Any Mercedes W140 owners on here?

Any W140 owners on here? I've always wanted a 97 coupe. Every now and then a good deal on one will pop up and I have to restrain myself from buying. I need to get out and drive one. They are beautiful and the best of the S class IMO. I had 3 phaetons which are no doubt superior cars, but not as pretty as this. Ever since I've slid into my R129 I've become more and more partial to the Mercs (90s only of course).

I found this wald bodied car back in the early 2000s. Still the prettiest modern Merc. I have laid eyes on and have lusted after it ever since.


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Had one approx twenty years ago. There isn't much too lose. If you buy a good one you should be in a position to get your money back. They are "engineered like no other car". I believe the only serious issue to look out for is a degrading wiring loom, which you can avoid by chassis number. The last real Mercedes Benz.

I wouldn't call them beautiful or pretty, but they have a characterful shape and a strong presence; I like them. Perhaps the best value classic car in the now declining classic car bubble, as long as you are buying it for what it is and to enjoy. Quantifiably the "best" car in the world in its day, and I would still prefer one over the current model, or a new 7 Series or A8.

I would push the boat out and go for the V12.

 

I've always loved these and in particular S600 (CL600 for the 1999 years). I'm probably in the minority, but I do like the looks (not mechanicals) of the W220 S-class sedan and C215 CL-coupes more than their predecessors and haven't liked the models after those generations. Maybe I just felt the S/CL in 1999 were long in the tooth for their styling at the time. I loved them in the mid 90s and would pick it over anything else because they don't have nearly as many electronics as the 2000+ cars.

 

They’re wonderful.

Matt

 

Fun cars and you can’t beat the current market values.

We have had one for many years now as a winter beater/run around.

$4-6k can get you a nice one with some searching.

They are far from perfect and very complicated but if you keep your expectations realistic, they can be fun.

Modern resources like Rockauto.com make it possible to keep one running without spending half of the cars value each year in maintenance.

Good luck!

LSJ

 

Thanks guys. Im looking for a 97 2 door only which is the last year for those and should have the majority of the bugs worked out. Is this the same wiring harness issue that my R129 has in respect to it being bio-degradable? I was hoping this car would be less of a pain than my E38. Not expecting it to be a Lexus obviously but I can't imagine anything as bad as the Bimmer Sounds like it will have less frequent issues but will be pricier on the parts. I'd like to do 5-10k miles a year on it. Anyway, can anyone comment on the driving manners? Body roll? etc?

I've had My R129 for almost three years now and it has been solid as a rock. I put new brakes, top cylinders in, and fixed the typical broken plastics in the interior and it looks and drives good as new. I haven't put a dollar into it since. It's been the most reliable car I have other than the Testarossa. The E38 is always pissing a fit about something.

 

Yes, it’s the same wiring loom issue.

They are quiet, smooth, solid, refined and relaxing to drive. I used to feel like I was piloting a nice ocean liner. It’s a nice sensation.

The BMW’s are drivers cars, you feel that all the time. The S Class feels different, not totally detached, but as if the focus is on enjoying the journey over enjoying the drive.

However underlying that the car has a lovely balance. I remember I hit a patch of oil perhaps on a very large roundabout in heavy rain, at about 35 mph and the back end gently lost all grip and slid out. I just wound a little lock on and applied a little more power, and it gracefully and gently power slided round the long curve, past one exit, I pointed it at the next exit I wanted to take, and it straightened up without even the slightest flick and carried on serenely. I decided there and then it was a great car. No skill was required, it’s a very balanced and honed chassis.

As a place to be it has an atmospheric best of german appeal. The luxury comes from the sense of good design and inherent quality and strength. It is from the era when Mercedes focused on the almost minimalist highly refined solid qualities they used to be so good at. The earlier ones do have nicer switchgear.

I imagine the coupe is very similar. If you already like the way the SL drives you will probably like the S / CL.

 

I bought a 1996 S320 as a daily driver last month. It was very cheap to buy. I'm used to the V8, had an S500 and a 500SL. But so far for grocery shopping, its a great little car.

 

Nice. I heard those sixes are bombproof reliablity wise. I'd have to have the v8 at least though. How are those big fat vacuum sealed windows treating you?

 

The six is decent. I had a 95 S500 and a 1991 500SL, so kind of miss the V8. I regret selling both the S and SL, but its hard to find low miles cream puffs these days. Add in I want CDN market cars, its real slim pickings.

