I bought a new 'daily'

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[@computiNATEor]

Keep this one in good shape, Jeff! Sounds like she's been well loved, congrats on the great find. Treat her right and she'll do right by you 💙

[@HomeBuiltByJeff]

Thanks mate. It will hopefully be perfect for what we are looking for :D

[@911hillclimber]

A relaxed cruiser, Km's all day long in total comfort.. A few jobs you say, no bother. You now need a BIGGER garage! From a Sunny but chilly England.

[@volvogt21]

Apologies on behalf of us Victorians stealing all your interesting cars at 25 years old and leaving you with the leftovers. Lol.

[@insAneTunA]

For a daily it makes perfect sense. Very practical and a comfortable drive.

[@garysmith9985]

Great choice. Around 2001 ago I bought a 1987 W124 300E for my daughter. I drove it home from the seller. Never been so impressed with a car. Did nothing exceptional but did everything perfectly. It started me on a huge mercedes collection but I still have a 300E. 😁

[@Jonathan_Doe_]

W123’s and W124’s were a peak in Mercedes engineering and reliability before a massive decline that they didn’t really recover from until the W212.

[@gt_veloce2000]

I feel an engine swap coming .. 🤔

[@incolink]

M104 and garret G35 get out of this mans way

[@DarrenMartin-bw8zi]

Jeff. You're NOT crazy! This is an amazing find! I love it! I'd just swap bigger, later model factory wheels and leave it at stock height. Then rebuild the engine, service the tranny and drive it forever

[@azharsyarawi]

Absolutely loving this Jeff. These old mercs are awesome❤

[@doOf3r]

Old Merc, 400,000Km, just run-in then.

[@tomlipscomb2211]

Soon

[@barrybrennan1045]

Just barely broken-in

[@duckmcf]

It’s screaming out for a LS swap… …only joking…

[@FrankKemperMuc]

A few fun facts about this car: 1. The side rear mirrors have different sizes and shapes - this is not a failure, but deliberate design. When Mercedes launched the W124, by default only the mirror of the passenger side was power adjustable, the mirror of the driver side was mechanical, because the driver could easily reach it. 2. Today the W124 is regarded as one of the most sturdy and reliable cars Mercedes ever built. When they introduced the W124 in 1985, it came with over 30 technical innovations - and was a menace. The singke windscreen wiper was a mess, the new, glued in front and rear windows broke and much more. It took Mercedes extreme efforts to make the car better. 3. The predecessor W123 came with a height adjustabke driver's seat. However, the mechanism was part of the platform, and it was only on the left side of the platform. So all W123 with right hand drive came with a height adjustable passsenger seat only;-) The W124 got height adjustable seats on both sides. 4. The W123 had a weird vacuum operated system which powered the door locks. It had a vacuum tank which allowed to lock and unlock all doors for three or four times until the tank was empty, so you had to start the engine and refill it. In the W124, Mercedes installed an electric pump to feed the vacuum tank. Why for heaven's sake didn't they use electric power locks like anybody else? They were too noisy;-) Jeff, congratulations for this nice car. I like them - but you'll soon will find out that the front seats are lousy. Maybe you should replace them with a set of decent Recaros.

[@HomeBuiltByJeff]

Particularly after 400k kms the seats are pretty terrible ;)

[@CC-mb8fi]

Makes perfect sense Between Harry and Merc, you have 120 days per year driving Get a 3rd golden oldie and that will give you 180 days per year which seems fine.......

[@olik136]

how are those 60 days even counted? do you have to proove it in any way?

[@mlmoke]

There is a log book that you must fill out when you drive. Interestingly you don’t chew in to the 60 days for any days that your club designate as events. So taking Harry to Berrima car meet up won’t burn a day

[@DarrenMartin-bw8zi]

@@mlmoke And who makes sure he fills it out? Does he have to do it before driving or after?

[@mlmoke]

You have to fill it out before you drive. It’s not tightly enforced, but if you got pulled over by police you’d get some points/fine if you hadn’t. Also the 3rd party insurance that the conditional registration includes would not be valid if you hadn’t filled it out. One side note, you don’t have to complete the log book for taking it to a mechanic, or short trips to check any work you’ve been doing on it.

[@sventt3]

These older Mercedes were used as taxis in eastern europe, where im from. They would do well over 600000 kms before evetually dying to rust..

