The best part is: this isn't even by far the slowest model. Here in Europe they also sold the 200D with a whopping total of 54hp (later on 59hp). The acceleration with that engine is measured with a calendar instead of a stopwatch.
I have driven the W124 200D, and I was impressed. Although it was as slow as a car gets, it also got you where you were going with ease, in comfort, and in a timely fashion.
If you have a manual, to push start it.... after you’ve made diesel in your fancy apocalypse dream chamber... and every road is clear... and no one has guns to shoot at you wanting your car....
@@rscervin9950 he’s not wrong, i can’t explain how that transmission works, it just does, the things completely controlled by vacuum lines and a single steel-cable. I’ve got a 300d myself and if you fiddle with the lines and tensions you can get the thing to take off like a bat out of hell
Sensi Bleb it looks half-pulled. That's why you can see that black tab on the left half of the grill (pull tab to fully open). Source: I owned a W123 Wagon for 4 years.
In 1999 I bought a 1987 300SDL. Only had 60,000 original miles. Paid $12,000, and was happy to do it. Letting that car go was the biggest mistake of my life. 12 years later the buyer STILL emails me to laugh at me once in a while.
I'm looking at a 80's 240D with a new engine in mint condition. If there's one car I know I can buy cheap and have for the rest of my life it's this one. Yeah it'll take a few years to memorize how to fix small quirks and there's forums for everything. I only use air conditioning a few weeks out of the year where I'm at. Also it'll be a 5 mile commute to work before rush hour. Life is good.
we've had 3 of them, theyre absolutely bombproof and both did 650k miles each! Until they started falling apart My dads 1983 240D mercedes still runs and he put a 300D rear end in it, the thing gets 36Mpg! It still absolutely runs fine, after the Texas snow that buried everything, desipite that sheer cold it still started! And the A/C according to my dad, turning it off gave you 1HP more, my dad worked on mercedes all his life and they never quit running when he drove them!
@@JoeGomez1 Im going to buy one w123 240D as my first car. Mint condition, one very old gentleman as single owner. 620.000 kilometers, Jesus. If well maintained, can get to a million. Best part? 1500€
@@BasedMan if well kept it makes 3.000.000 km´s and the price till 2017 was around that today it increased a lot but that´s the price of a well kept w1124 and a 96 w210( E-class)or the W202 (C-class )all around 1.500€ if in good condition ,allthough today the much older is the car the expensier it gets the ,90´s ones still around that price
As someone who was born in Kyiv, roughly 70 miles from Chornobyl, 3 years before the disaster and was growing up with many W123s around, I ASSURE YOU, the Sarcophagus reactor confinement facility held up NOWHERE NEAR as well as the W123s! This is NOT a joke. Also the W123 has waaaay better build quality, smaller panel gaps and so forth.
Haha - UA is indeed the last time I rode in a W123. In summer 2007, attending a wedding in Lviv. White four door, late 70s. Before the first facelift. Pretty epic if one still remembers 12 yrs later...
+Mrdrcaptaintroy Im 21, I drive an E-squirty, I have a wooden pallet full of contraceptives. That's what distinguishes us e30 guys from you Merc fellas.
Nice car! I drive a $500 '83 300SD with half a million on the clock and still running fine. She's rough around the edges but still shines up nicely. Best $500 car ever!
My 1983 300D has 443,000 miles and runs great. Freon leaks out after 3-4 months, cruise control, central locking and attend motor don't work but other than that it's amazing. Best car I've ever had.
My dad had an '83 300SD with 380,000+ (the odometer broke)! I miss that car - the look, the sound, the interior... I'm definitely buying one once I'm a property owner and can keep two cars.
@@XxmatixX6videosdiariosdenadav when younger my friends and i had a litle house that we used a ford granada seats and a w115 seats also (the 74 had the same of the 300D)but the C123 (280C) was a really nice car bought one new latere bought the 500SEC ,i only bought a diesel coming from the U.S. in the 90´s a 300CD
I once got to drive in a 70s 300S, 180hp 3liter inline 6, really pulled well, back seat had springs like beds used to have. So comfortable! And my god did it stop, it had ventilated discs!
was far ahead from all cars in the world ,one used to say that if one wants to see what cars will have in 20 years look to a SE. Today almost as automatic pilot , almost because if you fall a sleep it stops if it finds a roundabout if not will continue using satelitte navegation and all sensors for all it can see ,but not now 12 years ago or near that
but i had a w114 with the back seat not fixed ,one could go at night to a florest and take the seat of the car and watch the stars ,some nights even venus, uranus
+banpeinet It's a bit of a rat's nest. Check out the bow on the body line and the rust on the front driver's side panel and rockers. There's the shitstorm of electrical-mechanical issues, yeah, more like 5 times 6 times if you're lucky. Also, most people now buy these for the engine. Everyone found one that's mint but the engine is shot, so they buy another that looks like it was raced in on a dirt track, swap it and get something halfway decent. Either way, if the kid has any sense he would get in touch with a machinist and remake all the parts from scratch. Half way cheaper than buying them.
