bum-man

FC123 your car looks to be in immaculate condition which is a rarity these days for the W123. What color were you thinking of painting it?

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FC123

Thanks

Sadly picures are forgiving, so it is no where near immaculate at the moment.

My plans are to paint it in it's original color (Silberdistell I believe, sort of a silver with some green hue) and to do all necessary work with regards to corrosion, so it can soldier on for 25 more years (at least) in the way that it was born.

I absolutely love the car, can't be too healthy I guess.

bum-man

Although I'm sure you had this in mind to begin with, might I suggest at sparing no expense when it comes to having a shop paint the car. My father went bargain hunting for the best price when he had his repainted, and while it did look good it started rusting real bad less than a decade later.

And wow! 5-speed, just noticed that! That's a rarity even for European standards.

FC123

I'm good friends with a very skilled auto painter. He'll do it for me. With several layers. And yes the 5-speed is a bonus.

FC123

The article does mention, that the W124 were far from bulletproof to begin with: Der W 124 hatte eine schlechte Jugend

If my German serves me correct: The W124 had a bad youth/childhood

To be honest the series 0.5 of the W123 were very lacking when it came to fighting of rust. I guess it just goes to show, that you always take a leap of faith with a new model.

If I recall correctly:

(applicable for first years only)

W123 - rust
W124 - various problems both mechanically and technically
W210 - rust
W211 - Issues with the brakes? Anyone?

So honestly, do what I did: Buy a 23 year old car. If it's working everything has probably been sorted when you get it.

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