W115 240D..aka the 2nd mercedes.

matyas

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 23, 2006
Messages
534
Location
Espoo, Finland
Car(s)
1981 Mercedes 280SE
Well, I have been back in Hungary for a month and a half (I am from Hungary, just living in Finland), and I had a chance to drive my mother's car. The car is a w115 240D (originally a w114 with a 2.8 double carb engine, later refitted with a 2.4 Diesel, and had a manual transmission installed due to the silly automatic gearbox...as some of you have probably noticed from the pictures...). I know you are not allowed to post your relatives' cars, but I think this deserves a place here.

The car is superb. No way around it, I fell deeply in love...and broke my heart again when I came back to Finland :( I started driving it to work on the basis of "I will use it rarely"...which later hooked me so badly, I didn't even want to take the tram/bus ever again :lol: It's not an especially powerful car, but it still goes quite well. Not to mention, in Budapest most guys drive above the speedlimit while I like to stay within it. In this car, only the most moronic drivers honked at me...everyone let me in. It was a really nice experience. I would love to bring the car to Finland, but I can't afford the transportation costs...and I would rather get a car straight from Finland (w126).

Anyway, after driving this car I came to 3 great conclusions:

1. I will cry a little inside if I can't drive a pre 1990 mercedes. I miss my 280SE :cry:

2. I cannot look at an ecobox without thinking "WHY??...You could have done so much better, for less money...ah well, the more for me!":p

3. I would rather make cuts on food, women, computers...a lot of things, than not owning a car like this.

3 and 1/2. I hate Finnish insurance. Insuring the 240D is around 40e for a year, tax is around 10e a year in Hungary. Insuring the 280SE was 1200e for a year in Finland. :blink:

And now the pictures:
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And now...some engineering pornography:

The roof-opening hook:
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The original radio (working...the lining under the glovecompartment needs work):
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The engine:
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And one last shot for all you skeptics out there:

Car + my phone:
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I hate Finnish insurance. Insuring the 240D is around 40e for a year, tax is around 10e a year in Hungary. Insuring the 280SE was 1200e for a year in Finland. :blink:

That is a bitch, but you can take a pre-1977 and have it registered as an oldtimer. That should cut down on costs. The first W126's will be oldtimers in two years.
 
That is a bitch, but you can take a pre-1977 and have it registered as an oldtimer. That should cut down on costs. The first W126's will be oldtimers in two years.

Museoajoneuvo = oldtimer? If so, you can only drive it 30 days a year. In Hungary there is no limit, as it is assumed that they aren't daily drivers.
 
Story of my life- sans insurance issues, but I trade that for parking space

I sympathize with you very much. I just need a big, graceful diesel sedan (or coupe- only sold in the US though) in my life. I've always wanted one and this summer, I passed over several (although crude) examples. This coming summer, however, I will have a larger budget. I hope you can find an example as nice as that one, or your W126.
 
Just don't tell them it's registered the way it is :p

Wouldn't they notice from the black plates?

And Public, I really like the w123, but for that money, I would rather save 600e more and buy a w126. However being an unemployed teekkari (technical student), it's pretty much on hold right now.
 
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Wouldn't they notice from the black plates?

And Public, I really like the w123, but for that money, I would rather save 600e more and buy a w126. However being an unemployed teekkari (technical student), it's pretty much on hold right now.

The black plates don't signify a museum registration. They are just plates that you can get for cars pre-71. You can have a museum registration with standard white plates. :)
 
2. I cannot look at an ecobox without thinking "WHY??...You could have done so much better, for less money...ah well, the more for me!":p

You are by no means alone in thinking that. And the more you discover the real bargains of the car market, the more you'll think that.
 
bargains? in Finland.. not likely
 
Maybe not the kind that Spectre is getting, but you can get an awful lot of car for 4000e...no need to buy a 18,000e new eurobox.
 
YOUR KILLING ME!

I had a 76 4spd 240 d that had 76k on it when i was about 18.

Not many know about the starting knob:D
 
W114/W115 dials give me orgasms. It's a shame that yours has the newer style ones. They still look fantastic though :)
 
Sweet! I love old Mercs so much, and the colour is lovely and retro. Well, actually It looks just like that Merc the political prisoner gets bundled into at the start of Call of Duty 4 but that's all good.
 
Status update one year later. The car has done 2000km, 1300 of which I have done over the past 2 months. Over this time I have been using it every day to get to work, on a hill...essentially the heaviest operating conditions for the engines. To clarify, every time I went to work/ home, my ears popped a little.

The following things have been happening to the car:
-Tyre change (old ones were 7 years old, older ones which I used last year for 2 trips were 13+)
-Oil dripping from the front...zimmerit ring change is imminent. I lost 0.5L of oil over 1300km. Not awful, the lady just likes to mark her territory a bit too well when parking :p
-Diesel leaks...the biggest of which was really bad. One of the rubber hoses connecting the tank with the fuel system had a huge hole in it, where roughly 2dl of fuel escaped per 8h. This has been fixed by the excellent mechanic. There are several smaller leaks, suspecting the tank now...
-And now we come to the biggest annoyance...the brakes. The problems started after 800km. The right-hand side brake got stuck, and I boiled my brake-fluid. This meant a brake-pad change, along with a fluid flush of the entire system. Unfortunately, the problem of occasionally the pedal going to the floor slowly still persists. Last time I was going home, on a steeper slope (we live on one of the hills in Buda), I pressed the pedal...and it slowly wen in...and in...and in..until I was touching metal and still slowly rolling forward. At that point I decided not to drive the car before the mechanic fixes it. According to him, it's the diaphragm in the main brake cylinder.

Things being done/will be done:
-Rear rust (pictures coming as soon as I get them in Sept. )
-Brakes
-Injection system
-Fuel tank
-Rubber bushes
-Engine mount...

I reall miss the old girl already :(
 
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