VRJosh my dad studied computer stuff in the 80s. hes the computer expert and tech savvy in the house. And I, at my age, am very bad with computers. so yeah. my dad in his 50s knows more about web design and what not than me who should be the one to know that kind of stuff like.
Love the color. Someone swapped later fog lights to this one. That year the fog lights were clear. The '78 also had the "evil servo" in the Chrysler-designed automated climate control. Manual control from a 240D is much better, as is the later ACCII from about 1980 on. I have an '83 300D (turbodiesel) and I used to have a '77 240D. I swapped the 240D manual transmission into the 300D for the best combination Mercedes never made. My 300D is up to 344,000 miles and still going, just not going real fast. Top speed is about 110, and it likes to cruise about 85, but you're still not going to win any races.
+Robert S He he, we got the 4-speed manual as standard in the UK, 5-speed or the infamous clunk-o-matic as extra-cost options. Never seen a 300D with the 4-speed manual though. Equally though, we never got the turbodiesel engine as the turbo goes where the steering column needs to be for right-hand drive. 344,000 miles, not even run-in yet, a friend of mine has an '86 300 TD (T for turnier or estate/station wagon in German, not for turbo) first of the W124s, it was originally his dads company car and it's been in his family all its life, now just over 850,000 miles. He had it restored by a Mercedes specialist in 2014 as it was looking a bit sad (no rust but the paint was flat and it had picked up various bits of damage in its life as it was always, and still is a working car not a show queen) when the engine guy pulled the engine down (never been apart in its life) they could still see the factory honing marks in the bores. The engine guy did say that if it ran ok just leave the engine, they really are that strong if looked after properly, but my friend wanted to do a proper job as he intends passing the car on to his kids and he wanted to finally sort the persistent slight oil weep from the head/block joint area that the car had had since it was about 6 years old. That's got the 5-speed manual box in it...
American Luxury cars back in 1978 all had standard air conditioner and it was a lot better than the mercedes one. That automatic climate control that mercedes used until 1980 was a licenced version of chrysler's autotemp, and it was a US-market only option. (mercedes owner here). Cadillac had automatic air conditioner since 1964 and lincoln since 1965.
I just got a 240d 4 speed manual with 180k miles and has some rust but this is my absolute dream car when I was in middle and high school of 2013. Now I'm 25 and finally got my dream car I'm happy with this
Mercedes Benz cars will always be Nostalgic to me Because as a kid I was around so many of them growing up I could nt help but love them my favorite is the w126 and 140 124 and the r107 and of course the 123
My mother used to have a 1981 240D. It was the definition of slow. 0-60 took the better part of an afternoon and you're right. That car liked 50. It didn't really like much more. You could coax it to 60 but it sounded like it was being forced. But man, it really was well made, incredibly comfortable, wonderful to drive and extremely reliable. And loud. The 4 cylinder diesel sounded like rocks in a blender, especially cold. It had independent temperature controls for the driver and passenger and the whole design just made sense. I miss it.
Used to have an 82 240d with a 4 speed. What made that car so great was that everything was made to be taken apart and worked on. the fuel filter was under the hood right there to be replaced when needed. The radiator came out in a snap. and everything just worked. the AC just needed to be recharged, and it worked. It stopped on a dime, shifted nice, started every single morning, night, midday, noon, or whenever. Now that I think of it, I really miss the smell of diesel additive that was kept in the door that no matter what you did, no matter how many bottles you bought, they always leaked. I miss that car, and look forward to my next.
Woke up and scrolled thru my TH-cam subscriptions. Going past Jay Leno, Smoking tire, Motortrend and the rest. I see RCR's upload and I know exactly what video to watch while I take my morning dump. Thanks Mr.Regular and the Roman.
Yay! I grew up in a w123, followed by 124s and now we have an 89 wagon and a 97 sedan. Diesel Benzes are such a huge part of my childhood, it brings me so much joy for them to be cool again.
I have the w123 tdt (wagon) 1981, and I'm so glad found it. picked it up pretty cheap 2k and 2 small rust spots! I drive it 50+ miles a day for work, great fuel economy and never left me stranded. Thank God! True reliable car!!
+Mladen Milić I have a 1992 Mercedes 190E and it's my first car. I love it. It may suck at acceleration and speeding, but damn does it keep running. I knew nothing about cars before I got it, but now I know how to work on my own car. Pre-2000's cars: You can work on em easily. Especially if they're German.
This was my first car, though silver with blue leather interior. I had it for a few halcyon months, my summer leading into senior year of high school, before it was rear-ended by a Ford Explorer going 50mph, crushing the rear end on the first Friday of the year. Bastard had a new radiator and less than 100k miles on it. I'd still be driving it today if it hadn't been totaled. The first time I watched this video, every critique and observation was so accurate and flooded me with such memories, I almost cried. So thanks.
