My grand dad had one of these back in 1983. 200 manual petrol green with the allow wheels. Every Sunday morning we used to go for a drive to the cemetery. Then take a drive to the beach. Beautiful car, with great memories. I would love to get on of these.
Fantastic car ! I am Namibian, living in Germany and driving a 1967 W108 (ex Namibia ) . Love the W123 - amazing endurance when looked after and treasured.
While it’s easy to make claims about a car’s durability when it’s fresh off the line, the W123’s endurance in 2024 speaks volumes. This car was engineered with a level of build quality that’s almost rare these days - every part feels robust and meticulously crafted. In our family, we had the 350SE, 280SE, and 380SE models from the '70s and '80s, but the W123 always held a special place. Even now, after all these years, it’s remarkable how well it still performs. It’s a testament to exceptional engineering and quality, and I often dream about having another one. They truly don’t make them like this anymore.
We will see if the 200D holds its own against the 240D! This W123 200 seems to be going REALLY well...and I notice that NO vibration on the steering wheel, and no constant correction, so steering box is good! The Caledonian Green 230 is surely worth a look. Unusual and attractive colour, and they too go very sweetly.
In 99, before I emigrated to the USA and while living in Durban, I had a champagne color 200, manual, my bother had a white one, automatic. They are great cars and I agree about them being my preferred examples of the 123 beacuse of the simplicity. I wish they had been imported into the USA. You can pretty much only get diesels here apart from a very few early 230's and 280, 280E's but they are rare as hens teeth here. Mostly it's diesels or nothing. I've had two 240D's both with over 500000 K's on them. They are probably the greatest car ever made, but I do prefer the refinement of the 200.
Yes the petrols are more refined, strange that they weren’t popular there. Here in South Africa, it’s the other way around. Diesel in the 80’s was considered a strategic resource and was preserved for the military and industry through ‘much higher than petrol” prices to the man on the street. You really needed to be a farmer here to take advantage of the benefits the diesels offered over the petrols.
@@oldmercguy Right. My uncle who was a farmer in the Transvaal had Merc Diesels. 240D's then a 300D because he used to get subsidised diesel for being a farmer. Here the CAFE standards of the Carter administration killed Gas guzzlers. Most of the V8 Mercedes sold here during that period were SL's to Hollywood and Southern California. Mercedes were ideally placed to sell the worlds best diesels here and reap the economy beniffits that Detroit couldn't match. So while Detroit was trying desperately to downsize the worlds largest cars and unsucessfully modify gasoline engines to run on diesel, Mercedes just sold a whole bunch of 240D's, 300D's and 300SD's and basically dominated the luxury car market for the next couple of decades on the backs of the W123 and 116.
Not Sahara Gelb...I think it is Light Ivory. As for "very easy to push," it is the 200D that requires pushing...not cos it stops running, but needs additional power.
Hardly.., the rust gets them. Round about the turn of the millennium I bought a 1984 W123 240D, just like this but with the diesel engine. It had done about 295,000 miles , and felt like it could do the same easily. Frighteningly slow when pulling out of a side road into moving traffic. 30mpg on a run. Ran it for a several months before the MOT came due, which it failed on rust. At the time, the low value of the car meant it was uneconomic to repair, so off to the recyclers/scrapyard it went.
Rust prevention has come along way since the 80's. To be fair they were significantly less like to rust than other cars manufactured at the time. The rust issues are easy to resolve if caught in time, I've restored hundreds over the years and have even done a rust tutorial on the w123 on the channel.
My grand dad had one of these back in 1983. 200 manual petrol green with the allow wheels. Every Sunday morning we used to go for a drive to the cemetery. Then take a drive to the beach. Beautiful car, with great memories. I would love to get on of these.
Fantastic car ! I am Namibian, living in Germany and driving a 1967 W108 (ex Namibia ) . Love the W123 - amazing endurance when looked after and treasured.
Couldn't agree more!
