The W123-series like the 200D was the standard Mercedes, they were durable and comfortable as you pointed out, but they were also elegant and dignified. The 200D in particular though, was a car of its times. If you lived in a country where the roads were pretty much level and not hilly, and traffic was moderate, it held its own. Those were the days when the average motorist drove cars which had 60-70 bhp, and accelerated to 100 km/h in 14-16 seconds. The 200D though would struggle uphills, as I've seen a few times during my childhood. I saw one in a mountainous area, pretty new at the time, and the occupants had to get out of the car. But, these were the quintessential Mercedeses.