Last time I watched this video, I was looking for a 300CD. Messaged the owner of this exact car and he wouldn't budge, so I bought my own. This video is too relateable to not crack up at it now.
Nothing makes my Monday morning bearable quite like RCR. Great Review. I had an 1989 W126 300SE with the gas inline 6. Great Car, comfortable, adequate power. I miss her sometimes.
+Brian Williams W was universal, but now stands for sedan. Later on they changed the codes: C - coupe, T - estate, A - convertible, R - roadster. Most people still refer to W for all types, though.
The masses don't want simplistic engineering, the praise is given to cars with no need to check tyre pressures or ever look under the hood, It's saved for cars with ipod connectivity, moody interior lighting and a car that will "just work" every time you get into it. Not to mention the waves of driver assist tech that have given new drivers such a serious aversion from the reality and dangers of driving that they would probably kill themselves in a heartbeat if they ever got into a car with no such aids.
+Thee Adjudicator Yeah, I don't like where modern cars are going at all. The only things that give me hope are things like the caterhams and ariel atom
+Thee Adjudicator It's all wrong, the safety nannies, the lack of simplistic design. Every car I enjoy is simple. First new car was a 1986 VW Quantum, typical German. Spartan interior, but well made. Carried me almost 700k miles over 25 years on numerous road trips, pizza deliveries, commutes. I loved the no-nonsense design. Everything I needed was there and there wasn't any waste. There weren't many electrical systems to go wrong. Modern cars are way too complex. Electronic systems for automatic braking, active cruise control, stability control, etc are nice when new, but down the line they will be an absolute nightmare. I'm confident the mechanical components of any new car today will go for 300k miles or more, but definitely not the electrics. Soon mechanics will need a computer science degree just to work on cars.
Just wanna say, this video sparked my passion years ago. I now have about 40 W123's, turbocharged, sedans, coupes, wagons... Thanks man. Maybe you can come check out the collection sometime. Have a BMW 850CI if you'd want to drive/review it!
My dad used to have this car back in 97 but the turbo. Was such a cool car and he loved it. He never really had problems with his though because he was quiet the gear head. If you used to built drag cars back in the 80's like he did I hope to God you could at least keep this car running. He eventually gave the car away to my cousin and bought a 1989 twin turbo Supra.
This thing is amazing. A car that can't be killed. In Europe, especially in smaller towns, four-door diesels stood as a taxi even at the beginning of the 2000s. They weren't sensitive to fuel quality like modern turbodiesels. Everything was pouring in: heating oil, cooking oil, kerosene, oil "saved" by the truck drivers, tractor drivers and combine harvesters. Even if the un-galvanized body has already rusted and broke, the engine went to the Volga or UAZ. Engine with mileage often 300-400,000 km. It drove further and was scrapped with the entire Volga, from which it was 10 years older :-) My neighbor had a Mercedes W123 engine in the FSO Warszawa 203 car. She was doing well, even pulling a trailer. Already then it was about a 30-year-old car and most of them were scrapped already but with a Mercedes engine it got a new life. Nothing was wasted from an old Mercedes. It really was a car in service until the end of its technical death. Nobody gave them away for scrap because of their frills just because they wanted a new one. Mercedes 123 "clatter" was to do the job, wind the kilometers, earn money. And it did. They don't make such machines anymore.
Who bought these, you ask. Funny you show the old Excel package. Bill Gates had the 4-door turbo version. (around the time he had a Porsche 911 as well) He called it "the world's fastest slow car". I had a couple of the W115-bodied 4-cylinder Diesels. You gave up acceleration and shear top speed (the governor was factory set to about 80mph) but in every other way these cars excelled. Once you got it up to speed, the independent suspension allowed you to become a Practicing Momentumist, where you combat the inability to go fast by never slowing down. Rust killed mine, or I would be driving them still. Alden
Chernobyl sarcophagus wasn't brilliant analog, because that was built in hurry and is full of holes / verge of collapsing. That's why they are building new one. Other than that great review
Re Anywhere other than US nope, but I don't think it is required now since there are a lot of US users converted their lights and bumpers to Euro spec, strangely many german users are converting them to US spec...
Well, my uncle tossed my childhood cat out of a 1978 Benz 300CD on the highway when it "surprised" him when visiting us. Thanks RegularCar for that suppressed memory.
My dad and I have spent a lot of time building the 300D he got when he was out of college. I grew up in that car and it’s great. Turbo-Diesel Yellow with Palomino interior. It’s the best car I’ve ever been in, and his other car is a 2014 C63.
The best part is: this isn't even by far the slowest model. Here in Europe they also sold the 200D with a whopping total of 54hp (later on 59hp). The acceleration with that engine is measured with a calendar instead of a stopwatch.
I have driven the W124 200D, and I was impressed. Although it was as slow as a car gets, it also got you where you were going with ease, in comfort, and in a timely fashion.
Yes.
My late dad had one and he loved it.
They weren't fast, but they were indestructable.