 

I've got the 5 liter v8 in My 99 SL500. Excellent motor. Loads of torque and gets about 22-24 mpg on average. Not bad.

The Sedans of that era are getting EXTREMELY difficult to find in very good condition. I remember buying my 91 LS400 back in 2004 and the clean ones were STILL dime a dozen back then. Now they are basically extinct, and difficult to find one with the desired specs (nakamichi system a must). Same goes for the W140 but there seem to be more clean ones out there despite being produced in lower numbers than the LS400. GAWD I LOVED that car. It was so far ahead of its time and actually did have soul. I had two late 90s/early 2000s V8 GS's and they paled in comparison. Both felt cheap. The leather was connolly, the wood was yamaha, the carpets were top rate, the center stack dash was timeless, loved the steering wheel and 3d gauges, everything in the car was setup of perfectly ergonomically. Every time I got inside I knew it was a special car, even the sound of the ignition crank. Had Great high end acceleration and soft ride with still capable handling. Best all around car I have ever owned and would still drive one today.

 

Obviously an import but there are lots of mint low mileage under 20,000 miles S Class being exported from Japan at the moment, both RHD and LHD.

 

I just don't remember seeing that many W140s driving around in their heydey. E38s and LS400s were common sightings but not the Mercs. They're not rare but I don't think they brought nearly as many to the US. Yet there seem to be more nice ones out there than the ladder.

 

I had a 1995 S600 coup white/tan fully loaded which I really liked. I used as a DD for several years. I had an 100k extended warranty which I used to the tune of $40k. The dealer service writer and I became very good friends until he retired. He said the V8 version was very reliable-- the V12 not so much. My next MB was a 2003 CL55 (2003 - 2006 I believe). Very reliable and put 200k + miles on the clock. Suggest you go w/ the V8 or up grade to the AMG version 2003-2006 CL 55, again not the CL 65. The same service writer said the 65 (V12) was more problematical. Just my experience and that of my favorite MB service writer.

 

Usually the other way round. The 2000's cars problematic. The V12 has a pretty good reputation though I accept yours wasn't a good experience.

 

Holy cow you dumped 40k in service into that 1995? Yikes. The car wasnt cheap new I guess. Im shocked to hear that your cl55 was reliable. I hear nothing but nightmare stories about those cars. They are very beautiful, but I''m not really interested in them. The 90s benzes build quality and materials used were FAR superior and that's the car I would grab. What did you pay for the extended warranty? Sounds like it paid for itself rather quickly.

 

The $40K service was fully covered by the extended warrantee (I believe it cost was $1500- $1,800 range hard to remember that far back exactly) I purchased so not a $$$ issue just a hassle bringing it in but I got a loaner every time also w/o charge. The service writer told me the V12 in the 90s were problems in the mid 90s and the V8s were pretty trouble free. However I didn't have his recommendation when I got the 1995 S600 coup which only had about 5.8k miles on it and it was a year and half old when I got it.

The 2002 CL55 was NG but the 2003 -2006 were very trouble free. Also my service writer said not to go to the CL65 when I talked to him about trading up. I ran the CL55 to 130k miles without any issues except for a broken motor mount. It started needing service/repair issues at about 150k miles and was costing about $4k - $6k per year for my last two years of ownership. It wasn't worth much in 2016/2017 and I liked the car so I just went with maintenance/repairs as depreciation had actually been more in previous years.

That is my experience and that of my service writer who had over 25 years with MB dealership in my area. So I don't know where your information comes from but mine is the real deal. The S600 I owned for about 8 years (105K miles) and the CL55 for 12 years (207k miles). So listen to who ever you want everyone has their own stories.

 

So I finally drove one of these today after many years of procrastination. The car was a mess but the motor, tranny, and suspension were strong, interior was about C+ to B- condition I would say. The leather smelled glorious, the doors were heavier than hell, very very loose steering but handled well enough, not as much body roll as I anticipated. Plenty of torque, TONS of front interior room to stretch out. My only complaint was the movement of the front seats and that the top half of the seat cannot be adjusted. The side automatic buttons on the seats (for rear entry) were non functional and when I moved them all the way forward manually, they didn't move far enough forward to put large items such as boxes in the back seat. Which is a shame because there is plenty of room in the back for cargo. I really liked the car, it reminded me of a more plush first gen LS400, leather and all and the style of the center stack diagonally upward. Also, I was unaware that you could get these in america in the 1998 and 99 model year. The model was switched to cl500 and are very very rare. I was under the assumption that 1997 was the last year in America for these.