Anything I should know about the W123?

[Andrew280SEL]

Hi everyone, hope you're all doing well.

I will soon likely be purchasing a W123 230E as a daily driver. I know, I know, a 4 cylinder German taxi, and white no less I can hear the "boooooring" hoots from here

But boring and reliable is kind of what I was after in this case. Not to mention better fuel economy than some of the bigger Benzes I've had experience with. My 280SEL W116 is off the road currently anyway, but with her tired old engine she uses more juice than a 6.9...

So it's time to add (yet another ) Benz to my name and this time with a more every day use in mind. I'm a bit tired of modern little hatchbacks and that "old Merc" itch is going a little crazy.

So does anyone know much about the W123 and anything I should be aware of? As far as I can tell, they're a pretty popular old Merc known for being fairly bulletproof but with any old car there's likely to be something worth knowing.

Also, why are they also known as Mercedes "Tiger"? I've done some searching on the net but I have seen little to no information on this.

 

[Helmet]

Usual stuff, check for rust at bonnet hinge area, lower door seals and floor. Check for oil leaks, some can be costly to repair. The 230e is a great daily driver.

 

[Michel]

Had a 280E coupe for a little while, great little thing.
To me a W123 is a 'mini' W116 (much lighter of course) and performs very well with the smaller engine.

However, I'm a firm believer in the fact that a bigger engine doesn't necessarily mean more fuel consumption.
My CLK430 returns between 10-11L/100Km driving conservatively, while the CLK320 can only dream of 12L/100Km in highway driving or 14-15L/100Km in conservative driving around town.

But going back to the W123, millions of taxi drivers in Germany/Greece/Egypt/Lebanon and other places can attest to the durability of it.

Good luck and nice to have you back Andrew!

 

[Andrew280SEL]

Usual stuff, check for rust at bonnet hinge area, lower door seals and floor. Check for oil leaks, some can be costly to repair. The 230e is a great daily driver.

Thanks Helmet. It's also already been fully checked out by a very trusted mechanic who deals in and knows all sorts of Mercedes cars and has been given the thumbs up, besides the power steering which had a whine when turning at low speed, but he corrected that at the same time.

Otherwise it sounds like typical old car things to look for.

Had a 280E coupe for a little while, great little thing.
To me a W123 is a 'mini' W116 (much lighter of course) and performs very well with the smaller engine.

However, I'm a firm believer in the fact that a bigger engine doesn't necessarily mean more fuel consumption.
My CLK430 returns between 10-11L/100Km driving conservatively, while the CLK320 can only dream of 12L/100Km in highway driving or 14-15L/100Km in conservative driving around town.

But going back to the W123, millions of taxi drivers in Germany/Greece/Egypt/Lebanon and other places can attest to the durability of it.

Good luck and nice to have you back Andrew!

Thanks Michel, good to see you again too.

And you're too right, bigger engine doesn't necessarily mean more fuel consumption. You may remember my surprise at how frugal the 6.9 could be, for what it is, when driven sedately/normally.

I would have probably been happy with a 280 or 230 in this model. Obviously one is a 6 cylinder and the other a 4, there may not be a huge gulf in fuel economy but I have heard that the 4 cylinder (230E) has a pretty decent amount of torque at an earlier rev range than the 280 motor which means it can seem a little more effortless in town driving, etc.

Anyhoo, this particular 230E seems a pretty good buy from what I've seen and I have had a short test drive of it. We'll see what the next couple of days bring.

Re: the W123 being like a "mini" W116... I've always thought that too. What I find interesting though is that even though they must have some similar parts and equipment, the W123 seems (from what I've seen/read, but I could be wrong) to be the more "popular" and durable car, but I'm not too sure why.

Regardless, it'll be nice to finally add a W123 to the old Merc stable, so to speak, to go with the W116s.

EDIT: On the Mercedes "Tiger" thing, it seems they were called that specifically in Indonesia... but still not sure why.

 

[motec 6.9]

Also Andrew as the W123 was in production till 1985 you can find newer versions than a W116 and due to production . Parts are vastly more plentiful.

 

[Andrew280SEL]

Also Andrew as the W123 was in production till 1985 you can find newer versions than a W116 and due to production . Parts are vastly more plentiful.

Ahh true

I guess that's probably one major reason there seems to be more of them getting around.

 

[motec 6.9]

W116 production 474035. W123 production 2 696 914 slight difference.

 

[BenzBoy]

W116 production 4474035. W123 production 2 696 914 slight difference.

Error.

 

[motec 6.9]

What do you mean Error figures are from Wikki its only a slight difference what's a few million here and there. fixed one to many 4's.

 

[BenzBoy]

what do you mean error figures are from wikki its only a slight difference what's a few million here and there. fixed one to many 4's.

10/10

 

[Michel]

Ahh true

I guess that's probably one major reason there seems to be more of them getting around.

Even considering the Lebs and Iraquis send them in parts by the container load to the Middle East

 

[SEL_69L]

A W123 280 SE with the twin cam engine is a great car.
Very elegant and pretty styling as well. The styling suits the smaller body a tiny bit better than the W116 body, in my opinion.
Mercedes made 6 million twin can 2.8 engines, to be fitted to a large range of different models. It will happily spin to 6,000 RPM and stay there all day, without fuss.

The extra power would make the W123 280 SE obviously the best of the range, and easily able to keep up on the motorways, and with adequately acceptable acceleration as a daily driver in suburban traffic.

Well worth fully restoring, then being driven as you would use a modern new car as a daily driver.

 

[motec 6.9]

I was tossing up between my 6.9 and a W123 280E when I was in the market may still get one.

 

[260ebenz]

Very original 1981 230E for sale might be of interest to you Andrew?

http://autohaus1.com.au/index.php/gallery/1981-mercedes-benz-230e-2/

 

[motec 6.9]

RTFT he already has the car.

 

[260ebenz]

Okay Geoff it is late I had forgotten Andrew mentioned he is in the process of purchasing a W123.

We all make mistakes I am only human.

Back to topic now.

 

[motec 6.9]

Trust me I make more than most.

 

[Andrew280SEL]

Correct, though I only officially purchased it yesterday

It's waiting for me to pick up tomorrow, so I'm fairly excited about that.

Yeah, I'm sure a 280E would be a great engine/body combination and I do love the M110 engine... those twin overhead cams sound amazing at high revs, but I already have two Mercs with the M110 (280) motor, so I was more than happy to give this 230E a go

 

[motec 6.9]

Have fun and enjoy your new toy Andrew.

 

[Andrew280SEL]

You mean my new White Taxi