While it’s easy to make claims about a car’s durability when it’s fresh off the line, the W123’s endurance in 2024 speaks volumes. This car was engineered with a level of build quality that’s almost rare these days - every part feels robust and meticulously crafted. In our family, we had the 350SE, 280SE, and 380SE models from the '70s and '80s, but the W123 always held a special place. Even now, after all these years, it’s remarkable how well it still performs. It’s a testament to exceptional engineering and quality, and I often dream about having another one. They truly don’t make them like this anymore.
Truly stood the test of time, the w123s.
We will see if the 200D holds its own against the 240D!
This W123 200 seems to be going REALLY well...and I notice that NO vibration on the steering wheel, and no constant correction, so steering box is good!
The Caledonian Green 230 is surely worth a look. Unusual and attractive colour, and they too go very sweetly.
In 99, before I emigrated to the USA and while living in Durban, I had a champagne color 200, manual, my bother had a white one, automatic. They are great cars and I agree about them being my preferred examples of the 123 beacuse of the simplicity. I wish they had been imported into the USA. You can pretty much only get diesels here apart from a very few early 230's and 280, 280E's but they are rare as hens teeth here. Mostly it's diesels or nothing. I've had two 240D's both with over 500000 K's on them. They are probably the greatest car ever made, but I do prefer the refinement of the 200.
Yes the petrols are more refined, strange that they weren’t popular there. Here in South Africa, it’s the other way around. Diesel in the 80’s was considered a strategic resource and was preserved for the military and industry through ‘much higher than petrol” prices to the man on the street. You really needed to be a farmer here to take advantage of the benefits the diesels offered over the petrols.
@@oldmercguy Right. My uncle who was a farmer in the Transvaal had Merc Diesels. 240D's then a 300D because he used to get subsidised diesel for being a farmer. Here the CAFE standards of the Carter administration killed Gas guzzlers. Most of the V8 Mercedes sold here during that period were SL's to Hollywood and Southern California. Mercedes were ideally placed to sell the worlds best diesels here and reap the economy beniffits that Detroit couldn't match. So while Detroit was trying desperately to downsize the worlds largest cars and unsucessfully modify gasoline engines to run on diesel, Mercedes just sold a whole bunch of 240D's, 300D's and 300SD's and basically dominated the luxury car market for the next couple of decades on the backs of the W123 and 116.
Not Sahara Gelb...I think it is Light Ivory.
As for "very easy to push," it is the 200D that requires pushing...not cos it stops running, but needs additional power.
Great video thanks, love these mercs, solid solid solid.
Hardly.., the rust gets them. Round about the turn of the millennium I bought a 1984 W123 240D, just like this but with the diesel engine. It had done about 295,000 miles , and felt like it could do the same easily. Frighteningly slow when pulling out of a side road into moving traffic. 30mpg on a run. Ran it for a several months before the MOT came due, which it failed on rust. At the time, the low value of the car meant it was uneconomic to repair, so off to the recyclers/scrapyard it went.
Rust prevention has come along way since the 80's. To be fair they were significantly less like to rust than other cars manufactured at the time. The rust issues are easy to resolve if caught in time, I've restored hundreds over the years and have even done a rust tutorial on the w123 on the channel.
On the Open Road the 200 cruises very well. You can go up n down hill - most uphills - at 120 km/hr very sweetly.
Do a 1/4 mile shoot out with the 200D, 240D and 300D!! :-)
Love it guys, keep it up!
The colour called Sahara gelb
Fuel consumption on those roundabout Keyan? These can be had for a pretty good price right now eh? "The Lady" refers to him as "Dad" yes?😆
The manuals aren't too bad for an 80's car, around 11L per 100km/h.
The young lady is Bella 😅
Hi, is it possible to fit aircon in a 200 that didn’t come with that option?
it is yes
T is it not a Big Mission to fit ?
@@timjones143dashboard out, apart from that it is easy
@@arthurdardalis OK.