W210 - a realistic proposition?

twodinners

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Hi there,

My wife and I have a new family member arriving soon and unfortunately the W123 Coupe will have to go as fetching the baby seat out of the back is just too much.

I've been very excited by the idea of replacing it with a circa 1996/8 W210 saloon and have been to see a couple today.

Eek, very lovely, nice looking, wonderfully specified cars at reasonable prices - with rust breaking out all over. A search on this forum finds many scary threads on this subject.

I don't want to get involved in trying to get rust repaired, as this has got to be a reliable ever present workhorse (it will also be transporting a double bass).

Realistically, how long would a W210 with a rust problem last?

Many thanks for any advice,

Kevin
 

rpe2

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Welcome Kevin, and congratulations.

There are many W210 rot boxes out there, but a few good ones as well and given the state of the car industry, there are bargains to be had. If I can ask, what is your rough budget, and where are you based?
 

Parrot of Doom

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Mine has some pretty severe bodypanel rust, as far as I know though under the skin everything is fine - I've not seen any rust on anything structural.

It doesn't bother me though, the car is a workhorse, I keep it mechanically sound but that's as far as it goes. I'm saving my money for a weekend toy.
 

meanie

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I,ve seen a couple of 210's looking very scabby around the front spring mounts,and I believe that I'm not the only one.
Which 210 are you looking for?Have you thought about a late 124 series,they're out there with sensible mileage & probably a better long term proposition.
 
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twodinners

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Hi all, and thank you very much for the replies.

Well after having a look at a couple of W210s today and spending a fairly depressing two hours on this board the horror stories of rust and collapsing suspensions, I'm a little shocked.

I am/was looking at the cheap end of the market, for a petrol six cylinder avantgarde (240, 280, 320) best spec and service history, for £2000 and a bit - you know, the one that everyone wants.

I'm in London, North Home Counties.

To be candid, for the prices asked I'm happy to accept some rust, although I'd be less jolly about riding around on suspension that may fail. Would it be possible to get MB to cover repairs to the safety critical aspects.

Two or three years motoring in a lovely cruiser for that money looks like sensible budgeting.

Or should I forget the whole thing?

Kevin
 

meanie

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Are you looking for an estate or saloon?
Maybe you might think about a C-class estate.
At that sort of money,you should find a peachy 124 saloon.
 

Stu_CDX

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Are you looking for an estate or saloon?
Maybe you might think about a C-class estate.
At that sort of money,you should find a peachy 124 saloon.

Seconded...

You can get a VERY nicely equipped W124 or S124 Estate (E-Class 84-97) and have some change left over. Nicely built, overengineered and a pleasure to drive. Don't go too cheap, try to spend £1500 on a decent one rather than £400 on a heap.

Dual airbags, ABS, Seatbelt pre-tensioners, all standard on M, N and P Reg 124 models.

Stu.
 

television

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Welcome from me, there are some good non rusty 210's out there, the C class as meanie mentioned offer very good value and some nice ones out there. A nice 124 estate would do the job very well, and many well kept good examples on the market
 

meanie

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Others may be able to correct me,but I also find the 124 a better drive.The down side is that the nice ones do seem to fetch a premium.I've just moved a 1991 300td (95000m,full MB service history & completely unmarked inside & out) for £3200.This car was truly exceptional,the spare had never been on etc & was obviously loved by its one owner.
On your budget,you should be able to find quite a nice C240 estate with reasonable spec. & they just don't seem to scab up like the 210's do.
 

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Others may be able to correct me,but I also find the 124 a better drive.The down side is that the nice ones do seem to fetch a premium.I've just moved a 1991 300td (95000m,full MB service history & completely unmarked inside & out) for £3200.This car was truly exceptional,the spare had never been on etc & was obviously loved by its one owner.
On your budget,you should be able to find quite a nice C240 estate with reasonable spec. & they just don't seem to scab up like the 210's do.

