w114/w115

It definitely depends on your taste.

Generally speaking the diesels are more reliable and especially with my 230 6-cylinder the Zenit

35/40 INAT carburettor was a problem, worn out and very difficult to synchronize, thirsty it was, too.

What models were available for South Africa?

I live in Germany and so there was the full line available - I once had a 1972 model. Here also rust is an important issue - that should be very different in South Africa.

Juergen

From

The South African manufactured and assembled line up of 114 & 115 series were: W115's: 220 and 220D, the majority being manual 230.4 and 240D automatic and manual

W114's: 230, 230.6, 280, 280E with the 230 in manual and automatic The 230.6, 280 and 280E models were mostly automatics The launch models 230 were 6 cylinders with the 230.6 change to differentiate between the 230.4 and 230.6 which formed the run-out models prior to the introduction of the W123 series.

Rust is not a problem, however I have 2 concerns about diesels: 1. Can they be fitted with aircon (it gets hot here) and 2. Apparently the diesel in SA in the 70's and 80's were of inferior quality.

IMHO a diesel is more trouble free. The downside is the lack of power and the noise - and YES, I know what I speak of, have driven all the W123 diesels which have basically the same engines as the W115. Slowest W123 I drove was the one with the 55 PS engine from the W115 200D, top speed 127 km/h and 33.2 secs from

0-62.1 mph, auto trans - that IS slow!

As already written I had some problems with my worn-out W114 230 6-cylinder and the 35/40 carburettor.

So personally I would tend to another model, either single carburettor or fuel injection.

I do not know how much you`ll drive in a year and how much fuel costs in SA, also I do not know about differences in car taxes and insurance premiums.

So a calculation of the cost of different models would be useful to see which do fit into your budget.

With the diesel cars the 240D is the best (except the 300D aka 240D 3.0), it has

65 PS and in that range every single PS IS useful - the 200D and 220D are a bit slower than the 240D but does not consume more fuel.

With the gasoline cars I would - from the models you listed above - take either the

230 4-banger or the 280E.

Personally I prefer auto trans, but that of course may differ with you, I live in a big city and driving auto trans is much more relaxing there.

I definitely would prefer a car with power steering - it is no real fun to have a non power-steering car in city driving and especially parking (been there, done that).

No matter what model you decide for, I would buy the best-condition model you can afford/ fits into your budget (assumed of course the price wanted by the seller is a correct market price).

To give you a clue here is a GERMAN market price for a 230 (4 cyl) in Euro: Condition 1: 6.700 (as good as new - maybe to be found at Pebble Beach...) Condition 2: 4.400 (only slightly used - what most people refer to as _very good_) Condition 3: 2.600 (used - normal wear of age - what most people refer to as _good_) Condition 4: 1.100 (used-up, work needed) Condition 5: 400 (has to be restored, not driveable)

Note that here in Germany these prices can be higher, that mainly depends on the body colour and the options.

Kind regards from Germany

Juergen

Arggll - should have read:

not really do consume less fuel.

Juergen