These days, automotive luxury is primarily utility based. Every upscale brand offers at least several crossovers. Cadillac, Lincoln, Mercedes, and a few others also sell body-on-frame SUVs for buyers who want a little extra pizzazz or some additional capability. But there was a time when the most prestigious luxury vehicles were full-size sedans. Given the length of these sedans, it was probably inevitable that buyers would ultimately gravitate towards more spacious utility vehicles that occupied a similar footprint. But this Mercedes 420 SEL hails from a time when none of that mattered. Full-size luxury sedans got all the attention back then. That would become readily apparent when Lexus arrived a short time after our featured Mercedes was sold new.
The W126 Mercedes lived a pretty charmed life until the late 1980s. Then the Lexus LS stormed into the scene and shattered the status quo. That’s not to say this 420 SEL is a bad vehicle be any means. Many people feel this was the last truly great S-Class Plus, it’s obvious Toyota benchmarked the W126 when it was developing its flagship sedan. But the newcomer sucked all of the air out of the room when it arrived. Three decades later, the car community seems to appreciate both vehicles equally, as they should. Bring A Trailer has featured a number of W126 models over the years and they sell for around the same amount as the LS.
Could this particular Mercedes go one million miles? Probably. At least with the right owner. Matt Farah’s Million Mile Lexus could use a competitor. And this would be a very appropriate vehicle to do it in. Although it would take a number of years to get there. Fortunately, the car’s current owner has kept it in good shape. According to the description there’s nothing wrong with it.
About the only demerit is the driver’s seat. At some point the side bolster must have ripped. And over the years it degraded into what it looks like today. That’s just a guess. Otherwise, the rest of the seat has aged incredibly well. All of the other seats look good too.
This Mercedes currently sits at 145k miles. Given its condition, $3800 seems like a very fair asking price. Hopefully it ends up in the right hands. I have to imagine most people at this price point would want something a bit smaller and newer anyway. Perhaps that means the car will find a good owner. And maybe they’ll find a way to make it famous on YouTube too.
Source: Hudson Valley craigslist
The exterior and engine bay look well-taken care of, but the interior was allowed to get rather gross. It’s interesting how industrial the interior of these feel compared to the LS. Same story with the dashboard, door panels and steering wheel. The seat is stiff and springy and covered in material that feels like it will stop a bullet. Everything feels sturdy, but very little feels luxurious.
Compared to a new Mercedes, were everything feels luxurious, but very little feels sturdy…
you got that right. i am in the camp that thinks this was the last great S class. todays mercedes… and all cars really…. are throw away. the quality in materials and workmanship is down greatly. i think it’s bc instead of quality… the cars are jam packed with technology. a new kind of super complex technology not seen in those days. and when things start to go bad… no one is fixing todays cars. there will be few collector cars in the future of todays cars.
I agree completely and adore 1980s era Benzes in general for their technical excellence, build quality, etc etc. Sadly, all engineering involves tradeoffs: if you are expected to deliver massive technology at a given price point, then generally quality of touch-point materials (leather, plastic etc) suffers as a direct result. All those digital displays and the supporting systems aren’t free.
Sweet Benz, and I also hope it finds a good home.
About five years ago, a far relative passed away and left her same model car in Toronto with only 42 kilometers. The asking price was $8,000 Canadian dollars. I would get that car if it was in US.
Currently I am selling my 2003 ML350 with 157k miles, the offering I got was only $1500 or less. Mine has more rust on the right fender but much better shape of interior. The vehicle was used daily and has not known mechanical problems.
Too me they, and the 260/300 E’s are the last real Benz sedans. Tuetonic perfection without fluff.. They do look dainty when next to an Optima or newer Rav4, though. And these were considered big lol.
I’ve followed these for years and recently prices have gone up, especially for the 560. In Naples Florida one sees many reposing majestically in their elderly orginal owner’s garage. But I see even more so with LS400s and 430s.
Give me a 300 or 420 and I would be thrilled. I actually prefer the six… It’s a sweet little engine that winds out real nice and its 170 hp is fine for me. Ive driven both and the six actually seems more willing.. The V8s are real lazy feeling with the terrible 2nd gear starts. Lexus’s V8s, both the 4 and 4.3 actually have more personality than Benz V8s, a subtle effortless Detroit burble while waifting around turning into a barely audible Nascar like roar around redline. Although I always wish Lexus had built a velour seat LS300 with the 2JZ six because of how much I love 280 and 300 SE(L)’s.
The V8s are real lazy feeling with the terrible 2nd gear starts.
The gas sixes start in second gear too, unless you floor them.
Lazy compared to what? My 560SEL has a lot of torque and it will start in 1st if you press the accelerator to the kickdown switch.
I’ve driven a 300SE – It’s noticeably slower and like Paul said, it starts in 2nd.
You could get the LS400 with velour seats in the US, but not with a 6 cylinder.