[@paultucker4923]

,,,and then finding a new life in Africa 🙂

[@cramiro71]

@@paultucker4923 absolutely, they go up over 1 million km in Africa

[@Leonardo555ZZZZ]

No salt on roads in Australia , and not a lot of rain in many places , so very little rust compared to Europe.

[@HomeBuiltByJeff]

Not going to die of rust here, unless it was driven on the beach ;)

[@b12kult]

Great looking W124, in my opinion the last of the MB's with the build quality they (MB) got famous for

[@___disso--bey___]

For sure! The W201 too. Have a 2.5 16v. Just awesome😊😊

[@olik136]

yes.. not as good as a W123 but everything after was (and still is) much worse

[@b12kult]

@@___disso--bey___ Yep, the so called baby Benz. To get that one right they did some extensive testing!!! And they got it right. My father had one of these back in the days, a 2.3. Those 16v variants where (are) something else!!!

[@b12kult]

@@olik136 You're right, worked at a MB dealership in the early 2000's and can remember driving a customers W123 that had around 500.000km on the clock, no way you could tell that it had done that many km's, no rattles or funny noises to be heard. In those days in a new Renault that was another story!!!!

[@___disso--bey___]

@@b12kult I concur.... wholeheartedly!

[@ianm2719]

Wow, there's a blast from the past. I had several 123 and this 124 Merc from new, stunning car. One or two tips, bonnet - on the hinges there is a leaver you push either side, then bonnet opens up fully. If sunroof butterfly and tube goes, it's a nightmare to change. Yours may have self levelling suspension rear, you can adjust ride height by adjusting link arm. Enjoy

[@BrunoSantos-qy3wu]

I love this Mercedes Benz !! Beautiful Cars 👌👌

[@andremnel9076]

I have had a few Merc's myself and had good service out of them. Good buy

[@jimclarke1108]

Well Jeff , that's the exact Mercedes i wasn't thinking of😁

[@truantray]

This was the last of the era when Mercedes were built for reliability. Since 2000, they are designed to barely last through a lease period. At one point, they built all cars with biodegradable plastic electrical harnesses that all ended up scrapped. In the 60s-90s, Mercedes were cars people bought for reliability and huge mileage, but the advent of leasing and cheap debt ended all that .

[@hugogreen13]

Old Mercs- not new ones- are great. My father used to buy them at 100k miles, and sell them to local taxi drivers at 250k miles, who would then export them to Africa when they were getting to the I million mark. In Albania for a short period of time during the 90’s the only car on the streets and the then no roads were old mercs. To this day a car in Albania is referred to as a Benz

[@russellhammond4373]

Not a problem getting down to the shops in that MB. Congratulations.

[@russellhammond4373]

How about converting it into a DTM replica with manual gearbox. Just a thought!

[@alman6581]

@@russellhammond4373 it's a bit big. But my thinking to

[@Number27]

Engine swap, engine swap, engine swap, engine swap, engine swap, engine swap….😂

[@HomeBuiltByJeff]

Hahahaha

[@vincentgieselbach4009]

Welldone Jeff, next project ia large enough mancave for all your cars😅

[@danielbroughton7949]

I had a E300, most reliable car I ever had. Regret selling that one. Well done Jeff.

[@worldofrandometry6912]

I think that's a great decision but you will care if you get door dings on it as I'm sure you'll have that body looking really good in time.

[@gazzafloss]

Can't see why you'd want to do any mods at all on it Jeff, just keep it nice and use it as it is. You've plenty of "toys" in the toy box to spend money and time on. Mrs Jeff probably likes it like it as is anyhow, just ask her what she thinks.

[@dl8538]

Awesome!! It would be kind of cool to see you apply zero mods to your "most practical" car but bring the operating condition up to 100%...

[@DavidTYork]

Looking forward to seeing this transform into a slammed retro batmobile 😅😅

[@swarmpioneering]

nice number plate....very special people

[@nukenuked5749]

nice ride mate good for cruzing around the highlands

[@DPCTechnology]

Not gonna lie, I needed the full history of Merc from Mrs. Jeff..

[@nikcodling]

Absolutely cannot beat a W124 for solid build quality!

