From my reading it was '94 and '95 that had the head gasket and wiring issue. All sortable issues.

That car in CA looks like a very nice car Don.

The red one isn't too far over priced but what is clearly missing is what maintenance and repairs have been done to the car. It's red, and that's worth a premium if you like it.

A few ultra clean W124 E320s have popped up recently. Here's one:
Mercedes-Benz : E-Class E320 station wagon | eBay

Other CL ads I've seen for 70K mile cars that are nearly perfect have been going for $8-$10K. IMHO they are worth it. Wish the one close to me was still up, the black wagon looked right off the showroom floor. Either they realized it's better to keep the car or they sold in 2 weeks.

$25k?! Nutty. Though you guys aren't helping me resist wanting a W124.

I keep thinking some little old lady in Sun City is going to post something like this for $2500. Just hope I'm hanging out on Craigslist when it happens. I wonder how many people are looking locally for old MB wagons. I may have to post a faux ad for a nice one to see how much response I get! :D

I'd be happy to drive it to AZ Don! :D

1994 E320 Wagon - 73,000 mi

I don't know guys. I realize this car saved Shaun's life recently - but it is almost 20 years old. Stuff breaks on cars that old, regardless of mileage. Do you like to fiddle with the daily car all the time or drive it? I nowadays lean towards having a newer daily driver that can be the backup for any other vehicle in the fleet, a mid-aged SUV and a classic Porsche.

G

That's a tough one that I frankly struggle with. I tend to prefer older cars as they often have more character and were built to a standard, not necessarily to a price point. The W124 or an older 911 are perfect examples. With that said, it's only logical that a 20 year old car will require more maintenance than a 5 year old one. I think a quality older car can serve as a reliable daily driver, but it will require more maintenance to do so. Like most things I suppose it's a trade-off, reliable and boring or interesting and needy. My pendulum has swung towards the newer preference with my RX8, but threads like this definitely get me thinking.

Aigel has a good point. What was my project tonight? Pulling off my front sway bar, cleaning up all the rust on the ends and then POR15'd it. Last night it was finding a perfect, rare 8 button Zebrano wood console piece. Terrible addiction, cars.

Can't do any welding on my 73, so the wagon is a nice fix, no pun intended.:)

I actually saw that car this morning before I went to work. I was picking random cities on CL and that one popped up. Looks very sweet. I'm just glad there's no interior pics. I bet it looks awesome and I'd still be rocking back and forth at my desk.

Indeed - not to mention the increased electronic complexity over time.

Maybe there is a sweet spot (of sorts) once you hit the years with OBD systems, which I think make it easier to diagnose engine problems compared with the last few years before OBD.

The newer cars break less. Not just because they are newer. Generally they are more reliable. I'd still look at a brand new TDI and not worry about repairs or a penny spent on maintenance for 3 years.

G

Both great points. I enjoy DIY work on my car, it's a source of pride to me and I know that nobody else would be as anal as I am. There are many things that I cannot DIY on a modern car, particularly a complex luxury car. At least my RX8 is pretty simple, there aren't many magical black boxes like you find in a modern Mercedes, BMW, Porsche, etc.

Personally I think the sweet spot was mid-1980s through mid-1990s. Reliable yet relatively simple EFI systems like Motronic were the norm, most cars had normal power features like windows and locks but they were simple systems. No body control ECUs, OBD systems with a multitude of sensors to monitor your every move, and no worthless electrical gizmos. Generally speaking cars of this era, like the W124 and 911 Carrera, were still mechanical devices. Today's cars typically require complex computer diagnostics to find problems, then the component is replaced. There's really not even much repair work done, it's all just R&R components which is reflected in component quality.

I have a sticky window switch in my 911. The fix is to take apart the switch, clean it, and put it back together. It is robust enough that the actual components rarely fail, instead a good cleaning will get it back in order. Modern parts aren't made this way, they are meant to be replaced. Something about that just doesn't seem right. Today it's pretty easy to find a 20 year old BMW, even in rough shape they are hard to kill. But I predict that in 20 years, you won't see many 20 year old modern BMWs on the road. You'll see the older BMWs from simpler times that are worth keeping like the E34, E30, and 2002, but I can't imagine time being very kind on a modern iDrive equipped 550i.

I went and saw this car. Yikes, it was a mess. The interior is in pieces and the muffler in in the back seat. Clear coat is shot, paint is very tired. Surprisingly, the engine looked pretty good and the dash was nice. Oil looks decent and smelled ok. I didn't taste it, tho.
I don't think this car has been started in at least a year, maybe 2.