31st Aug 2026, 23:28
Although I am old enough to remember the era when the Granada and the Mercedes 200 were new cars, I believe the Ghia trim was slightly more expensive than the base-model W123.
Even so, the Granada (like the Renault 25) was a far more sensible choice if you wanted a quality car without the steep price tag of a premium brand.
While the Granada’s material quality wasn't quite on par with a Mercedes, it certainly didn't lag far behind; quite the opposite, in fact.
If mass-market brands like Ford, Renault, Peugeot, and Citroën struggled to sell well in the executive car segment, it was precisely because they weren't premium brands.
Generally speaking, someone looking for an expensive, premium vehicle would rather buy a BMW or Mercedes, even a base model, than a better-equipped car from a mass-market brand. It is a matter of status that is somewhat difficult to fathom.
8th Sep 2026, 09:35
I think it depends on the market. A base Granada was less than 60% of the price of a base 200. Even fully optioned the Granada was still slightly cheaper, as far as I can remember, but I might be wrong. My father ended up with the Granada due to pricing. He actually wanted the 200 with automatic and power steering. But it was simply too slow, and he had a specific budget, so the 230 or 250 was way past this. So he happily ended up with the Granada 2.8.
31st Aug 2026, 14:04
Build quality on these Granadas were good but not up to Mercedes (W123) quality. However in my opinion it drove better than a Mercedes at almost half the price. Sound isolation especially on the Ghia trim, was excellent and on Mercedes level. A Granada was the smart buy back then if you didn't care for the status. A 2.8 V6 Ghia fully optioned including automatic, was still cheaper than a barebone Mercedes 200 with manual transmission.