The venerable 1985-1996 Mercedes-Benz W124 series is commonly regarded as one of the greatest cars of all time. With its engineering prowess, safety advancements, and technological marvels for its time, the W124 is oft named as one of the last “over-engineered” Mercedes from an era when money, time, and competition were less significant constraints to new car development.
A testament to its precision engineering and craftsmanship, the W124 has backed its reputation through its durability and longevity. Designed to withstand German taxi use from the start, with proper maintenance, it’s not uncommon for these cars to continue running for many hundreds of thousands of miles. Finding one of these Benzes on the streets of Boston is not an abnormal sight, though the S124 wagons, like this 1989 300 TE are significantly more sparse. Several 300 TE models were sold from the 1986 through 1994 model years, with several engines in rear-wheel and all-wheel drive configurations. This 1989 is a rear-wheel drive model with a 3.0 liter inline-6.
Although the natural inclination is that all 300 TEs would feature engines with a displacement of 3.0 liters, somewhat confusingly, this wasn’t always the case. Originally, the 300 TE was powered by Mercedes’ M103 single overhead cam 12-valve 3.0L inline-6. This engine was used in the 300 TE and 300 TE 4-Matic through 1991 and 1993, respectively. Beginning in 1989, the dual overhead cam 24-valve 3.0L M104 began supplementing the older engine in rear-wheel drive S124s, with these models badged as “300 TE-24”. In 1993, the 3.0L version of the M104 was replaced with two new versions of the M104: a 2.8 liter (badged simultaneously as “280 TE” or “300 TE 2.8”) and a 3.2 liter (still badged as just “300 TE”). Things would make more logical sense again from 1994-1996, as along with Mercedes’ new naming structure, these two models were badged as “E280” and “E320”.
Even when new, the wagons were never as popular as their sedan counterparts. Out of the over 2.5 million W124 series vehicles produced worldwide, only 340,503 of them were wagons and only 41,775 of those were rear-wheel drive 300 TEs with the 3.0L inline-6, like this featured car. Regardless, these vehicles still found a loyal following among the old money types who to this day still prefer a classy wagon over a blingy SUV.
This 1989 300 TE has seen better days, but nonetheless, appears to be doing just fine as a city driver. A true argument to naysayers who shout blasphemy at “fake leather” in a Mercedes, this car’s original MB-Tex is flawless, without any of the ripping and tearing commonly found in genuine hide of this age. The windows were wet, so I didn’t want to put my phone right up against the glass, making for this poor quality interior image. In any event, the reflection of the vintage-1927 Boston Park Plaza Hotel presents an interesting backdrop against the window of this notably historic Mercedes-Benz.
Photographed: Back Bay, Boston, Massachusetts – October 2015
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I love my 87 300TD. I just wish it wasn’t such a money pit (anyone know where I can get a climate control computer that lasts longer than 8 months?). Mine is dressed in the same silver paint as the wagon in the article, minus the rust. Original paint by the way, clear coat deteriorating in spots. Pulls hard through the mountains, solid as a rock and no play in the steering. Few mechanics are comfortable working on this one year wonder and i fear their knowledge is less than expert. I’m tempted to say it burns no oil, but… Lol.
I sympathize with you. Although built like a tank my 1994 300TE wagon was also a money pit. Wish I owned it before nearly everything on it failed or fell apart. And yes mine was a 1994 300TE.
Really, if you had to pick one car for the rest of your life, for all purposes, why not a W124 estate? Maybe a diesel in Europe, but still a truly valid choice.
Although I`m certainly not “old money”-or new money , I do prefer classy wagon over a blingy SUV, and this Mercedes would do just fine.
That old-school MB Tex is some tough, durable upholstery, but I truly hate sitting on it…I’d much rather deal with leather. I wish MB USA has imported some cloth seat cars…they put some really nice velours in their cars over the years in other markets. I briefly owned a gray market 450SE with saffron velour seats…they were beautiful.
I am constantly tempted to replace my primary car, a low-mileage Accord, with a used German car that is more practical and fun to drive and interesting – such as a W124 wagon. The “money pit” comments are what keep me from having done so 🙂 I already have two project cars!