All I can say is that the 124 300TE that I had was impeccable to drive in every way, I know that things move on, and its hard to think back exactly, but I cant re call a post where someone did not like them
 

hmang

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a 210 saloon loaded with a double bass and a child seat ?.....not ideal...i think
 
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twodinners

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What to go for now?

Thanks for the replies,

It looks like W210's are really a non starter

Well I'm now being more open minded and will look at C Class estates and saloons amongst others.

Suggestions please.

I have a 1984 W123 Coupe 280 to sell/exchange for something suitable.

Kevin
 

meanie

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Do you have any good honest pics of the coupe.
Whats the mileage,history & where are you.
I'm not interested for myself,but I do know someone who may be.
 
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twodinners

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Meanie,

The coupe is in silver/blue metallic with blue tex, cruise control, 135,000 miles and a full history. 11 months MOT. All working electrics apart from a slightly reluctant original radio.

Car based in Hertfordshire.

No pics at the moment.

I'm now looking at W124 saloons.

Cheers,

Kevin
 
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twodinners

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Those little things...

An update for those who have been besides themself in anticipation.

I saw a W124 E320 Saloon today (93L) with lunar if not stellar mileage. One owner other than the cars first six months with MB themselves (would that have been a demonstrator?).

I've got to say I was really impressed, it was just being sold on through a small dealer as it had been part exchanged at MB.

It's high spec and has had a new gearbox and front wings. All services have been stamped in the book.

There are of course 'issues' - the roof will open but not slide, the blower doesn't and the drivers lock won't accept the key.

It also has an Scorpion alarm/immobiliser, which looks like a potential recipe for disaster to me.

Oh, and a ten CD changer with one CD (something like 'Sounds of the Seventies) in it.

It felt really chunky and a lot more solid than my old W123 Coupe.

The vendor is not really the kind of guy that you would want to get these 'issues' sorted, in fact I'm happy to have a go myself, although at the moment motoring without a blower is not practical (or safe).

Cheers,

Kevin
 

meanie

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Sorry for not getting back on your old coupe.Unfortunately,Nick is determined to stick it out for a 280.
Check the inner wings behind the h/lamps for rot,don't worry about scorpion alarms (they were an authorised MB accessory,and in my experience,reliable),and if the roof parks ok you may well get away with freeing of the mechanism.
A word of warning on the blower though;if it has aircon,is it factory or retrofit?I have been caught out by retrofit-on one particular type (I think it was Italian,but I cannot remember the name) the blower motor had been built into the heater box before it was put into the car.The only economic way to sort in the end was to ditch the air con & fit a heater box & motor from a non air con car.
The door lock may free off-if not check out my ad in the classified section.
 
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twodinners

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Do ya feel lucky...

Meanie,

Thanks, erm, my coupe is a 280 with a very sweet engine, it also boasts cruise control and headlamp wipes if that helps fire any enthusiasm.

The E320 I saw does indeed have a factory fitted air con so that's something and I also figured that of the roof will pop but not slide then there's probably nothing wrong with the motor/switch and it just needs a bit of hand cranking and lubing (don't we all, sorry). It was incredibly tight all round for such a high mileage vehicle, I was really impressed.

The door lock can always be fixed one way or another.

Oh and it's had a pair of new front wings, nicely done to my eye.

Thanks very much for the re-assurance with regard to te scorpion installation - can one obtain new fobs and such for these?

Many thanks, it's lovely to be on this board, I'm enjoying browsing a lot, it's quite comforting to be amongst such a resource of experience and enthusiasm.

Kevin
 

meanie

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Kevin.I'M A WALLY!!!
I will pass on the info to Nick again.Sorry.
I don't know the answer to your question about the key fobs (I've never needed to replace them).A quick call to the dealer should give you an answer though.
Do check the INNER wings though (under the ABS pump/air filter).This seems to be the weak spot for rot on 124's.
 

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