We called it ''the road locomotive''
the drifting dune
You even could order it with a four speed automatic. It's slower than a FIAT 500R. I even saw slugs running faster than that.
That model was called the Farmer's Mercedes here, because every farmer who felt like a big shot got one
"It feels like im driving Chernobyl's sarcophagus"
Beautiful.
blyatiful
Oh wait that's Russia 🇷🇺 not Germany 🇩🇪
@@rjs1jd thats Ukraine not Russia
@@karoliskazlauskas1213 It's amazing how many people equate the USSR and Russia.
If the apocalypse ever happens these car will be worth several children.
If you have a manual, to push start it.... after you’ve made diesel in your fancy apocalypse dream chamber... and every road is clear... and no one has guns to shoot at you wanting your car....
@@alejandroochoa3541 the w123 automatic can also be push started I’ve started mine that way twice
Funny how the 2020s so far have felt like an apocalypse, and the value of W123s have skyrocketed in that same timeframe
@@michaelhelgeland4588may i ask how?
@@rscervin9950 he’s not wrong, i can’t explain how that transmission works, it just does, the things completely controlled by vacuum lines and a single steel-cable. I’ve got a 300d myself and if you fiddle with the lines and tensions you can get the thing to take off like a bat out of hell
The dad-click part has to be one of my favorite bits you've done so far.
+edison700 let me teach you how to do taxes.
I would spend an inordinate amount of time trying to get that hood to go down the final 3/4 of an inch.
You mean the two seconds it takes to push it down enough to latch?
its wrecked thats what happens when they make it work again and not fix it kinda like that grille
Sensi Bleb it looks half-pulled. That's why you can see that black tab on the left half of the grill (pull tab to fully open). Source: I owned a W123 Wagon for 4 years.
Sensi Bleb Yes my OCD would demand no less.
Looks like it has rolled over at least once.
In 1999 I bought a 1987 300SDL. Only had 60,000 original miles. Paid $12,000, and was happy to do it.
Letting that car go was the biggest mistake of my life. 12 years later the buyer STILL emails me to laugh at me once in a while.
I'm looking at a 80's 240D with a new engine in mint condition. If there's one car I know I can buy cheap and have for the rest of my life it's this one. Yeah it'll take a few years to memorize how to fix small quirks and there's forums for everything. I only use air conditioning a few weeks out of the year where I'm at. Also it'll be a 5 mile commute to work before rush hour. Life is good.
Hope you got it , like many People i the know say an 80's 240 D ( specially with Manual Transmission ) is overall the best car that has ever been made
we've had 3 of them, theyre absolutely bombproof and both did 650k miles each! Until they started falling apart
My dads 1983 240D mercedes still runs and he put a 300D rear end in it, the thing gets 36Mpg! It still absolutely runs fine, after the Texas snow that buried everything, desipite that sheer cold it still started!
And the A/C according to my dad, turning it off gave you 1HP more, my dad worked on mercedes all his life and they never quit running when he drove them!
@@JoeGomez1 Im going to buy one w123 240D as my first car. Mint condition, one very old gentleman as single owner.
620.000 kilometers, Jesus. If well maintained, can get to a million.
Best part? 1500€
@@BasedMan if well kept it makes 3.000.000 km´s and the price till 2017 was around that today it increased a lot but that´s the price of a well kept w1124 and a 96 w210( E-class)or the W202 (C-class )all around 1.500€ if in good condition ,allthough today the much older is the car the expensier it gets the ,90´s ones still around that price
As someone who was born in Kyiv, roughly 70 miles from Chornobyl, 3 years before the disaster and was growing up with many W123s around, I ASSURE YOU, the Sarcophagus reactor confinement facility held up NOWHERE NEAR as well as the W123s! This is NOT a joke. Also the W123 has waaaay better build quality, smaller panel gaps and so forth.
+Pan Damasque
and better trim than the sarcophagus.
Well, a Yugo is better build than Sarcophagus...
Caibre Greyblade if it was, they would have used it to shield the reactor. it would have been much cheaper.
zloychechen5150 Not big enough.
Haha - UA is indeed the last time I rode in a W123. In summer 2007, attending a wedding in Lviv. White four door, late 70s. Before the first facelift. Pretty epic if one still remembers 12 yrs later...
5:06
"this car is for a 19 year old with a fistful of condoms and an almost stache"
the accuracy of this statement is astounding.
Sounds like a,gta 5 car description
Hardly. Take a look at each w123 owner today. No 19 yr olds
Brett Cannon Three of them at my school along with a 190e and W126 and my car a 86’ 300e.
Wow I was looking at used 70s Mercs as a first car and this cut too close
@@brettcannon74 Cries in 19 year old with 3 of them...
"This is a block of German Steel" - picture of the cast aluminum alloy valve cover. GG RCR, I chuckled.
One of the most reliable engines ever. And the style is timeless!