Likewise on the “money pit”. Otherwise, there’d be a Benz in my driveway already.
And most of them still alive have 250K+ miles on them already, making that statement even more true. Just how long can the original 25-year-old automatic transmission go? Do you want to be the one who finds out?
Japanese version of this car (in sedan form): Lexus LS400. The same comments apply to this car.
I know I am late to this thread but I am right there with you. I have always wanted one of these wagons. I had a chance to get one for around $2,000 in 2007. It was a 1989 300TE with Dark Blue exterior with a Tan MB-Tex interior. All of these years I constantly hear the money pit comments and I passed in the end. Toyota has spoiled me to the point that I can’t even fathom spending that much time or money to keep something on the road. My 1999 XLE V6 has 220k and after 9 years of ownership has hardly been a shop queen. I am getting lower ball joints and inner tie rod ends replaced next week, and I recently did the front hubs and an alternator. I still dream of a Merc station wagon, but I don’t know if I’ll ever take the plunge on that. Parts that fail every 8 months would be enough to drive me mad. My grandfather goes through this with an RV he owns that they no longer manufacture parts for, so everything has to be rebuilt. He hardly uses the thing. I think he spends more time repairing it than he does actually enjoying it. Not the kind of ownership experience I am looking for. My sister’s 2012 Jetta is already starting to have all kinds of crap go. I love the Germans for their looks but I don’t have the kind of automotive patience it takes to own one. A/c Compressor possibly going, $200 bulbs needed for HID lights, and so on. Even me being very serious about my car maintenence, I couldn’t see any of the German models I’d be interested in as something that would return the love in the way my ‘Yota’s have. I had a 1992 Camry V6 as a secondary up until 2016 and a lot of it was daily driving to keep the ’99 in good shape. I somehow just get a feeling that I’d never see that kind of longevity from a 300TE without spending thousands, even a Passat wagon makes me a tad leery and I still think that visually those 98-04 Passat wagons were very good looking cars. Hats off to all who are willing to take the plunge on these cars. I’m sure it’s rewarding in some way. I just think too much of other things I can be doing with my money, which keeps me where I am car-wise.
I love these wagons and have driven a couple with an eye towards buying. Both of the examples I drove were cosmetically attractive but a test drive revealed deferred maintenance galore, scary on these vehicles.
I think they are the elusive “perfect design”, by which I mean nothing could be added or removed without wrecking it. They also embody the old school German philosophy of permanence and durability. But no car design can beat a neglectful owner!
Count me in as another who’d like one of these, as I’ve wanted a wagon for some time and find these to be about the perfect wagon design–manageable size, ample interior space, and superlative styling.
W124s are pretty easy to work on, and if you can do some of your own repairs, they aren’t that bad to work on. The issue is that some parts are frightfully costly…at least BMW, Jaguar, Volvo etc use generic parts from ZF, Bosch, Lucas, and other commercial vendors. Mercedes tended to use MB-specific parts that don’t interchange with anything else. Nicely designed, but expensive. I will say that when I discovered replaceable cartridge oil filters in the power steering reservior, I was impressed. The parts guy at the MB dealer said they NEVER sell them, but I ordered a couple and changed the power steering filters in all of my raggedy old MBs, just because I could.
My old vw vanagon had a filter in the power steering resuover as well. I changed it out and got a similar reaction from the parts person. I figured the last few owners probably hadn’t done it and for under $20 it seemed like a good idea. Don’t get me started on the $400 for the high pressure power steering line though…
I was considering a M-B wagon, like one of these, but thought that maintenance (parts AND labor) would be expensive….and apparently that fear was well founded. But darn it all, these wagons are a classic design. I had no idea they comprised such a small percentage of total W124 production.
Nice car and one of the best-proportioned wagons ever.
I wonder why they kept this separate headlight design when it was no longer required, instead of using the “normal” single-piece one?
That headlamp design had the DOT-required aiming nipples, and I suspect they just didn’t want to spend the money to develop another lamp for North American markets.
