[Guest (MBNZ)]

My father had a 190E till about a year ago and I loved it! I currently have a leased car and am over on my miles. I thought of a 190E as a daily driver. I have no Mercedes experiance other than driving them and don't know what to look for. Please help. Thanks in advance.

 

[Guest (MBNZ)]

I'd go w/ a 190D personally, if you're trying to go with economical long life with the car. The 190D 2.5 (turbo or non, doesn't matter) is probably the best. I say this having the 2.2. The 2.5s are higher perfomance and there isn't a compromise w/ economy.<br> <br> Like any car out there, parts go bad, but mercedes parts seem to outlive american counterparts. Air conditioning is one of the biggies here, american AC is better... supposedly. My AC blows colder than a lot of new cars out there...<br> <br> Just a general percaution... get as much detail of the car as you can. ALL service records are a very good thing to have. The mileage compared to the condition of the car is a good indicator on how well it's been treated. If it's only got 125K but burns oil and idles rough... well you know the engine is more like a 500K mile engine at that point. There's so much to look out for that you're not going to get a perfect car no matter who had it or what they did to it. Just be as thurough as possible with inspection and getting info from the owner.

 

[Guest (MBNZ)]

I heard of something called a 'flex disc' do those wear out?

 

[Guest (MBNZ)]

'If it's only got 125K but burns oil and idles rough... well you know the engine is more like a 500K mile engine at that point.'<br> <br> <br> That's not true. IF it burns excess oil, chances are it needs new valve stem seals...$300-500 job, possible new valve guides. If it idles rough, new motor mounts are in need. <br> <br> I'd stay away form the 2.3's b/c the engines are notorius for problems. The diesels are wonderful and the 2.6's are great. Make sure the AC works as that is probably the biggest problem with 190e's. Also make sure it was serviced properly and you get a mechanic to check it out before you buy. Good luck.<br> <br> dan

 

[Guest (MBNZ)]

Flex discs do wear out. Not a major problem and not too expensive to fix.<br> <br> <br> <br> dan

 

[Guest (MBNZ)]

Re: Buying 1st 190E: What to I look for

1. Like all used M-Bs -- buy the best one you can afford. You can pay now or pay later for the deferred maintenance plus have the headaches of dealing with it.<br> <br> 2. The '93s or '92s are the safest to buy -- M-B had pretty much worked the kinks out and the cars are much more reliable (and, as they're newer, it's easier to find a lower mileage model).<br> <br> 3. The only exception would be the 2.3-16V, which have a Cosworth head, special sports seats and are fun to drive tho more expensive to maintain.<br> <br> 4. IMO, the car to look for is a '93 Limited Edition, which has all the options including the Sportline package in the 2.6 model. Only 700 were made. Next best would be a '92 or '93 Sportline with a manual transmission (rare, but fun). See: http://www.benzsport.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=10199&highlight=limited+edition

 

[Guest (MBNZ)]

Re: Buying 1st 190E: What to I look for

Well if they engine needs work you don't know what else is wrong with it! If the engine's been neglected like that, what's the rest of the car like? The most important part of the car is the engine, well kinda.