Some people like having flashy new things, whatever the cost. But others want to get their money’s worth out of a purchase, and won’t accept anything less than near-immortality from their possessions. If you are of that latter persuasion, you’re in luck – today we’re looking at two sedans that might just outlast you.
Yesterday we looked at two trucks, one with twice as many cylinders as the other. By a huge margin, you chose the smaller of the two, electing not to drive something the size of a cruise ship that gets eight miles to the gallon. But those of you who did advocate for the great big Dodge did so passionately, and I admire you for that. But you’re definitely in the minority.
Me, I’m abstaining from this one. I already have a truck I like better than either of these, and it’s right in between them, size-wise. I know, I know; I don’t let any of you vote “neither,” but I get to. It’s just how it is.
There’s an old urban legend about an eighty-year-old guy who walked into a Sears store carrying a wad of shredded rags that used to be a bathrobe and demanded a replacement. When the clerk refused, he pointed to the barely legible “Lifetime Warranty” tag inside the robe. “I’m still alive,” he said, “and I want a new robe.” It’s one of those stories that probably isn’t true, but I really want it to be. And if it is true, I really want to know what the old man was driving. I bet it was something like one of these two. Let’s check them out.
1981 Mercedes-Benz 300D – $5,000
Engine/drivetrain: Turbocharged 3.0-liter OHC diesel inline 5, four-speed automatic, RWD
Location: Burbank, CA
Odometer reading: 126,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
A lot of appreciators of long-lived, durable items dismiss luxury brand names as frivolous crap. And in many cases, they’re right, but not always. Mercedes-Benz these days may be just another luxury badge, coasting on past glories, but what we have here is one of those past glories: the W123 chassis sedan. It’s not luxurious by today’s standards, full of high-tech gizmos and bragging rights; it’s just a carefully-designed car built very, very well. Quality is a form of luxury too, one that’s not so easy to find these days.
Most W123 sedans sold in America were diesels, and you’re probably familiar with the glacially slow 240D and only slightly peppier 300D. Mercedes was well aware of the deficiencies of these indestructible but low-output engines, and in 1981 added a turbocharger to the US-market 300D, which brought about forty extra horsepower to the party and made the 300D a more respectable performer. This engine has a reputation for clattering and whooshing its way to some astronomical odometer readings; this one, at only 126,000 miles, is just nicely broken-in.
It looks pretty good inside; M-B Tex vinyl is incredibly tough and long-wearing. The seat springs and horsehair stuffing can sag and need rebuilding, and the driver’s seat of this one does look a little droopy. And it has a ratty-looking cover on the steering wheel that isn’t doing it any favors. The armrest appears to have popped a seam as well. But it’s all fixable, and worth fixing.
The paint is dull and faded, there’s a blemish on the front bumper, and it’s missing a piece of trim from the right front door. And that’s just what I can see; there are no photos in the ad of the rear of the car. The cosmetic condition of this car shows that these things are going up in value; a W123 this shabby was about half this price only a few years ago. I guess that means it’s worth shining it back up.
2005 Toyota Camry LE – $4,995
Engine/drivetrain: 2.4-liter DOHC inline 4, four-speed automatic, FWD
Location: Kent, WA
Odometer reading: 181,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
For four decades now, everybody has known that if you want a reliable and durable car, you get a Toyota Camry. It doesn’t hurt that they’re also nice cars, comfortable to ride in, and pleasant if not exciting to drive. And unlike a lot of cars, they just got better with each successive generation. They have such good reputations that even beat-up examples with 300,000 miles on them are in demand. This fifth-generation Camry is still a ways under 200,000, and it’s certainly not beat-up.
It has the quintessential Camry drivetrain configuration: a four-cylinder engine with an automatic transmission. It works, it’s enough power to get around, and it’s easy to maintain. This one has a timing chain instead of a belt, too, which eliminates one maintenance item. It’s being sold by a dealership, so we don’t get any useful information about its condition, just a list of options and features. But that’s the beauty of shopping for a Camry; it almost certainly runs and drives perfectly.
At first glance, the interior of a Camry looks like any other car: lots of cloth and plastic, nothing special. But it’s all very well-made, and it holds up extremely well. This one has a hole worn in the floormat from the driver’s heel, but otherwise it looks neat as a pin.
Outside, it’s a perfect answer to an Autopian Asks question from last week: it’s hard to get more inconspicuous than this. Hell, unless you look closely, it’s hard to tell there’s a car in the photo above at all. It’s in good condition, though, with no rust and only a few blemishes.
I’ve always liked having things that last; I still regularly use tools that I’ve had since high school, and I have shirts older than Thomas. And after years of buying cheap cars that were on their last legs when I got them, I have an appreciation for vehicles that can stand the test of time too. These two have a hell of a lot of life left in them, if you treat them right. Which one looks like the better start for a long-term relationship?
I hate the headlights on the Merc,but I would rather have that over the Camry probably.
If I was buying for myself, the W123. If I was helping a friend or family member find a car, the Camry.
The Mercedes will have more age-related things wrong with it, but will ultimately still outlast the Camry which is why W123’s are still the most common taxi in Morocco.
it depends if you are going to be driving it 2000 miles a year forever, or 10,000 miles a year forever. i guarantee you’ll save money on parts and maintenance on the camry over the merc, and they’ll be a lot easier to find for a long time. the oil drinking problem on these engines isn’t that big of a deal. The scion XBs had that going on, but could be remedied by doing a berryman flush at some point.
Levi’s 501s used to have a lifetime warranty.
There is a guitar maker I follow who advertises a lifetime warranty, then adds, “but keep in mind that I am 77 years old”
I want a W123 turbo diesel, just not that one. Maybe the coupe.