[@oiygfdxssfgg]

That era of Mercedes had class

[@erikleenheer6623]

new carreer as a taxidriver?😄

[@TheCluelessEnthusiast]

I am super excited about this one. I have a w124 which i tried to make into a "hammer"/E60 AMG replica. It has the flared guards and the same 3 piece OZ racing aero II AMG wheels. Awesome choice jeff. The w124s are one of my favourite looking sedans

[@Platypus-sq3nk]

Your w124 looks sensational. I saw your videos of it

[@TheCluelessEnthusiast]

@@Platypus-sq3nk cheers mate 👍

[@hasbeengood]

Good choice. Smart.

[@kpeterrafael]

But how can they verify it that you only drive it 60 days a year?

[@EMC9]

Was wondering this myself, surely you can drive it as much as you want and they have no proof? Unless the insurance provide a black box?

[@FirstLast-bi8xi]

Most likely speed camera /anpr​ data.@@EMC9

[@neal_2002]

You are required to maintain a log book and the police will check them if you are pulled over

[@Number27]

Wow dude… mega miles. But these are built so well. I think you’ll love it as a daily. Absolutely ripe for a swap with an inline six.. Will make it so much nicer to drive and hardly any thirstier. You need to check all the suspension bushes as you won’t be able to tell from just driving it if they need doing.

[@HomeBuiltByJeff]

For the time being, as long as it keeps running I don't need another project. Thankfully the previous owner just did all the bushes :D

[@myturkishlife1777]

I worked with a guy in the 90's who had this car, he had it lowered,a nice set of wheels and a bodykit.. Ok it wasn't fast but it looked cool .. Pretty sure the kit was an amg , not sure but yes a good ol' car.. Kind regards from Turkey 👍

[@IanBarges]

When the apocalypse strikes, the W123 and W124 will be the only things that run. Oh, and Peugeot 504s.

[@markdorizzi6156]

Jeff. This car makes you look 10 years older. Just saying..... On the up side, classy as...

[@drkntetas]

Give her a buff, chuck some fresh brakes, suspension and some AMG wheels at her and enjoy for another 400,000km

[@brunocoutant4204]

Beauteful car...😊 If I could have the same in France, I think I bye it. Bruno from France.

[@fatdabistan1448]

OMG jeff. Australian registration is that bad?? Ya'll need a revolution

Hi Jeff, I agree 100% with your choice,MB it'just a perfect daily one ! Regards from Argentina

[@Ride2Xplore]

Nice choice!!! Its in a very good condition considering its age and mileage! I love it! The more content you make the better i feel !!! Keep it up!

[@TECsta76]

Well decent car.. I’d recommend trying to get in passed by your local Benz dealership! Would be worth the investment..

[@moonface978]

Future project maybe ? With an OM 606 from Diesel pump uk 🇬🇧 🇦🇺

[@atemybuick]

Congratulations! One of the greatest cars of all time in my opinion. I had a W124 wagon at one time. A bit overly complicated but built like a tank. I think they originally did less than 8 seconds 0-60mph which is not bad for something that solid. Enjoy.

[@grumpy9478]

good move - enjoy! every sports car owner gets a Benz - eventually. looking fwd to your attention to it. my C230K shows 365k km... doing fine, even (especially!) for long trips.

[@heiligerm]

W124 and W126 (W means Wagen in German) are the last two Models from Mercedes, which are the best they ever produced. German W124 Taxis Drive to 2 mio Kilometers. I have had a 300CE 24 V Sportline from 1998 to 2001 and i have driven 100.000 km in one year. I think 95% of all parts are still avaiable. The best Engine was the V8 in 4.2 or 5.0 Liters, but also 320 are quick enough. 60 days in one year is not much. Best wishes from Bonn/Germany

[@graemebarker8457]

Congrats on the Benz. As long as it doesn't have the dreaded biodegradable wiring loom insulation, well done. I think the problem started around 1994, and if you have done 400k kms unlikely a problem. I'm just down the road from you in KV with a 22yr old CLK500 benz owned in family from new and going superb. Also a 1973 alfa spider on conditional plates, great system in NSW !. Your on a good thing!!

[@iankelleher5072]

Big reliable armchair on wheels, cruise in comfort. Does it have the trick one arm wiper, it mesmerised me when I saw it in my uncle's 1995 C220.

