Ah, a car that is near and dear to my heart for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is I am entering year seven after rescuing a similar model from a junkyard in Pennsylvania. This car appears to be a much better starting point, although it is equipped with the optional and rarely-seen automatic transmission. The 190E 2.3-16 Cosworth is a limited-production, pre-AMG Mercedes product that offers a much more affordable point of entry into homologation car ownership, but for how much longer? Find this example listed here on eBay with bids to $1,875 and no reserve.

As anyone restoring a car can attest, you get intimately familiar with a model when you spend several years with it under the knife in various phases. Even to this day, after two years of body and paint work, my car is still in a shop where they’re attempting to get the notoriously finnicky CIS-E injection to stop running rich. The seller’s car has most likely been repainted at some point, as the black textured bumpers (they feel like they have Rhino Liner on them) have been painted to match the rest of the body. Also, the 2.3-16 badge is missing from the right rear trunk lid, and is quite difficult to find. However, you can definitely live with this paint job indefinitely.

The interior features four-passenger seating with the seats provided by Recaro. The back seat actually has a small recessed area in between the left and right seats, so it truly is a four-seater. The seats up front are tired and will need new upholstery; no word on whether the standard power and memory controls work. The 190E 2.3-16 was obviously intended to be a sporting model that went head to head with the BMW M3 of the same era, so three pedals would be the assumed gearbox of choice. However, homologation or not, this was a Mercedes and it was expected that at least some of the customer base would want a high-revving track car like this equipped with a slushbox.

Despite its high-revving nature, however, the automatic was actually nicely matched to the engine, and owners of Cosworths equipped this way report that the setup isn’t hateful. The M102 four-cylinder was assembled in partnership with Cosworth, and delivers 167 horsepower and 162 lb-ft of torque. Other Cosworth-specific add-ons included the body kit, rear spoiler, limited-slip differential, and a self-leveling rear suspension. The seller’s car needs some love, but it appears to be in largely stock condition with no obvious rust underneath (and these cars love to rust – ask me how I know.) Therefore, a no reserve auction for a project like this seems like a can’t-lose scenario for bidders.