Baby Benz, Mercedes 190E.
Discussion
Yet another car to my name. This one works though!
I'd been without a roadworthy 190E for a good few months. Having sold a really very nice low mileage '88, due to the fact of putting too many miles on such a low mileage example. I needed another! I have a '90 190E 2.6 manual project car (that some may recognise from another readers' cars thread), that's been somewhat put on the back burner after many months of inactivity, no enthusiasm, and lack of time I seem to be able to dedicate on it, probably won't see the road for a while.
The daily 320d is perfectly acceptable as a sheddy runabout and dog carrier, but I didn't realise just how much I could miss driving one of the superb little cars.
I scrutinise ebay listings far too much, it's rather unhealthy, especially for ones bank balance, however I'd seen this car as it had just been listed, I'd forgotten about it really, then I saw this with less than an hour to go. I placed a cheeky £1000 with not much hope of securing, it was mine for £870! Probably should have viewed but Bristol is a good few miles from Derbyshire; after all I've had ten or so, nothing really surprises me anymore.
A surprisingly cheap first class train ticket got me down to Temple Meads, fortunately the previous owner picked me up from the station in the car as an added bonus. I was warned the car had been idle for six months, with heeded advice a gentle(ish) drive was made back home, and without fault! Testament to their reliability I suppose.
Note the two resting 190's in the background. I hope I'll not do the same to this one!
It's most certainly a 30 footer, as nice as the Anthracite is, it's various shades with some less than desirable 'touch-ups'. Numerous dents and scrapes, still what can one expect for this kind of money.
Driving impressions are good, obviously it's no spring chicken, even at 140k, it still quiet and refined. It has just enough power to get out of it's own way. Most noticeable issues are the(common) whining diff, warped front discs, inoperative heater and sunroof. Bonus points go to the nearly new Michelin tyres, battery and cat back stainless steel exhaust. Maybe had he mentioned this on the ebay listing he'd had achieved more!
Mercedes were exceedingly tight when it came to equipment, so it's a nice to have a well specced car, this one is no exception. Somebody had been very exuberant with the option selection. Most notably; which actually had been one reason why I'd more of an interest in this car than I normally would, is option code 243, sports seats. Usually reserved for 'Cosworth' 190E's, I've never seen a run of the mill 190E with such an extravagant, and dare I say it unnecessary option. They are though, so much nicer than the standard offerings, better still is the additional electric driver's seat only. I fear of the cost for this back in 88!
I'm hoping Mr R129sl can shed some light on this?!
Highlight of the purchase though, goes to the Dire Straits Communique cassette in the Fischer holder! Speakers are crap mind!
My focus will be sorting out the mechanical gremlins, fortunately I've procured numerous bits from other cars, and wondrously cheap branded parts from Amazon to sort most of this out for very little outlay, the body can wait. I may have to treat it to a set of 15-hole alloys I've got on the shelf.
I'd been without a roadworthy 190E for a good few months. Having sold a really very nice low mileage '88, due to the fact of putting too many miles on such a low mileage example. I needed another! I have a '90 190E 2.6 manual project car (that some may recognise from another readers' cars thread), that's been somewhat put on the back burner after many months of inactivity, no enthusiasm, and lack of time I seem to be able to dedicate on it, probably won't see the road for a while.
The daily 320d is perfectly acceptable as a sheddy runabout and dog carrier, but I didn't realise just how much I could miss driving one of the superb little cars.
I scrutinise ebay listings far too much, it's rather unhealthy, especially for ones bank balance, however I'd seen this car as it had just been listed, I'd forgotten about it really, then I saw this with less than an hour to go. I placed a cheeky £1000 with not much hope of securing, it was mine for £870! Probably should have viewed but Bristol is a good few miles from Derbyshire; after all I've had ten or so, nothing really surprises me anymore.
A surprisingly cheap first class train ticket got me down to Temple Meads, fortunately the previous owner picked me up from the station in the car as an added bonus. I was warned the car had been idle for six months, with heeded advice a gentle(ish) drive was made back home, and without fault! Testament to their reliability I suppose.
Note the two resting 190's in the background. I hope I'll not do the same to this one!
It's most certainly a 30 footer, as nice as the Anthracite is, it's various shades with some less than desirable 'touch-ups'. Numerous dents and scrapes, still what can one expect for this kind of money.
Driving impressions are good, obviously it's no spring chicken, even at 140k, it still quiet and refined. It has just enough power to get out of it's own way. Most noticeable issues are the(common) whining diff, warped front discs, inoperative heater and sunroof. Bonus points go to the nearly new Michelin tyres, battery and cat back stainless steel exhaust. Maybe had he mentioned this on the ebay listing he'd had achieved more!
Mercedes were exceedingly tight when it came to equipment, so it's a nice to have a well specced car, this one is no exception. Somebody had been very exuberant with the option selection. Most notably; which actually had been one reason why I'd more of an interest in this car than I normally would, is option code 243, sports seats. Usually reserved for 'Cosworth' 190E's, I've never seen a run of the mill 190E with such an extravagant, and dare I say it unnecessary option. They are though, so much nicer than the standard offerings, better still is the additional electric driver's seat only. I fear of the cost for this back in 88!
I'm hoping Mr R129sl can shed some light on this?!
Highlight of the purchase though, goes to the Dire Straits Communique cassette in the Fischer holder! Speakers are crap mind!
My focus will be sorting out the mechanical gremlins, fortunately I've procured numerous bits from other cars, and wondrously cheap branded parts from Amazon to sort most of this out for very little outlay, the body can wait. I may have to treat it to a set of 15-hole alloys I've got on the shelf.
0a said:
That looks excellent, and a snip at that price. Wow on the seats! How do you find the gearbox?
