Wagon Wednesday – 1982 Mercedes Benz 300TD W123

Marcal Eilenstein

/comment

Comments

 1 

This Wagon Wednesday entrant comes to us via our good friends in Canadia.

From the streets of Abbotsford, British Columbia comes this gorgeous 1982 Mercedes-Benz 200TD W123 wagon. If you’re thinking you’ve seen something like this recently, it’s because you have. Jeff introduced us yesterday to the Wombat, a 1984 300TD (make sure you watch the video).

Let’s take a closer look at this one.

From the ad:

 – rust free Mercedes W123 wagon in very good running condition. 
– Very clean inside and out. 
– This car has been an excellent daily runner for 1-1/2 years, WITHOUT fail.  We’re restoring a sedan, so we’re choosing to list this and pass it along to a good new home—hopefully yours!
– engine is the legendary, indestructible 5-cylinder 3-litre turbo diesel.  347,000 miles and still going strong. If the mileage scares you, this isn’t the car for you.  This engine (and overall car) still has PLENTY of life left in it!
– turbo spools like it should, and the transmission shifts smoothly. 
– original working Becker stereo
– block heater
– functional speedometer cluster (tachometer works intermittently),
– all windows work, as does the heating system works, interior lights, rear defog
– trailer hitch!
– back side and rear window tinted for extra security
– hiccups:  vacuum lock system, A/C, and cruise control don’t currently function.  (I’m working on the vacuum)

Recent service includes:
– new brake hoses,
– steady bearings and flex discs,
– front lower ball joints,
– right upper control arm,
– idler arm,
– centre link,
– tie rods and assembly,
– transmission fluid and filter,
– SLS accumulators, and more.

The car comes with AutoCheck History (rated 53 – average for this vehicle is 36), original owner’s manuals, service receipts, tires with plenty of tread.

 

3

Clearly, this car has been maintained well over the years. The paint has barely faded; all the trim is in place; even the wheels look good. 

2

The interior is in pretty good shape, as well, and considering the mileage, that’s impressive. I suspect the carpet could stand a good cleaning, but that’s not an issue, really.

I used to see these on the road a lot more often when I was a kid, before minivans completely took the place of the venerable station wagon as the soccer mom car of choice. What do you think of this 80’s people-moving machine?

 

[Source: Seattle craigslist]

About

Marcal Eilenstein

Marcal Eilenstein

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

The maximum upload file size: 64 MB. You can upload: image, audio, video. Links to YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other services inserted in the comment text will be automatically embedded. Drop files here

11 responses to “Wagon Wednesday – 1982 Mercedes Benz 300TD W123”

  1. Sjalabais Avatar
    Sjalabais

    That's some enthusiastic copy writing. Nice ride!

    Reply
  2. Van_Sarockin Avatar
    Van_Sarockin

    Lovely wagon. So long as you like slow, clattering, smelly and smoking.

    Reply
    1. jeepjeff Avatar
      jeepjeff

      Until you put a HEMI in it.

      Reply
  3. AEilenstein Avatar
    AEilenstein

    What is it about '80s cars that put me to sleep?

    Reply
    1. MVEilenstein Avatar
      MVEilenstein

      Probably the diesel fumes.

      Reply
    2. BlackIce_GTS Avatar
      BlackIce_GTS

      I've pondered this for some time, there's just some X-factor that's missing. Trends in technology or styling? Your reasons are probably completely different from mine, because you (I'm assuming) lived through the 80s*. The period I have inexplicable disinterest in is ~'35-'65, which I was most certainly not alive anywhere in the vicinity of.
      *I love '80s cars, having lived through the majority of the decade.

      Reply
  4. Mad_Hungarian Avatar
    Mad_Hungarian

    " hiccups: vacuum lock system, A/C, and cruise control don’t currently function." That's a bad case of the hiccups. There's three of the major annoyances of these cars right there. I've seen people saying that leaks in the vacuum system cause the erratic shifting that automatics in these cars are known for. I owned a W123 wagon once (for three months, I decided it was a bad mistake) and it did have a slow door lock and jerky shifting. I can personally attest that the cruise control and A/C parts are as pricey as you might imagine. It is true that the engines in these cars will run forever. The rest of the car is itching to clean out your bank account.

    Reply
    1. FuzzyPlushroom Avatar
      FuzzyPlushroom

      One more reason to hold out for the elusive manual example, perhaps? I doubt I'd have to worry too much about anyone trying to steal a rougher example of this car, so the locks not working wouldn't be the end of the world.
      I've only owned one car with cruise control. It didn't work. Maybe my new car has it. I don't know.

      Reply
      1. smokyburnout Avatar
        smokyburnout

        You can still lock it manually like a regular car. The vacuum system is for central locking, it's supposed to unlock the rest of the doors, trunk and fuel filler when you turn the key in the driver's door.
        The engine really will run forever when you have a vacuum leak, because the fuel shutoff valve is also vacuum-operated.
        (I had a manual diesel W123, the only vacuum locking system element I had fail was the one for the trunk. Cruise control and A/C didn't work)

        Reply
        1. FuzzyPlushroom Avatar
          FuzzyPlushroom

          Oh, that's fine then. I had to pull the power lock relay in one of my 244s because it would drain the battery. You can just –
          …oh right, diesel. Yeah, that's bad. Manually switched fuel cut time.

          Reply
  5. Preludacris Avatar
    Preludacris

    That's half an hour from me. I'm almost tempted to go look at it.

    Reply