I'm pretty much set on a W124 probably a 300E Petrol

Would take a lot of Satin black paint for me to buy a white one.

Much as I like Mercs I'd take A Lexus GS300 over a W124.....

Whereas I'd happily watch every GS300 on the planet burn.

Go on then, What about

Mileage for age seems decent.

Leather isn't totally shafted, right colour combo and I night be able to knock a bit off. Don't even appear to be too many chips and blems.

Well they do look like a bloated carina, but so relaibleand well equipped.W124's of similar age are usually well worn scabby and abused...

For a big Merc I'd probably go with a W123 or older...I really hate the rear-end on the 124...

I can see the benefits of both. The Lexus will be very reliable and less likely to rust (although they still do). But the 124 is so much less complicated and easier to work on, and all Merc parts are available from Merc, and pattern parts from GSF/Eurocarparts etc, and Lexus parts can be pricey and take longer to arrive. I loved my old LS400, but £500 to replace the front wishbones because the bushes and balljoints aren't available seperatly is daft.

I find the GS shape less attractive than the older LS and the W124 E class and the LS are very similar in shape at least from the side.

Having owned a W123, W124 and W126 I'd go for the W126....

Is it "pattern" parts, or is it "patent" parts? Can we please have that argument again?!??? Pleeeease!

I know......

There's only one way to find out........FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT!

(With the fight being between a piece of fabric with a pattern on it, and a patent lawyer, or something).

Oh, and everyone watch "Sunshine" on BBC1 (featuring Steve Coogan, written by Craig Cash), because it's bloody brilliant.

I wouldn't mind a W126. There was a W126 I posted about a couple of years back for £500. I ummed and ahhed about it being too big, then bought the Rangie and then the Lexus. Doh.

That we call a German tanc without turret: they rarely go wrong.

Petrol versions were fiscally killed off (in Belgium) from the start because of their "big" engine and dito horsepower.

Diesel versions however were very popular, served as taxis and mileage- monsters (I have seen a 300D with over 800.000 km on the orginal engine). They are close to indestructable and flatly refuse to die.

So Belgian Taxes corrected the aim and from 2000 on imposed hefty yearly taxes on them, often more than the car was worth. Pensioners sold the car "en massa" or traded it in for small tincans like the Toyota Yaris or other Pug 106's.

I guess all of them fled to Africa where even those cars are destroyed after about a year due to overcharging, general misuse, total abscence of maintenance and miserable roads.

That's a lot of car for decent money in that ad. It might not be the most fun car to drive, quite aircraftcarrier-like but that in itself can be quite nice and give a relaxing drive. As it likes to be driven gently, fuel consumption stays reasonable.

Tom De Moor

Go on then, What about

Mileage for age seems decent.

Leather isn't totally shafted, right colour combo and I night be able to knock a bit off. Don't even appear to be too many chips and blems.

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Aww no! The quoting thing happened again !

I can't follow the link, my internets web-browsing is broken :-( But Tom seems to like it! Hopefully I can click it tmrw...

Ha and that is from google groups. So now OE can't cope with google groups

Always been the same problem - which is why I knew what it was on your other posts.

cheers, clive

Go on then, What about

Mileage for age seems decent.

Leather isn't totally shafted, right colour combo and I night be able to knock a bit off. Don't even appear to be too many chips and blems.

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I've been able to look now - seems a few hundred quid more than others, and ye gods - what's with those alloys!? But if it's close, and is good nick in real life, then go for it :-)!

Probably not that one, but something similar when it is time to change. I believe that alloys would have been fitted by the company that tweaked it.

That Carat Dechatelet or what ever they are called made altered and armoured cars. A bit like Carlsson/AMG/Brabus but slightly less well known + diplomatic spec bullet proof models.

I'm thinking the one I get will be a bit of a rolling project so I want something with the best body as possible.

If after my first MOT it passes with nothing major it will get an H&R cup kit and some arb bushes, later I'll give it a set of nice AMG or Brabus style black wheels with polished lip and a set of SL brakes as a big brake upgrade. That'll do for handling. Then I'll stick a set of the later tail lights with just the red/white lenses and LED indicator and stop and tail lights. Next will be clear repeaters, front indicators and a set of the crystal projector lights and a HID kit.

Probably cost near as much as the car, but worth doing if I can find the right shell, purely cosmetic but tasteful.

Yea, it'll be a nice project, tweaking it a more interesting way to spend the weekends than watching TV or trapesing round the shops with the Mrs heh. Also, we're not talking huge sums of money, especially if it's spread out over a long time. The wheels will probably be the most expensive bit, but you can get brand new replica AMG wheels off Ebay for pence really.

I really like these -

but I'm sure they really wouldn't suit an old style Merc, they'd just make it look like a 'set of wheels car' as they'd stand out and not fit in, and people would think it's a SOC with a set of wheels worth more than the car.

I was thinking something like

or Maybe something like but with black face and polish rim. Actually something like this this but the saloon not the coupe.http://www.cksperformance.co.uk/Mercedes/Product_Images/Bodykits/Wald%20W124_(90-95)_V4_coupe_front%20LOWRES_1.jpg