I am still bitter that my wife’s late grandparents (who were otherwise lovely people) refused to let their beloved granddaughter ride in a car without airbags and thus wouldn’t let us have their well maintained 300D. They sold it to a neighbor without giving us a chance.
Lifetime warranty. Back in the late ’90s, Auto Zone offered this on a lot of parts. These days it’s all “limited” lifetime warranty, which means nothing. Anyway, I purchased a set of cv axles for a Geo Metro long ago and it was a bonanza for all the metros I’ve worked on. A constant stream of free rebuilt cv axles for decades. Even back in 2014 when I walked out of an Auto Zone with a set of axles and proclaimed to my pops I paid nothing for them before popping those gorgeous rods in my car he was stoked. However, the gravy train has come to an end.
Recently I’ve been doing a bunch of work on my ’92; with every service performed being the last this hatchback will ever see. One of those jobs was a cv axle replacement.
I walked into the parts store expecting another exchange but what I got was a tense pause. Short story: they ordered me a new axle free of charge and PAID me $85 for my old one’s core charge. They basically bought me out of this lifetime warranty. Can’t complain though.
Sorry this was off topic. I’ll take the Mercedes because it has an actual grill for the parking enthusiasts badge.
Alright here are two oil burners to choose from. A Diesel thats well known to be a million mile engine and which will go up in value every year and another one that can burn up to a qt every 1000 miles. Yes it’s shiny and has a nice interior, this is what dealers do.
But you can’t gime a 2AZ-FE car for free, I really don’t see much of these Camry around, just the previous and next gens. There must be a reason…
2005, 2006 had deceptive temperature gauges that go up to center then lock there no matter what.
Toyota won’t even back up the gauge repair.
I imagine getting them to replace an engine their known factory defect killed, would be even harder.
I have to wonder how many lifelong customers they throw away with those tactics?
So much for their vaunted reputation.
If my defective gauge didn’t kill the engine, I just need to put an ACTUAL Gauge in the car, and replace the plastic radiator and I might have a car.
I’ll consider a diesel swap.
To have and enjoy as a weekend or extra car, the Mercedes, as a daily driver the Camry. Does the turbo on the W123 enter into the “will run forever” equation?
Camry
The Benzo is ten times more interesting than the Camry, but the Camry is in such better condition that I’m picking it for a daily.
If the back half of the Benz looks like the front half, I’ll take it.
If it doesn’t, I’ll still take it – as the donor car for the W123 ute conversion of my warped dreams.
That Mercedes is toast.
The Camry appears barely broken in and ready for more.
The most expensive Mercedes is a cheap Mercedes
Those Camry have a not so legendary engine that loves to drink oil. With some luck it might already have a rebuilt one
That 1981 300D shouldn’t be a turbo car, unless the engine (and trans) have been replaced
The turbo was available in 1981 in the W123 in the US, but only in the wagon.
The clock on the dash, vs a tach, confirms.
No turbo really changes things since the 0-60 time is a lot closer to “perhaps” than a reasonable number of seconds.
Take away the 40hp mentioned above and you’re back at about 85hp. Some torque, but yeah.
The VIN decoder I ran it through said it was a turbo.
Interesting.
Would need more pics, I suppose. MY 1981, the clock, the idle adjustment knob on the dash (left of the column), the chromed window switches, all indicate a non turbo car.
If the VIN decoder shows a 617.912 engine it would be normally aspirated.
But the arrow turn signal indicators and gauges are from an even earlier version of the car (pre-81).
/pedantic
This Benz probably has stories to tell. Like, perhaps the odometer has been swapped.
I have none of the arcane technical knowledge about Mercedes diesels that you do, but the driver’s seat looks a little tired for the miles advertised.
Good point.
I’d be weary of this car. It’s advertised on CL in LA as a turbodiesel, but it doesn’t have the 617.952 engine (according to the VIN pictured). It doesn’t appear to have the original odometer.
The interior is very worn out. There’s forum threads out there dedicated to measuring W123 miles by how worn the texture on the steering wheel is. The fact that it has a cheap cover on an already (perfectly proportioned grip and) padded wheel is concerning.
And the body colored painted headlight doors are (ugly, and) a pretty good sign it’s been fixed up at least once. Front clip looks like a different color.
Run away!
There is a mountain made of diamond. Every 100 years, a little bird lands on the mountain and sharpens its beak. When the whole mountain is worn away by it, the 300D would have broken in.
They might last forever, but with a W123 your ETA to destination also approaches forever.
That gen if camery is very hot or miss but level of comfort and tech is just about right. But a w123 diesel will run forever be comfortable and not super hard to fix so the w123
I had a W123 in high school (240D – sooo slow) and the speedometer cable broke often enough that I would never fully trust the odometer reading on one. This car especially – 126,000 miles shouldn’t beat up a car this badly, especially in Southern California. That odo either turned over at least once or didn’t work for a few (hundred) thousand miles. That car is spent.
Give me the W123 any day of the week.
We have a similar-era Camry in our fleet and I hate it with a passion. I don’t know if it’s the particular model year that my girlfriend bought, but it is an absolute POS with VSC issues, a phantom occasional misfire, and more oil consumption than my diesel truck. Most days I wake up and hope a meteorite or space junk has landed on it.
Just my thoughts. This is the only Camry generation over the last 30 years I rarely see on the road anymore. This probably being the main reason…
The Camry.It’s comfortable and super reliable.If something breaks or wears out it’s fairly cheap and easy to fix…..unless you need to replace the lower front control arms.
Or the block, of the pistons which love drinking oil….
I need to replace one.
Any advice?