+HKM _ it is arguably _the_ most reliable engine ever made. If yours failed at 500k miles, you neglected the car.
arguably in the top 5 best cars ever made
Agree, although I have a hard time naming the other 4
not much to go wrong in a NA diesel lol
Obviosly its reliable. It has less than 30hp/liter.
6:55-7:00 every car in the background driving backwards
hehe
ALL HAIL FINK !
+soranop ratanavaraha You see it so often you have to double take and make sure its not the LSD
It's Opposite Day
*"You're doing god's work"*
5:59 Wow! That guy can drive backwards really good!
In Germany we call that particular Mercedes Diesel sound "nageln" which means "nailing".
"Nageln" even has a far more dirty meaning. ;)
I'm 19. I have a fistful of condoms. And I drive a w123 Mercedes
Word.
+Mrdrcaptaintroy I'm 19, have a fistful of condoms, an almost stache and drive an '83 300CD.
+Mrdrcaptaintroy Im 21, I drive an E-squirty, I have a wooden pallet full of contraceptives. That's what distinguishes us e30 guys from you Merc fellas.
+Mrdrcaptaintroy I'm 18. I have a fistful of condoms. And I once drove a 1975 116 Mercedes.
+MinnesotaChevy454 Im 18. My GF takes birth control. I once drove a 1994 600SL. I now own a 75 116 Mercedes.
"The person who drove this Mercedes in the '70's had enough money to not be in a hurry"
Nice car! I drive a $500 '83 300SD with half a million on the clock and still running fine.
She's rough around the edges but still shines up nicely. Best $500 car ever!
My 1983 300D has 443,000 miles and runs great. Freon leaks out after 3-4 months, cruise control, central locking and attend motor don't work but other than that it's amazing. Best car I've ever had.
Mine only has 219,000...the break-in period is almost over.
theautumnred I have a 1987 300SDL with 209k on it andi daily it
b
My dad had an '83 300SD with 380,000+ (the odometer broke)! I miss that car - the look, the sound, the interior... I'm definitely buying one once I'm a property owner and can keep two cars.
I've got the 280CE version of this car in red. Fully restored in show condition. Use it everyday as my A to B car. I love it
what do you think of the seats? I'm thinking of buying one to use as an office chair
@@XxmatixX6videosdiariosdenadav I own an 84 300D and they're the most comfortable I've ever sat in
@@XxmatixX6videosdiariosdenadav when younger my friends and i had a litle house that we used a ford granada seats and a w115 seats also (the 74 had the same of the 300D)but the C123 (280C) was a really nice car bought one new latere bought the 500SEC ,i only bought a diesel coming from the U.S. in the 90´s a 300CD
3:11 Microstoft excel with mister regular.
I once got to drive in a 70s 300S, 180hp 3liter inline 6, really pulled well, back seat had springs like beds used to have. So comfortable! And my god did it stop, it had ventilated discs!
was far ahead from all cars in the world ,one used to say that if one wants to see what cars will have in 20 years look to a SE. Today almost as automatic pilot , almost because if you fall a sleep it stops if it finds a roundabout if not will continue using satelitte navegation and all sensors for all it can see ,but not now 12 years ago or near that
I think the Dad-Click is the best skit I've heard so far, replayed that 4 times now and it's not unfunny yet
that clit ,never had heard that before
but i had a w114 with the back seat not fixed ,one could go at night to a florest and take the seat of the car and watch the stars ,some nights even venus, uranus
not your but, hers
Such wow! Only 500 dollar for a 300CD W123! In the Netherlands a 300CD in this condition would fetch around 10 times as much as that! ;)
+banpeinet 20x that in Germany.
+banpeinet It's a bit of a rat's nest. Check out the bow on the body line and the rust on the front driver's side panel and rockers. There's the shitstorm of electrical-mechanical issues, yeah, more like 5 times 6 times if you're lucky.
Also, most people now buy these for the engine. Everyone found one that's mint but the engine is shot, so they buy another that looks like it was raced in on a dirt track, swap it and get something halfway decent.
Either way, if the kid has any sense he would get in touch with a machinist and remake all the parts from scratch. Half way cheaper than buying them.
Yeah, just for the taxes
Really - in Germany? I guess you threw them all away 20 years ago.
coupe ... they are rare in Pakistan, 20,000 usd or more if you have one by any chance
WOW, that dad click gag! Don't think you could encapsulate my thoughts about my dad&technology any better.
VRJosh my dad studied computer stuff in the 80s. hes the computer expert and tech savvy in the house. And I, at my age, am very bad with computers. so yeah. my dad in his 50s knows more about web design and what not than me who should be the one to know that kind of stuff like.
MCM, RCR, Motortrend, and Jay Leno uploads. Today is gonna be a good day.
"sounds like gravel falling out of a wheelbarrow.." perfect.
Love the color. Someone swapped later fog lights to this one. That year the fog lights were clear. The '78 also had the "evil servo" in the Chrysler-designed automated climate control. Manual control from a 240D is much better, as is the later ACCII from about 1980 on. I have an '83 300D (turbodiesel) and I used to have a '77 240D. I swapped the 240D manual transmission into the 300D for the best combination Mercedes never made. My 300D is up to 344,000 miles and still going, just not going real fast. Top speed is about 110, and it likes to cruise about 85, but you're still not going to win any races.
