Bob Rentfro wrote:
So...let's say I was going to buy an SL of some sort for The Queen of All Time,
Space, and Dimension.
Have any proven to be bulletproof ala what I have come to expect from the MBs (read "diesels") I've had throughout the years?
Best bang for the buck for a daily driver would probably be a double
timing chain 380. '84 and '85 had the double row chain from the
factory; don't even consider an earlier model that hasn't been
converted. By now all the single chain cars have likely either been
converted or blown up, unless you find a very low mileage example.
Double row chains still need to be replaced every, I think, 100k miles.
They were pretty slow (US versions had 155 hp), which keeps the price
down, but have Type III climate control, reliable CIS fuel injection,
and are full of that old-school Mercedes build- and engineering quality.
Your wife won't know it is the slowest and often considered least
desirable of the 107s if you don't tell her.
Make sure you have any prospects professionally inspected; that aluminum
V8 is NOT inexpensive to fix. Everything else on or wrong with the car
should come as no surprise to anyone with 123 experience.
Tom
