusiast’ and visiting online Mercedes forums, partly to learn more about the cars but also because it was a way for me to stay in touch with my beloved 200TE. Every time I visited my mom in Italy, even in the middle of winter, I would wash and wax the car, keeping track of any changes in its condition which, apart from a bit of rust on the wheel arches, was none.
However, after over 4 years of ownership, we agreed that it was overly complicated to keep the car in Italy as a long term solution, what with the (£1k) yearly service & MOT trip to the UK, road tax, insurance conditions and it being an RHD. In addition, we wanted a car better suited to long trips across Europe (i.e., a bigger engine) and with air conditioning. As a result, after much family debate my parents defaulted to the BMW camp (urghhh!) as I couldn’t convince my father that a 11yr old 320TE, this time purchased in Germany and LHD, would be the ideal replacement. They now have a spanking new 325i T in their garage which, compared to the W124, truly has no soul – we will see in 10 years time how that one will age…
The issue was now what we would do with the W124, still a great car in well cared condition but in Italy and now with no MOT or insurance. The option at the back of my mind was to drive it to London and keep it for myself, thus replacing my current London car, something I would have been happy with but the cost and hassle required were hardly justified. In the meantime another option came up from a friend, member of a local flying club – why not sell the car for a nominal sum to the club as they were looking for a replacement for their airfield runabout (a 1988 190E previously owned by this friend from new but which some muppet had killed by mistakenly filling up with diesel instead of petrol)? We all agreed that this would be a good solution and that it should guarantee a safe and long future for our beloved W124 as it would be doing few miles a year and be looked after reasonably well. Most importantly, it would be of use for what it was intended for (the factory option removable tow ball finally proving its worth).
So, yesterday my mom and I took what would be the Merc’s last drive on the public road to the airfield. I savoured every twist and turn of the way there, taking in once more the surefooted way with which it rides over imperfections on the road, the quietness of the cabin with no trim squeaks or rattles, and the fluid solidity of the various controls. After 16 years, everything on this car works and looks like new, a true testament of the superior engineering from a now sadly defunct era or Mercedes cars production. As we removed the licence plates from the car and it officially was no longer ours, its new owners, the club members, approached us and commented on how beautiful it looked under the sunshine. I think they are very impressed with their new purchase and I hope it will serve them well for many years to come, conquering their faith and admiration like it has ours.
Attached a picture of it in its new home, you can see some airplane wings in the back.
I bought this car, our first Mercedes, back in March 2004 when I volunteered to help my mother to find a car that she could use in Italy, where she lives. The requirements where that it should be inexpensive to purchase (sub £3k), preferably with good loading space (she gardens a lot) and reliable; I immediately shortlisted the Mercedes W124 T series and the Volvos 740/760 of the same period. A day spent driving in both cars clearly pointed towards the Mercedes as the more appropriate choice given better dynamics and general solidity of the examples I tested (the Volvo’s interior rattled like crazy and it didn’t ‘do’ corners); it was 'love at first sight' with the W124. It didn't hurt that secretly I had always liked the shape of the S124, finding it very elegant and stylish, even though living in London meant that I was stuck with only one car parking permit and, at 26, found the Merc was a bit 'old man' to be my only car – this was the perfect way to own and see what the S124 is like.
Time constraints meant that, as soon as I found a decent example I purchased it. As it turned out this was a Beryl blue 200TE (see my avatar) with the 8 hole alloys and not many other options (7 seats, sunroof, 4 speakers, etc). Back then I hadn't really given too much thought to what engine was most suited to the car (a mistake we regretted many times over), we just needed something quickly and, I thought, for just under a year until my mom could get something else. I paid £1600 for the car on a private buy and, two days later, a further £1000 at the first service - not a great bargain then, but at least the car was very well sorted and valeted too, hopefully making a good impression for my mom.
That same weekend I set off for the 1000mi trip to Como in Italy to deliver the car. I was slightly concerned at first as it was a used car which I didn’t know but, by midday, I was beginning to understand what a Mercedes is really made of and why such a premium was attached to these cars over the competition when new with ‘everything’ being an optional extra, even electric windows! I had set aside two days for the trip but, as the W124 was comfortable and went so well (100mph stuck on the speedo didn’t seem to faze it at all), I did the whole trip in one go. I soon realized that this was probably one of the best cars we had owned and what a bargain it had been. In the ensuing four years of ownership the car has been utterly reliable and never gone wrong (apart from a dead battery one year), it was a reliable and trusty friend that took us on several long trips across Italy and Europe.
Since then, my love for these 80’s and 90’s Mercedes has only grown. I bought a W123 (sold due to house move) and another W124 (stolen) but my mom’s W124 stayed with us, she too growing very fond of her rare and reliable ‘turquoise blue’ Mercedes (an RHD in an LHD country were most people drive boring stuff like Puntos, Fiestas, Corsas, Audis, etc). I started buying the ‘Mercedes Enthusiast’ and visiting online Mercedes forums, partly to learn more about the cars but also because it was a way for me to stay in touch with my beloved 200TE. Every time I visited my mom in Italy, even in the middle of winter, I would wash and wax the car, keeping track of any changes in its condition which, apart from a bit of rust on the wheel arches, was none.
However, after over 4 years of ownership, we agreed that it was overly complicated to keep the car in Italy as a long term solution, what with the (£1k) yearly service & MOT trip to the UK, road tax, insurance conditions and it being an RHD. In addition, we wanted a car better suited to long trips across Europe (i.e., a bigger engine) and with air conditioning. As a result, after much family debate my parents defaulted to the BMW camp (urghhh!) as I couldn’t convince my father that a 11yr old 320TE, this time purchased in Germany and LHD, would be the ideal replacement. They now have a spanking new 325i T in their garage which, compared to the W124, truly has no soul – we will see in 10 years time how that one will age…
The issue was now what we would do with the W124, still a great car in well cared condition but in Italy and now with no MOT or insurance. The option at the back of my mind was to drive it to London and keep it for myself, thus replacing my current London car, something I would have been happy with but the cost and hassle required were hardly justified. In the meantime another option came up from a friend, member of a local flying club – why not sell the car for a nominal sum to the club as they were looking for a replacement for their airfield runabout (a 1988 190E previously owned by this friend from new but which some muppet had killed by mistakenly filling up with diesel instead of petrol)? We all agreed that this would be a good solution and that it should guarantee a safe and long future for our beloved W124 as it would be doing few miles a year and be looked after reasonably well. Most importantly, it would be of use for what it was intended for (the factory option removable tow ball finally proving its worth).
So, yesterday my mom and I took what would be the Merc’s last drive on the public road to the airfield. I savoured every twist and turn of the way there, taking in once more the surefooted way with which it rides over imperfections on the road, the quietness of the cabin with no trim squeaks or rattles, and the fluid solidity of the various controls. After 16 years, everything on this car works and looks like new, a true testament of the superior engineering from a now sadly defunct era or Mercedes cars production. As we removed the licence plates from the car and it officially was no longer ours, its new owners, the club members, approached us and commented on how beautiful it looked under the sunshine. I think they are very impressed with their new purchase and I hope it will serve them well for many years to come, conquering their faith and admiration like it has ours.
Attached a picture of it in its new home, you can see some airplane wings in the back.