+Robert S He he, we got the 4-speed manual as standard in the UK, 5-speed or the infamous clunk-o-matic as extra-cost options. Never seen a 300D with the 4-speed manual though. Equally though, we never got the turbodiesel engine as the turbo goes where the steering column needs to be for right-hand drive. 344,000 miles, not even run-in yet, a friend of mine has an '86 300 TD (T for turnier or estate/station wagon in German, not for turbo) first of the W124s, it was originally his dads company car and it's been in his family all its life, now just over 850,000 miles. He had it restored by a Mercedes specialist in 2014 as it was looking a bit sad (no rust but the paint was flat and it had picked up various bits of damage in its life as it was always, and still is a working car not a show queen) when the engine guy pulled the engine down (never been apart in its life) they could still see the factory honing marks in the bores. The engine guy did say that if it ran ok just leave the engine, they really are that strong if looked after properly, but my friend wanted to do a proper job as he intends passing the car on to his kids and he wanted to finally sort the persistent slight oil weep from the head/block joint area that the car had had since it was about 6 years old. That's got the 5-speed manual box in it...
+Robert S Actually, all he did was put a yellow film over it. No swap.
+Aulaein Interesting. I had a '77 240D with the white fog lights and I thought those worked better than the amber ones on my '83.
Best review so far this season.
nah thunderbird turbo coupe
Mercedes in the 70s was like apple in the 90s
*GOOD*
... and reliable.
Upvote for the The White Stripes inspired intro
American Luxury cars back in 1978 all had standard air conditioner and it was a lot better than the mercedes one. That automatic climate control that mercedes used until 1980 was a licenced version of chrysler's autotemp, and it was a US-market only option. (mercedes owner here). Cadillac had automatic air conditioner since 1964 and lincoln since 1965.
This is the best narrative to a car review since ever. Good job!
My dream W123 is the 300CD Turbo 5MT. The reduced weight in the coupé really makes a difference.
I just got a 240d 4 speed manual with 180k miles and has some rust but this is my absolute dream car when I was in middle and high school of 2013. Now I'm 25 and finally got my dream car I'm happy with this
Mercedes Benz cars will always be Nostalgic to me Because as a kid I was around so many of them growing up I could nt help but love them my favorite is the w126 and 140 124 and the r107 and of course the 123
Im from morocco we use these as taxis, Some drivers got more than a million miles on it and still run like a tank haha
My mother used to have a 1981 240D. It was the definition of slow. 0-60 took the better part of an afternoon and you're right. That car liked 50. It didn't really like much more. You could coax it to 60 but it sounded like it was being forced. But man, it really was well made, incredibly comfortable, wonderful to drive and extremely reliable. And loud. The 4 cylinder diesel sounded like rocks in a blender, especially cold. It had independent temperature controls for the driver and passenger and the whole design just made sense.
I miss it.
Can you please review a shopping cart. I used to take those things around some wicked apex's back in the day
+omar khan Second this the next best thing to the yard man
Yes i hope they do
From Pittsburgh to central PA... without the turnpike... ouch. Those folks are awesome! Neat car!
+Flargenyargen Those are some pretty great back roads, though. If yo're not in a hurry, a slow car on those roads can be pretty fun.
i love the wagon versions of these. wagons are the best.
I'm lucky to have one - best cars ever made.
When I buy a vehicle I always make sure to see if you reviewed it. I take your word for it. Best reviews on the webs.
Used to have an 82 240d with a 4 speed. What made that car so great was that everything was made to be taken apart and worked on. the fuel filter was under the hood right there to be replaced when needed. The radiator came out in a snap. and everything just worked. the AC just needed to be recharged, and it worked. It stopped on a dime, shifted nice, started every single morning, night, midday, noon, or whenever. Now that I think of it, I really miss the smell of diesel additive that was kept in the door that no matter what you did, no matter how many bottles you bought, they always leaked. I miss that car, and look forward to my next.
You guys make Monday's worth it.
Your videos make my life better. Thanks.
Oh man, golden era rcr is something else truly. The roman cover song intros, the spitfire narration and the WRITING. Holy shit.
Woke up and scrolled thru my TH-cam subscriptions. Going past Jay Leno, Smoking tire, Motortrend and the rest. I see RCR's upload and I know exactly what video to watch while I take my morning dump. Thanks Mr.Regular and the Roman.
Love that parking lot shot with the Peterbilt in the background. Diesel, meet diesel.
+Guy Smiley a black 379 the most american cowboy truck of them all love it
+Guy Smiley Now i want to see a Peterbilt reveiw
More like truck meet king tiger tank, if you ask me.
