Faults:

Had to have the driver's seat reconditioned.

Replaced the radiator.

Had the muffler welded back together.

General Comments:

I bought this car in 2008 when fuel prices went to over $4.00 per gallon.

This car is amazingly simple. The 240d is notoriously slow, but when coupled with the 4 speed manual, this is a really fun car to drive. Fuel mileage varies from 23-30 mpg depending on how the car is driven.

The car has been almost entirely trouble free in the time I've owned it. Not bad for a car pushing 30 years old! Parts are still very easy to find, and I use an independent diesel mechanic for service.

With the super low cost of maintenance, insurance, and the fact that the 240 is relatively fuel efficient, this is a super inexpensive car to own, and a pleasure to drive.

Faults:

Had to replace the A/C compressor, and the alternator.

General Comments:

This had to be the very best model Mercedes ever made.

It gets very good fuel mileage; over 28 miles per gallon.

The car is made of solid steel, and runs great.

Many W123 cars have over 500,000 miles on them.

Faults:

So far nothing mechanically. I've only had it 2 weeks so far.

Driver seat sags a bit. Needs restuffing.

Wood trim inside is cracked a bit due to old age.

Gas gauge jumps around a lot. I'm told it may need a new fuel sending unit, but really doesn't bother me.

RPM gauge sticks sometimes.

Vacuum locks stopped working, even though previous owner had all vacuum lines replaced.

Automatic tranny makes a bit of a rough "clunk" sound and feel when downshifting into first. The car still has the original tranny.

Runs a little rough i, e, jerks when first started and cold out. Also blows quite a bit of white smoke when cold. Im a little embarressed considering you could probably smell the smoke a couple houses down. This also resolves after warm up. Kind of wondering if that's normal or not?

General Comments:

Great gas mileage so far.

Starts great even in teens and twenties weather.

Paint is nearly perfect. It has been repainted in the past.

Previous owner put close to 8 grand into the car replacing tons of parts.

A/C works good... for now.

Parts are cheap.

I've put high mileage 10W-40 oil and filter in, which is recommended for this car in the owners manual. It can also use 10W-50 or 15W-40 among others, however the 10W-40 is the best all-around oil for all temperatures. I also added some Marvels Mystery oil to the crankcase and fuel.

Changes air filter.

Changed spin-on and in-line fuel filters.

Topped off the coolant.

Changed a couple of bulbs, and ordered a new bulb socket.

By the way, partstrain.com carries almost every part for this car, and have good prices... highly recommended.

I absolutely love the look of this car. It rides superbly and has great fit and finish. This car feels like your driving a tank. Definitely heavy and safe.

I know these cars are probably the most reliable cars ever built, and certainly I think I'll have this one a long time.

Faults:

I bought this car for my father 10 years ago from the first owner (kind of like a company car) who took good care at the dealer.

The first thing we had to deal with was the hard cold/hot starting. After a few weeks of testing, we tried with 4 new injectors (around $20 each), and the problem was solved. As a matter of fact, even the torque at the low end improved. No problems since.

Change the synchros of the manual gearbox 6 years ago by an specialist (around $300), it has been working flawless.

In those ten years, we had to change 2 fuel pumps (around $100 each), A/C tensioner pulley once ($20) and belts, lower suspension and steering ball joints around ($200 for all), radiator ($200), and of course the usual tune-up maintenance (filters, spark plugs, cap distributor once, brakes) and that´s it.

The engine pulls strong, does not smoke, uses around 1 quart of oil every 2000 kms. Last year we changed the valve seals (around $20 for parts) to reduce the oil consumption. It improved somehow.

A couple of years ago I bought (in the USA) some square feet of the original Sienna color MB TEX vinyl (yes, it is available in USA, it had printed on the back "made in Germany") and a carpeter rebuild the whole driver seat: it looks like new, exact color.

It is starting to rust now under the floor and on the rear wheel arches.

General Comments:

This Mercedes has been running on Costa Rica´s crappy roads (full of potholes and bumps) for almost 28 years and I am amazed how solid this car feels and looks. All panels are aligned as the day it left the factory, the interior is almost flawless: just the carpets looks a bit used, the dash and doors panels look like new.

The only issue is regarding the awkward driving position: all pedals feels too far away, but the steering wheel way to close, and both front seats to low. This car was probably designed for taller people...

The engine in quite adequate for this chassis, and the fuel consumption is reasonable, even for today standards.

Overall, this is a fantastic car that gave Mercedes its reputation, now diminished by quality issues with the new models.