[@HomeBuiltByJeff]

Yep ;)

[@ideabrickworks9043]

Love your thoughts! Great idea. In Maryland, you can get historic plates for 20 year old cars driven less than 3,000 miles a year. Significant savings on registration and no vehicle or emission checks. Love having an Historic 2003 Porsche 996 C4S!

[@xr8rick]

Cool old car. You could name it Ashley…as in Ashley Maddison. “I need a car, other than my wife’s, other than my wife’s.” Lol

[@pauledginton]

Love this Jeff. The 124 Mercedes is one of the best. Bulletproof build quality. How many 30 year old cars with 400+kms will have paint and interior stay intact?

[@markgerrard1892]

That's 250K miles and $2600 to you colonialists... :P

[@matty74123]

congrats the w124 is one of the best cars ever built, Mercedes don't make cars like that any more

[@Ren200Z_MotoringLife]

Solid choice benz's of that era threw the mid 2000's are just solid basic maitenance and keep on goin , i have 2 nissans well one a datsun and 2 benz's a 99 Ml430 solid support unit i call it great on sand ,snow and all around with 195,5xx miles or 314,626k and a 04 Clk 500 with 204.XXX miles or 328,XXX ks on it and going strong them m113 engines are something alse just solid. Well great find hope you enjoy it

[@stephenfrench4417]

I have the previous model but a 1982 280. the body work is excellent but I have had to do work on suspension mountings and bushes I would advise against lowering the car maybe uprated shocks and bushings but that's as far as I would go if you want some comfort. The engines seem bullet proof and I have a L200 pickup with a Merc 300td engine swap for work that has now done 230k MILES since the swap

[@duarteandrade7880]

What's not to like about a w124? the 2.2may not be the best engine for it, but it's probably a good candidate for an M104 swap... Just some ideas for future content :P

[@MrRedcelica]

yessss sirrrrr you made the right descision, you will fall in love with mercedes, but you should get a m103 w124 300e

[@MarkoVukovic0]

Solid car, looks like it was well maintained and loved. A dollar per km? More like 10c 🤣 I wouldn't even bother lowering it, that will destroy the magic carpet ride quality. Maybe it needs a V8 engine though... 🙊

[@trapjohnson]

Damnit man, Nineties Cars aren't supposed to be OLD YET!!!

[@GroupWar]

Jeff, you really dissapointed us this time with that boring car! :D .. with all magnificent and exciting cars in your channel now you come up with a 220E from '93

[@jawoo0326]

Honestly thought Volvo 240 by that thumbnail pic with the car cover!

[@MrBeeMeR320D]

Damn, you lost a tiny bit of respect here... Really thought you were more a BMW kind of guy :p

[@robertharris7027]

Never been a fan of the W124 (mine is a CLK320 C208) but this seems to be a nice example. 400K km is a number, but I do not think that is a real problem when the car is taken care of. Have fun.

[@paulf10]

Good thinking Jeff! Great solution to add a second (partial) daily. What ever happened to your 911 996?

[@yobgow]

You paid $4k AUD for a 1993 E220 with 400k+ klms on it?! FMD, must be a Sydney thing 😂🤷‍♂

[@johnlancaster-lennox3363]

love it, I have a A124, the conv of the same... a 300CE - 24V, its amazing. The 220 is a little slower but neither are race cars.

[@300DBenz]

Slightly less than 250,000 miles on the Odometer. Not that shocking for a w124. What is shocking is the lack of rust bubbles coming through the paint, if that was an American car, the trunk would have rust above the license plate and the doors would have rust above the rub strips, below the window trim, and along the bottom edge.

[@abdulkareemrainers3142]

Love it, nothing is more comfortable than a merc.. by the shadow in the thumbnail I though this was an old skyline 2.8 gtx🤷🏼‍♂️

[@iandonkin6762]

W124 is an excellent car. E220 possibly a little underpowered compared with the 6-cylinder variants, but it will cruise all day at above the legal limit in Aus, for sure!

[@cramiro71]

It wouldn’t have been my best option as a daily driver, but it’s not my choice. I would have gone for a smaller car, with less km, more mpg, … I am sure there is plenty of options… I live in Madrid, my daily driver is a classic Mini, enough for the city, allows 4 people inside, low consumption and maintenance,…. And then my 911 85 for longer travels. No modern cars, its just my way, i love to drive what I build

[@deuce454]

love it .. haven't seen a W124 with a Barra in it .. perhaps your daily driver really should have a local powerplant in it... for parts availability of course ;-)

[@spinnetti]

Dang.. your reg is expensive... Not a bad new daily.. I just got a 2000 LS400; was too nice and too good a deal to pass up.

