I am looking at a 1996 S420. Excellent condition, good maintenance history, but with 100,000 on the clock. Any suggestions? Common problems? I have a 1998 SL500 and love it. Very reliable and fun to drive. Hoping for the same in a W140.
taylorb
A 98 129 is a great car, and so is the 140, they share many components and idea's.
The 140 is sightly heavier than the 129 and the suspension wish bones can be shot,, you need to get the car on a lift and crow bar the inner bushes, while under there check all ball joints and roll bar components.
Check the vacuum locking and check that all the switches all work including the air con, also the seats if fitted.
Check the brake and fuel pipes for rust.
Over here we say allow a couple of £1000 to get the car perfect.
The drive will convince you, the 129 drives very well, but the 140 even better, the cornering is as good, but you do it all in near total silence.
I have had some super help on here, all a very nice bunch as there are not that many in the UK.
Good luck with it.
The 140 is sightly heavier than the 129 and the suspension wish bones can be shot,, you need to get the car on a lift and crow bar the inner bushes, while under there check all ball joints and roll bar components.
Check the vacuum locking and check that all the switches all work including the air con, also the seats if fitted.
Check the brake and fuel pipes for rust.
Over here we say allow a couple of £1000 to get the car perfect.
The drive will convince you, the 129 drives very well, but the 140 even better, the cornering is as good, but you do it all in near total silence.
I have had some super help on here, all a very nice bunch as there are not that many in the UK.
Good luck with it.
The Good , the Bad, and the Ugly
The good are all well known, solid quiet ride, sturdy, safe, plus all the emotional factors from pride to awe.
One specific good to the 96 model is the eco friendly wiring system was replaced and degradation is no longer an issue.
The bad is the transmission is more prone to problems than earlier versions/years. The AC evap is prone to leakage and requires a dash dismantle to replace putting the price in the $2000 range. The rest is what you would expect from a 15 year old vehicle. Rubber degrades, parts wear out. It happens. Another bad is the sound system electronics are tough to upgrade to bluetooth or other modern audio functionality.
The ugly is the cost of repairs when something does go wrong if you don't want to do it yourself.
Good luck. Like another reader said, plan on spending a couple thousand to keep it going for five more years and look at total cost of ownership and I think you will see it is still less expensive than almost any mid sized sedan.
The good are all well known, solid quiet ride, sturdy, safe, plus all the emotional factors from pride to awe.
One specific good to the 96 model is the eco friendly wiring system was replaced and degradation is no longer an issue.
The bad is the transmission is more prone to problems than earlier versions/years. The AC evap is prone to leakage and requires a dash dismantle to replace putting the price in the $2000 range. The rest is what you would expect from a 15 year old vehicle. Rubber degrades, parts wear out. It happens. Another bad is the sound system electronics are tough to upgrade to bluetooth or other modern audio functionality.
The ugly is the cost of repairs when something does go wrong if you don't want to do it yourself.
Good luck. Like another reader said, plan on spending a couple thousand to keep it going for five more years and look at total cost of ownership and I think you will see it is still less expensive than almost any mid sized sedan.
figure a newer car is 4000-6000 a year in payments. in two years you can rebuild a majority of the cars age items and still be ahead and in a great car.
i keep coming across issues with mine but nothing serious. once the bmw is on the road full time i can park my S420 in the garage and start doing work to it without stress of not having a car at my disposal to drive. i suspect i have a vac leak. i think i need motor mounts, a pitman arm, new damper shock, change the brakes and rotors and a few other small stupid things like a new window reg, 2 door lock actuators, inspect the door pump and diagnose leaks and bad switches and take it apart and set the time out...etc...change out 2 leaks oil pan and crank pulley (crank pulley goes to the shop)
overall, another 2000 -2500 it should be running and driving at its prime. i may decide to replace the shocks too since im sure they are originals and with no SLS its pretty cheap for those parts compared to that system.
overall, i like mine, if not love it...with some work, ill be IN LOVE with it and adore it.
i keep coming across issues with mine but nothing serious. once the bmw is on the road full time i can park my S420 in the garage and start doing work to it without stress of not having a car at my disposal to drive. i suspect i have a vac leak. i think i need motor mounts, a pitman arm, new damper shock, change the brakes and rotors and a few other small stupid things like a new window reg, 2 door lock actuators, inspect the door pump and diagnose leaks and bad switches and take it apart and set the time out...etc...change out 2 leaks oil pan and crank pulley (crank pulley goes to the shop)
overall, another 2000 -2500 it should be running and driving at its prime. i may decide to replace the shocks too since im sure they are originals and with no SLS its pretty cheap for those parts compared to that system.
overall, i like mine, if not love it...with some work, ill be IN LOVE with it and adore it.
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