I had a 1994 LS400 from 2004 to 2008 – Really an excellent car and much better than the 560SEL in every aspect with the exception of torque, seat comfort and party tricks (front and rear heated seats, rear power seat and town and country horn on the 560SEL). Purchasing an excellent 1993 Q45 in the next couple of weeks, I love my big barges!!
I’ve had 2 560 SEL’s and absolutely loved them. I knew they were time bombs waiting to go off and that it would cost to much to fix if anything major went on the cars. I kept both of them for around 6 months each and then sold them for something else. I’ve always loved the first gen Q45 with the smooth front end and no grill. I’ve been looking for a nice one for years but they are few and far between. I’d love to see the your getting. I too love my big sedans!
It takes a special kind of short-bus stupid to engineer a transmission that won’t willingly use all it’s “gears”.
If you don’t need first gear, don’t build the transmission with that ratio. If you do need it, make it AUTOMATIC.
It’s like being told you need to shift out of “Overdrive” when towing or climbing hills. I bought an AUTOMATIC, don’t tell me to shift it manually. If the trans is so brittle that letting it shift for itself causes harm…you’ve done a poor job of engineering.
As solid as they feel, I wouldn’t pick one of these to try to go a million miles. The automatics always seem to die after about 125-200k miles. And I doubt that the engine has nearly the longevity of the Lexus’. And then there’s the automatic HVAC, which always self-destructs. And…
Realistically, although built out of solid materials, these are not really a million mile car, unless you’re into a lot of repair work. And the parts are expensive.
A 240 D with a stick shift would be a much better choice for that.
Thanks Paul for keeping me from bad decisions.
And they didn’t have decent btu’s for those horrible climate controls to work with. And Delco radios always sounded far better than Beckers.. Caddy had Boses/Delco since 82. I think it was the next S Ckass that finally got Bose to compete with LS’s Nakimichi. They also always had problems with the power windows and vacuum assist power locks that cheap Chevues got right. My parents W123 300D ate a transmission at 90k that never saw 100hp.- it had the prescribed fluid changes and”adjustments..” think the million mile Lexus is on its third much cheaper one. Dashes ended up cratered unlike Terceks of the same era. I know I’m beating a dead horse but I get it how Lexus killed em.
When I was a kid, I remember the ad of the old couple driving the million mile 190D. The idea of taking one on the interstate is scary. My 27ft GMC U-haul at least reaches 75 on the governor. Did this 190 exist or was it my imagination.. I would love to see it if someone could find it.
EDIT: the old pontoon pre tail fin 190, not the one from the early 80’s.
Paul,
I bet the same thing would apply to BMW 7-Series cars of the same era, in particular the 1988-94 E32 generation.
Not too long ago, I wanted to buy what appeared to be a low-mileage 1991 E32 735iL with 149k on the odometer. I was told it had some sort of a cooling issue that was causing the car to overheat at times. My mechanic told me to forget about buying the Bimmer and stick with my Volvo 240, as he said that the 735 “will not go to a million miles with minimal maintenance and repairs, unlike a redblock 4-cylinder Volvo.”
I have a tongue-in-cheek rule to never buy a car when the sale photographs have been taken in an alley. This ad requires a corollary – never buy an old Mercedes where the sale photos are taken on a muddy gravel driveway where the other vehicle there is a box truck.
To be taken seriously one of these needs to show in the upscale driveway of its longtime meticulous owner. These photos show the place where you buy a 92 F-150.
Yes, you aren’t buying the car, you’re buying the seller’s mentality. You wouldn’t buy a 2018 Sentra from that location, let alone a somewhat fickle older luxury car.
Nice to see one that hasnt got huge rims and been lowered to undriveable levels, these and subsequent models are really cheap to buy here though often they are unmaintained Aisian used imports, complete with myriad problems and being a Benz putting them right isnt easy or cheap all those cars in the wrecking yard are there because of the same issues your one has so you need to find one that was crashed in good going order and what you want didnt break on impact, Thats not a lot of mileage for an old car, I thought Mecedes did better wearing interiors than that.
Every Craigslist ad has to have a photo like the second one here. How hard would it have been to move the camera over a bit and get the other headlight in instead of all that empty space at the left?
Still one of my favourite Mercedes and one I’d consider if it was one for the car for ever. But not in white.
Mercedes: The best or nothing.
Back then that would have been a true statement.
Lovely car; ugly seat. But the price is okay to me.
That MB-Tex seat really should not have worn through where it did with only 145k miles on it. It’s not leather since it has vertical strakes, the leather seats were horizontally stitched.
That engine though is a peach, the same one I had in my ’92 400E. It might start in second unless floored but it’ll just keep pulling and get stronger and stronger as it climbs the rev range. Older German cars aren’t made for the stoplight grand prix but they really start to pull at around 70mph and just keep pulling. Besides, it’s so undiginified, what’s wrong with just wafting along?
Great looking car though as far as the shape goes, way more presence than a 7-series.
I’m sure that’s leather. The horizontal pattern came with the refresh a year or two later.
Ah, I stand corrected! Was thinking of my ’92 W124…