Maybe “money pit” is a relative term but my 87 W124 has proven to be a bargain from a maintenance standpoint. I have owned it for nine years and spent maybe $1500 in repairs. Most of that has been to mitigate 28 years and 250,000 miles of wear. Granted, my car was meticulously dealer maintained by its previous owner and I have followed the manufacturers service recommendations but I do my own work at a substantial savings over the dealer service department. (I do miss out on the free scones and lattes in the dealers service waiting room. The cars do have some well documented Achilles Heels. Soft camshafts and weak head gaskets on early M103 engines. Proper oil and coolant change intervals help to hold these off. Later models are victims of a failed experiment to go green. Soy based insulation on underhood wiring deteriorates from heat causing all manner of electrical gremlins. Replacement wiring harnesses built after 1998 will fix that problem. If you can perform your own maintenance these cars can be cheap to run. If you take them to a mechanic for service, some repair bills could easily outstrip the value of the car.
No personal experience with the W124 but I do remember the comment that this car was built around the evaporator. The other thing I remember, was my previous indie mechanic had a 300TD that he claimed had to replace the head 3 times due to cracking. Not the gasket the head itself. The diesel engine was the new 6 cylinder with an alloy head instead of the cast iron used in the 5 cylinder diesel. I subscribed to the Mercedes mailing list for many years and Stu the founder and administrator of the list authored the book “Mercedes-Benz E-Class (W124) Owner’s Bible 1986-1995”.
I was under the impression that the W140 was the one that involved 40 labor hours to change the evaporator…
My flatrate time shows 12.8 hrs labour not including R134 recharge
W124’s are not at all money pits. These cars along with the W140, W126 and R129 were Bruno Sacco and Wolfgang Peter’s crowning glory. They last and last. I fail to see how a head gasket and a gearbox rebuild in cars circa 30 years old counts as money pit? They outlast anything on the road.
The quality is something to behold. Even the sheet metal is twice as thick as other cars. If you haven’t owned a W140 or a W124 then you are missing out on something special.
Agreed. However, maintenance on an older Mercedes accelerates quickly with age. Hoses, wiring, switches, etc., all cascade into expensive trips to the parts bin. It’s not on par with aircraft maintenance, but can really add up at times.
Like most cars, they are made up from MB produced parts and parts obtained from OE suppliers like Bosch, Behr, Lemfoerder etc. Many of these parts are available through online vendors at substantial savings over the dealer parts department. There are also online vendors who facilitate shipping parts directly from a network of MB dealerships again at a substantially lower price. Deals on parts can even be found through Amazon. The main thing with online parts buying is to avoid cheap Chinese made knock off parts sold by companies with german sounding names like Uro.
My 124, sedan not wagon is easy to keep on the road, lots of parts available all over. I’ve just covered 555,555 km in mine. Lots of LOW mileage cars come up from time to time.
KJ in Oz
It looked a lot better when I sold it in Waltham back in 2010. Still one of the weirdest transactions i’ve ever had selling a car. I was interviewed by the buyers in their kitchen after I drove the $1200 Mercedes I was selling over to their house to be helpful. I remember they demanded to see my drivers license and asked me why I hadn’t replaced the drivers airbag yet amongst other things. Nice to see it is still sort of on the road. It had 183k miles on it when sold.
Stuff like that is why I will never sell a car through any sort of classified ads. Too many nut jobs out there, they would expect you to spend a couple of thousand dollars for an airbag replacement and still sell them the car for $1200. Then a couple of weeks later after they have destroyed the car, they are likely to show up at your door demanding their money back. I would rather set a no longer needed car on fire and push it off a cliff than to try to deal with a$$hole tire kickers.
The MBtex really was mint.
Maybe I should have kept it?
Wow, love that in silver over navy. As much as I love 124s and have owned and worked on many, as they’ve aged, one needs to be very cautious in checking for severe rust in two places; the front spring perches, while not nearly as common as on W210s, there have been several instances of spring perch failure on W124s and secondly, the unibody where the rear subframe bolts up is prone to severe rot so that also warranty close inspection on any potential candidate you’re considering.
Beyond those (well, yes, evaporators on late W124s for whatever reasons…) items, they are stout cars and if you compare them to any other brands that you’d still see on the road in DD duty, the Merc always outnumbers anything else save for *maybe* Volvo, and that’s a longshot.