Thanks, I'm rather enamoured with it so far. Really can't complain at the price, there are still some cheap 190E's about, however I'm very selective with what I buy and couldn't be happier. The seats really are fantastic. As strange as this sounds I grin ear to ear every time I sit in it, the interior smell is absolutely incredible, it must be the materials they used back then. It certainly takes me back to when my father had one many years ago. His only had poverty standard cloth seats.
I'm rather used to the pedestrian nature of the auto box, this one is particularly slow though. I've got a good selection of bits on order from my local dealer, Mertrux. It'll get a new gearbox filter oil and seal and I hope it'll quicker it up a little. I wouldn't want a manual 4 cyl 190E, however I sought out my 2.6 specifically with a manual box.
That looks like a bargain OP, and those seats are just fantastic (a mate of mine briefly had a 190e Cosworth with full leather).
I bought a manual 190e back in 1997 and really liked it, but got tempted by a C280 Sport - other than being slower, the 190e was a better car in every way.
I bought a manual 190e back in 1997 and really liked it, but got tempted by a C280 Sport - other than being slower, the 190e was a better car in every way.
I’ve never seen those seats before. Sports Seats Leather/Cloth, £1,264 in October 1988. All leather sports seats were £2,694. You could buy a new 2CV for that in ‘88. ‘Lecky driver’s seat was another £423.40.
It’s a nice car. Great colour, anthracite. It would surely benefit from a 3.0 transplant? The manual box would make it quite a racer.
It’s a nice car. Great colour, anthracite. It would surely benefit from a 3.0 transplant? The manual box would make it quite a racer.
Edited by r129sl on Tuesday 4th December 22:33
Mr Tidy said:
That looks like a bargain OP, and those seats are just fantastic (a mate of mine briefly had a 190e Cosworth with full leather).
I bought a manual 190e back in 1997 and really liked it, but got tempted by a C280 Sport - other than being slower, the 190e was a better car in every way.
The 202 was a step down from the 201 for sure, I would've guessed Chrysler's influence and penny pinching made it so, but the merger was well after the 202 was conceived. I bought a manual 190e back in 1997 and really liked it, but got tempted by a C280 Sport - other than being slower, the 190e was a better car in every way.
The 190 is not a quick car, and as much as I hate to admit it, my 6 cylinder 2.6 is all noise and no action. I've learned to take my time and not over stress the gearbox. I appreciate the auto box in this though, with the amount of stop start traffic we have now, it's a god send.
r129sl said:
I’ve never seen those seats before. Sports Seats Leather/Cloth, £1,264 in October 1988. All leather sports seats were £2,694. You could buy a new 2CV for that in ‘88. ‘Lecky driver’s seat was another £423.40.
It’s a nice car. Great colour, anthracite. It would surely benefit from a 3.0 transplant? The manual box would make it quite a racer.
Thank you so much, I knew you'd have the answer. I must try and find the optional extras literature to buy.It’s a nice car. Great colour, anthracite. It would surely benefit from a 3.0 transplant? The manual box would make it quite a racer.
Edited by r129sl on Tuesday 4th December 22:33
I too had never seen these style of seats, of course common place in a 2.3/2.5-16, but not these. I thought they'd been done by a third party, but the datacard confirms the car left the factory with them. Quite amazing really. It's a great spec for one of these.
My white 2.6 will have a 3.0 one day, I'd like it on the road as a 2.6 for a bit though tbh. Because of this car's spec, I'll keep it standard, save some OEM wheels.
BTW, I have a couple of Genuine Mercedes air filters for the carb 190, any good to you?
W00DY said:
Those seats are fabulous!
I do love a nice early W201 and I would have most likely bought that had I seen it. I reckon some 15 holes would suit the more sporting tone of the interior.
They really are! It was a punt bought on a whim, I really couldn't have done much better for sub 1k, I'm sure the seats are worth for that alone!I do love a nice early W201 and I would have most likely bought that had I seen it. I reckon some 15 holes would suit the more sporting tone of the interior.
15 holes are a certainty, need to send a set I have off for a refurb.
SloppyClock said:
Didnt get me any though.
Nothing has changed! I get the occasional admiring glance, bout it, 99% of the time an old fella. It flies under the radar, maybe it looks to new to be different?Just shy of £200 for this procurement. Not too bad really I suppose, it's discounted as much as Mertrux allow. It is rather fantastic entering a Mercedes dealer and purchasing parts for a 30 year old vehicle. Whilst I still can, I will.
Nice to see a home grown product!
Unfortunately Mercedes' system insists my car has air-conditioning, the top radiator hose is not correct for my car, should have checked before I left the dealer. Even if it's the wrong part, Mercedes' pricing, can be, exceptionally reasonable at just £9. The fuel filter is quite expensive though, £30 is a little steep for such a consumable item.
Nice to see a home grown product!
Unfortunately Mercedes' system insists my car has air-conditioning, the top radiator hose is not correct for my car, should have checked before I left the dealer. Even if it's the wrong part, Mercedes' pricing, can be, exceptionally reasonable at just £9. The fuel filter is quite expensive though, £30 is a little steep for such a consumable item.
Great stuff - there's a healthy ongoing admiration for the 190 and this looks like a great buy. Incredible that you can still get all the bits from Mercedes themselves. Whenever I take the Alfa 164 near an Alfa dealership no one knows what it is.
I also sought ought a manual one for my first real commute after university - the 1.8 hummed along serenely and it always responded to proactive maintenance. Amazing car, still miss it.
Happy motoring.
I also sought ought a manual one for my first real commute after university - the 1.8 hummed along serenely and it always responded to proactive maintenance. Amazing car, still miss it.
Happy motoring.
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