1989 Mercedes-Benz 190 190E review from Australia and New Zealand
"Great promise. Great design. Well put together. So why was it not reliable? An expensive mistake"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Way too many things! It cost me 3 times its purchase price to repair.
- New front dampers.
- Replaced rear drive shafts with used set (new ones were in the $'000s - would have cost half the purchase price of the car)
- Head gasket blown.
- Water pump replaced.
- Chain tensioner and timing chain replaced.
- Automatic transmission completely overhauled.
- Automatic aerial replaced.
- Cruise control stalk speed-increase increment not operative (had to manually accelerate then re-set the required speed)
I'm sure there was more. I must have blocked it all out.
General comments?
I wanted a 190E since I was 16 years old.
This car is beautifully styled on the outside, a traditional Benz on the inside.
It cruises beautifully with good torque and excellent economy, but in town (though economical) it is a pain... more so with the air conditioner on.
Excellent turning circle, great steering, great ride, great handling.
Feels a bit long-and-narrow compared to the W114 280E I owned years before.
Interior space tight though comfortable with excellent seats. Steering wheel too vertical for my liking (unlike excellent positioning on W114 and W116s I've driven)
With everything I had read and my W114 experience I really thought I was buying a great car to last me years, given it had less that 200,000 km on the clock and full dealer service history.
Not so. Was this a lemon. Everything that went wrong surprised me and cost me heaps.
I quit while I was behind. I heard the next owner had to replace the radiator 1 year later)
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| 1989 - 190 2.6E 2.6 inline 6 cylinder Very good the first five years |
|
| A performance luxury sedan built like a tank |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Don't Know |
| Model year | 1989 |
| Year of manufacture | 1989 |
| First year of ownership | 2006 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2007 |
| Engine and transmission | 2.0L EFI Automatic |
| Performance marks | 5 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 1 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 7 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 10 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 0 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 189000 kilometres |
| Most recent distance | 212000 kilometres |
| Previous car | Land Rover Discovery |
| Date of Entry | 26th August, 2008 |