Looking at reliability, simplicity, ease and cost of repair plus longevity as well as durability: Yes, I do.
But of course I'm not mainstream with my thoughts and wants plus there's another thing, that's the sound of the engines.
When I drove a w124 300D (sedan, auto, 109 PS) for a year, which now is more than 10 years ago, I not only liked the power - yes, POWER, compared to the 55-80 PS 4- and 5-cyl W123 diesels - but especially the sound of the engine. I know that's _highly_ subjective and in realistic terms the car was not _fast_ (185 km/h//115 mph, 0-100 km/h =
0-62.1 mph = 14,1 s), but I also found the power delivery of the 3 litre-inline 6-cylinder (OM 603.912) smooth and even. It's for me like giving a bit of the impression some ship diesels make on me.And the sound was different from all the competition, they were all _way_ behind in any aspect (W124 300D was built starting in 1985, except maybe Audi, but the MB cars were way better in any respect - then).
Everytime I drive a W210 E270 CDI (station, auto, 170 PS, OM 612) I'm underwhelmed by the noise, inside it is acceptable, outside it is loud and the sound is _cheap_. The engine is the same as all the competition makes', no advantage compared to them in power, sound or longevity or anything.
Of course the latter engine (OM 612) is better as it has identical fuel consumption to W124 300D in city driving and the car is much faster, too:
212 km/h = 132 mph, 0-100 km/h = 0-62.1 mph = 9.5 s, sedan = 222 km/h = 138 mph (some influence on the Vmax of course comes from the better drag coefficient of the W210).What I definitely do not like regarding longevity and durability is the added electronics in the CDI engines, also not the VTG, the turbo with V ariable T urbine G eometry, but of course both are key components for the excellent fuel efficiency (besides the fact it is no pre-chamber engines, but direct injection ones).
I have taken several chances to talk to Taxi company owners and operators, and most of them can tell true horror stories, esp. regarding the CDIs and the W211. The majority of these stories have to do with electronics - and engine electronics has a big share in that. And even if you are under factory warranty, every failure costs money - and taxis only earn money when they are on the road, not at the dealership.
So it's no wonder the MB market share in the German taxi business has come down from ca 70 per cent to ca 50 per cent (the latter depends on the source) and if you look around you find a lot of VWs (Passat, Sharan, Touran and some T4 and T5 vans). Some German language reading here
And also with other things there are more problems with the W210 than with the W124, many of them related to the heavily added electronics, but also the known rust problems due to cheap fabrication are nothing I like (e.g. door frames rusting - DC fixes that for free, but you can't use the car for three or so days and most customers do have to pay for a loaner car. And YES, I know very well of the W124 typical problems, from the windshield-wipers over the ignition lock to to the rear axle).
So again, that's my very personal opinion only and I know the majority thinks different, they want (note: _want_, NOT _need_) more power. And of course for not-so-good drivers a faster car is better as it's easier to compensate for their multiple inabilities than with a slower car: With the latter you have to look a long way ahead of the MB star to keep it running as acceleration is so slow - I have learned my lessons more than 20 years ago with 55 PS and 60 PS 200D auto sedans.
Juergen - 72 PS W123 240D, sedan, auto, mechanical steel sunroof, power steering, central locking, center armrest front, stereo cassette radio, right- hand outside rear-view mirror, metallic paint, that's all... And as an exception to my usual habit to talk in the usenet about the 240D only: Also a 130 PS VW Passat 3BG Variant Diesel TDI with lots of gimmicks like Navi, Xenon, heated seats, auto climate control, tiptronic auto trans, power glass sunroof, ABS, ESP, ASR, CD-Changer, multi- function display, tempomat, front and side-airbags, remote central locking, auto dimmable rear-view mirror, factory alloy wheels, chromed roof rack rails, sports seats etc. blah blah blah...