European lights looks much prettier
Yay! I grew up in a w123, followed by 124s and now we have an 89 wagon and a 97 sedan. Diesel Benzes are such a huge part of my childhood, it brings me so much joy for them to be cool again.
Mr. Regular, thank you for keeping up the reviews of old cars. I'll bet there are a lot of people who feel the same nostalgia I do.
Finally! Offered my 240D for review but we couldn't work it out. Love the 123 chassis no matter how slow they may be.
+1 Chernobyl Sarcophagus
+Stirling Moss There's an elephant's foot in the room
+commieman They say it's where Bernie Sanders sleeps.
I have the w123 tdt (wagon) 1981, and I'm so glad found it. picked it up pretty cheap 2k and 2 small rust spots! I drive it 50+ miles a day for work, great fuel economy and never left me stranded. Thank God! True reliable car!!
Im so glad you guys did the W123 you're opinions are always on point its cool to hear them about my car
This was pretty funny, but I lost it at "gravel falling out of a wheelbarrow" :-D. That's the kind of reasons why everyone loves this channel.
That's just how diesels sounded back then.
You should do a w124, w126 or the w140.
I just love everything about this channel. Funny from start to end every time.
Nice to see your channel doing so well. Love your reviews.
I know many old people in Europe that have them. When taken care, they do last forever. They can do over 1.000.000km and keep working.
+Mladen Milić I have a 1992 Mercedes 190E and it's my first car. I love it. It may suck at acceleration and speeding, but damn does it keep running. I knew nothing about cars before I got it, but now I know how to work on my own car. Pre-2000's cars: You can work on em easily. Especially if they're German.
Tyler Cameron I have 190E too 😍 1990, 1.8 liter with 4 speed automatic
"W123" sounds like a British zip code
This was my first car, though silver with blue leather interior. I had it for a few halcyon months, my summer leading into senior year of high school, before it was rear-ended by a Ford Explorer going 50mph, crushing the rear end on the first Friday of the year. Bastard had a new radiator and less than 100k miles on it. I'd still be driving it today if it hadn't been totaled.
The first time I watched this video, every critique and observation was so accurate and flooded me with such memories, I almost cried. So thanks.
Last time I watched this video, I was looking for a 300CD. Messaged the owner of this exact car and he wouldn't budge, so I bought my own. This video is too relateable to not crack up at it now.
For how prestigious Merc was in 70s, just check Hotel California -- 'her mind is Tiffany-twisted, she got the Mercedes bends(z)'
Now you just need to do the Mercedes 600. Hardly a regular car but has a horn on it louder than most cruise ships.
As every single time I watch a car review...
...I want that car.
Nothing makes my Monday morning bearable quite like RCR. Great Review. I had an 1989 W126 300SE with the gas inline 6. Great Car, comfortable, adequate power. I miss her sometimes.
I helped design this car. "W"123. "W" is for Williams. Auf Wiedersehen!
+Brian Williams ist klar :D
+Brian Williams W was universal, but now stands for sedan. Later on they changed the codes: C - coupe, T - estate, A - convertible, R - roadster. Most people still refer to W for all types, though.
Please do a W124!
124 diesel would be even better!
+mazdarati2 Agree in so many levels!
+Martynas Lavickas !! I have one so he can drive mine if he comes to Europe...
Ooh, beautiful touch saying "the gods work"...
Seriously.
Amazing what a difference one little 3 letter word can make.
Thank you guys.
The masses don't want simplistic engineering, the praise is given to cars with no need to check tyre pressures or ever look under the hood, It's saved for cars with ipod connectivity, moody interior lighting and a car that will "just work" every time you get into it.
Not to mention the waves of driver assist tech that have given new drivers such a serious aversion from the reality and dangers of driving that they would probably kill themselves in a heartbeat if they ever got into a car with no such aids.
+Thee Adjudicator Yeah, I don't like where modern cars are going at all. The only things that give me hope are things like the caterhams and ariel atom
+Thee Adjudicator It's all wrong, the safety nannies, the lack of simplistic design. Every car I enjoy is simple. First new car was a 1986 VW Quantum, typical German. Spartan interior, but well made. Carried me almost 700k miles over 25 years on numerous road trips, pizza deliveries, commutes. I loved the no-nonsense design. Everything I needed was there and there wasn't any waste. There weren't many electrical systems to go wrong.
Modern cars are way too complex. Electronic systems for automatic braking, active cruise control, stability control, etc are nice when new, but down the line they will be an absolute nightmare. I'm confident the mechanical components of any new car today will go for 300k miles or more, but definitely not the electrics. Soon mechanics will need a computer science degree just to work on cars.
You dad clicked..
THIS IS A COMPUTER I UNDERSTAND
LET ME TEACH YOU HOW TO DO TAXES
INSERTS *7 FLOPPY DISKS* TO INSTALL EXCEL 94'
that color is awesome.
Just wanna say, this video sparked my passion years ago.
I now have about 40 W123's, turbocharged, sedans, coupes, wagons... Thanks man. Maybe you can come check out the collection sometime. Have a BMW 850CI if you'd want to drive/review it!