[@tompayne4945]

As if we don't get 'mumdane facts with mrs Jeff' while wearing dressing gown and slippers! These weren't exiting at the time, but they were just so beautifully put together they make superb and rewarding long term cars... Please don't ruin it! P.s......the six cylinder diesels can be tuned to the moon....

[@terminalpsychosis8022]

Ok, was totally thinking another VW of some sort. Nope! Hey, them older models are runners though. Lots of parts fore sure very ugly ones, but they work. :-P Daily driver it for sure is. German tank is right. That's a very clean one. Pristine even. LOL that spare tire might even be OK. Nice for a trip to the store in winter, or summer? wait, when are you "allowed" to drive it? ;-)

[@h-j.k.8971]

Naa these cars are extremely reliable workhorses that hardly inspire modifycation and will save you many an hour of work you may have spent on something cheaper. I have an E320T model and it just keeps going.

[@chrisgarside7974]

Lovely example - really enjoyed my W124 300TE and would have one as a daily in a heartbeat

[@chrisgarside7974]

Lovely example - really enjoyed my W124 300TE and would have one as a daily in a heartbeat

[@yeahmateyeah]

imagine a e320 with the german 2jz (the m104) the mr jeff straps a turbo on it and pumps out 500hp :)

[@anthonymasters3885]

Bloody hell Jeff, it may be practical, but that is definitely one bland purchase. You know it’s true!

[@dariusznowak801]

400kkm for a w124 is nothing! my dad had a 300 turbo diesel back when I was a teenager (I'm 40 rn) what a car! I love the interiors of mercs of that era, one might say boring but... after a few rides you start to use all the controls and buttons without looking, everything is sort of where it should to be. I had a w140 s-class for about 10 years and it was the same deal. I'm looking forward for some videos of this beauty!

[@davidklauer3422]

Why am I’m still up at 3:00 am on a weekday watt Jeff! Something wrong there

[@richardhintonracing]

Cheaper tax and insurance than in UK. Our historic taxation class vehicle have to be in excess of 40 years old on Jan 1st .I would have thought a 30 yr old Transit or similar small van might have been useful.

[@Jonathan_Doe_]

So once you own 6 30+ year old cars, it’s an $808 saving per year vs. Taxing/insuring 1 new one… Sounds like a plan.

[@billblack658]

So Harry, The Roxster and The Frankenhauler are sharing the garage with The Maturecedes

[@monkeybarmonkeyman]

Question is, can you resist the temptations that will soon be coming your way regarding 'performance' ? 🙂

[@johngibson3837]

Hey up mate nice score especially with the once a week Rego hopefully youse will mend the soundtrack (V8)

[@MBr171]

Ls swap

[@tradepaints3744]

Once the Alferrari is done, I feel like this might become the Homebuilt Hammer...

[@robinfoster7597]

How do you allocate "driving days" on this scheme? It's a nice run-about, you did alright. :)

[@cjtprint]

Classic candidate for a V8! Mercedes V8's, of the era, produce bullet proof performance and are relatively cheap to pick up. Look for a complete wreck (W126) 420/500SE. The M117 V8 Petrol 8 Cylinder 117.965 22 is the pick. Hi compression, Japanese variant. W124 is one of the best chassis, Mercedes ever produced. 😉 C.T.

[@nandi123]

Very nice find. I'll be interested to see what you do with it. Unfortunately, I had to get pretty damn old before I realized the value of carefully maintaining equipment.

[@bengtjakobsson5177]

If you're just going to keep it as a spare daily, keep the ridehight as it is and enjoy the comfort. Unless you're planning to do a complete driveline swap, this will never become a sportcar so why pretend.

[@ronintres6757]

Nice purchase from the time when Mercedes built indestructible cars, have fun and safe kilometers 🍀

[@brettstuart6778]

Your crazy it's a piece of junk but cool as, my daughter had one, lowered a bit with newer merc style wheels, it looked the business 🎉she loved it. Was a good solid car too.

[@PeachyTT120]

It would interesting to see how a 31 year old Holden stacks up against it! 😂