My dad used to have this car back in 97 but the turbo. Was such a cool car and he loved it. He never really had problems with his though because he was quiet the gear head. If you used to built drag cars back in the 80's like he did I hope to God you could at least keep this car running.
He eventually gave the car away to my cousin and bought a 1989 twin turbo Supra.
Sealed beam headlights:
Destroying the looks of european cars in the US since the 40s.
+Crazy_Borg That's why you have to invest in a pair of Euro-spec headlights!
I laughed, I drive a schoolbus, its mine and everyone, is always, late for school.
This thing is amazing. A car that can't be killed. In Europe, especially in smaller towns, four-door diesels stood as a taxi even at the beginning of the 2000s. They weren't sensitive to fuel quality like modern turbodiesels. Everything was pouring in: heating oil, cooking oil, kerosene, oil "saved" by the truck drivers, tractor drivers and combine harvesters.
Even if the un-galvanized body has already rusted and broke, the engine went to the Volga or UAZ. Engine with mileage often 300-400,000 km. It drove further and was scrapped with the entire Volga, from which it was 10 years older :-) My neighbor had a Mercedes W123 engine in the FSO Warszawa 203 car. She was doing well, even pulling a trailer. Already then it was about a 30-year-old car and most of them were scrapped already but with a Mercedes engine it got a new life.
Nothing was wasted from an old Mercedes. It really was a car in service until the end of its technical death. Nobody gave them away for scrap because of their frills just because they wanted a new one. Mercedes 123 "clatter" was to do the job, wind the kilometers, earn money.
And it did. They don't make such machines anymore.
this episode was perfect to watch today! and thank you Mr regular!
That climate control is a time bomb!!!!
Who bought these, you ask. Funny you show the old Excel package. Bill Gates had the 4-door turbo version. (around the time he had a Porsche 911 as well) He called it "the world's fastest slow car". I had a couple of the W115-bodied 4-cylinder Diesels. You gave up acceleration and shear top speed (the governor was factory set to about 80mph) but in every other way these cars excelled. Once you got it up to speed, the independent suspension allowed you to become a Practicing Momentumist, where you combat the inability to go fast by never slowing down. Rust killed mine, or I would be driving them still.
Alden
instant smile and instant like when i see a new review pop up
i like how you always have your Fit in the background
makes me feel safe
117,000 miles? That's like 33,000 miles on a 78 Deville.
Chernobyl sarcophagus wasn't brilliant analog, because that was built in hurry and is full of holes / verge of collapsing. That's why they are building new one. Other than that great review
Ah, but you try getting the Sarcophagus up to highway speeds. Or around a corner.
late 70s Mercs are magic, my dad had a 1979 6.9 liter 450SEL and my mom had a 450SLC and they where amazing cars
+anewacc the 6.9 had lots of power but i remember it also having lots of issues with the air suspension
*****
ill always remember how good the leather interior smelled, they don't make them like that anymore
oh, that lovely truck Diesel I5 sound
4 SUM 3 SUM 2 SUM lonesome .......
why werent you casted for the new top gear??? Now that would make it a show I would watch.
Signs for 22...not far from me in Easton. I love this channel. I love all the cars you review. Hopefully I can get a car reviewed one day.
I almost bought one of these when was 16. This was a great review.
I get complimented on my w123 2 door coupe' every day.
US spec headlights, vomit.
You mean these yellow lights? What is that shit?
+MeddyGreen the yellow lights are fog lamps. I think he refers to the sealed beam headlamps.
+DobeliusDobbe *correction US lights and bumper
+DobeliusDobbe you realize you NEED that to friggin pass your registration inspection?
Re Anywhere other than US nope, but I don't think it is required now since there are a lot of US users converted their lights and bumpers to Euro spec, strangely many german users are converting them to US spec...
We have a w123 200 four door non diesel, and it NEVER BREAKS! haha
thank you for reviewing this car
Aahhh! This reminds me of my first car.. My old 1983 Mercedes 300SD Turbo Deisel.. Car had over 400,000 miles on it, still ran like a champ.
The headlights look wrong.
+Behemothokun US law made it that way.
Seen at 11:06 pm.
oh I know that feel
To many times...
this guys put so much heart in these videos
Well, my uncle tossed my childhood cat out of a 1978 Benz 300CD on the highway when it "surprised" him when visiting us. Thanks RegularCar for that suppressed memory.
Mercedes coupes are always legit
Their T models are. It's like a Volvo: you want the REAL thing? Buy the wagon/estate/kombi.
MERCEDES W123: IF BERNIE SANDERS WAS A CAR.
My dad and I have spent a lot of time building the 300D he got when he was out of college. I grew up in that car and it’s great. Turbo-Diesel Yellow with Palomino interior. It’s the best car I’ve ever been in, and his other car is a 2014 C63.
My first car was a 1983 230E. They are awesome. Worked well on the Autobahn too, I guess it was glad to be home again.