I’m on a bit of a station wagon bender. Yesterday it was this 1953 Chevy, today I have a 1995 Mercedes-Benz E320 for your review and I’ll have another subject, either later today or tomorrow, one that some might consider an unusual topic for a Barn Finds, post. Regardless, this almost 30-year-old example has low mileage (58K) and is in like new condition. And…it’s well beyond the norm of what we usually cover. Located in Burlingame, California, this true blue family car is available, here on eBay for a BIN price of $29,000.
Why all of the station wagons you ask? What’s old is new. Car collectibility morphs around, especially as trends change and what are considered the most desirable collectibles reach stratospheric market values. Also, if you are of a certain age, you’ll clearly recall getting schlepped around in what some would call the Family Truckster, so nostalgia tends to creep into the picture too.
This ’95 Benz is officially known as a member of the W124 series that has been the underpinning of a plethora of mid-sized Mercedes. Specifically, the E320 wagon (Estate) was offered between ’94 and ’96 though the sedan version dates to ’92. A picture is worth a thousand words and there are many pictures here to support this car’s excellent presentation. The seller states, “Lovely cosmetics. Misc. paintwork over the years to keep it looking fresh“. I’m not sure of the need for misc. paintwork but I suppose it could cover a myriad of things such as nicks, fade, and maybe something a bit more intrusive. The seller mentions that he has owned this car since 2019 and purchased it from the original owning family though the chain of ownership isn’t very clear.
Power is provided by a 217 HP, 3.2 liter in-line, six-cylinder engine spinning a four-speed automatic transmission. The seller mentions, “Extensive service history via CarFax. Everything works“. He also slips in a comment about the head gasket having been “done” along with the wiring harness too. I don’t know what that’s all about but I question the need to mess around with head gasket replacement on an engine with just 58k miles of experience – same thing with the wiring harness – what happened there?
The leather interior is a beautiful and Germanic affair, with beige upholstery and carpets that are as clean as a whistle. I’d suggest that this interior hasn’t experienced a lot of children/grandchildren transport as it is in such like-new condition. This is a three-seater and while the wayback is not photographed, I would expect its condition to mirror that of the rest of the interior – no fence pole haulin’ or sod-carrying activity has graced this Benz!
Two concluding items for your consideration, I would like to know more about the head gasket/wiring harness issue, is anyone familiar with a known problem or a recall involving said components or is it just one of those things? And, what about that $29,000 ask, priced right or not quite?
I’d love to own this!
If my memory is correct, some M-B “sixes” in the early ’90s had head-gasket issues. I don’t think they ever got to the recall stage, though. Likewise, insulation o0n their wiring harness was of some “eco-friendly” plastic that tended to deteriorate. So both fixes are welcome.
Aside from that, Mercedes-Benz build quality, that lovely engine and what looks like MB-Tex (the eternal upholstery material) in a handsome longroof…what’s not to love?
The price, for one thing. Seems a bit steep, and is certainly beyond my means. Otherwise, I’d be putting in an offer.
Beautiful car, ambitious price.
Price is off the richter scale, it is worth about $20k & that is generous
Mercedes M103 engines would usually go about 150K before the head gasket required replacement. When they added the 4 valve cylinder head failures became more numerous in the M104 variant. With head gaskets time as well as mileage can cause the failure. Remember these gaskets are not like the new MLS gaskets which better cope with the different expansion rates between aluminum and cast iron. As for the harness cars with the M104 6 cylinder engine they had biodegradable wire insulation which failed prematurely.
Personally I don’t care for the color on this car. Mercedes had a lot of boring colors in the 80’s and 90’s. At least it’s not smoke silver but the color really looks out of place. As far as price it’s a little strong but not by much. If supporting documentation validates the low mileage and car is in top condition they will bring in the 20’s for a TE model.
Beautiful wagon ambitious on the price! $19,500.00 is more like it. Under the wagon looks brand new. You can put this on a Mercedes-Benz showroom floor and it would fit right in. At 58,000 I wonder also about the head gasket. These 6 cylinders we’ll go forever. The head gasket probably north of 150, 000. Good luck to the seller. 🐻🇺🇸
Times and tastes change I suppose. While not when new, I just cannot un-see a hearse in this profile now. Could be me getting older (?), or maybe wagons/suvs are just so much sleeker now.
Speaking of hearses, in 1992 I toured hospitals in Germany owned by a radiologist. His ambulances were W123 300TD wagons. I didn’t inquire about hearses but since it was Germany, after all, it would make sense.
I owned a ’95 e320 wagon for 15 years. The rear self leveling accumulators were popped when I bought the car and they were gone again when I sold it. The upper engine wire harness was replaced and other harnesses were shaky. The A/C evaporators all go bad and it’s a 22 hr by the book fix. It took me 25 hrs.
Otherwise a great car, with good power and a very efficient use of space.
My 89 TE wagon is a real cruiser, I drove 5 years with the gas till I put in the 603, I also loved my 85 veg wagon, the 85 doors shut like a vault, but the car was haunted like a puppy needing tweaks constantly, never anything magor, it was just alive, the 89 wagon is a great rig , both gas and diesel.
Put 200,000 miles on my ’88 300TE wagon (M103 two-valve) then found a ’95 (M104 four-valve) and put 200,000 more on that.
The ’95 popped a head gasket at about 110,000 miles, and we replaced the engine harness somewhere in there, too. The M104 head gaskets nearly all failed, but our replacement held up to at least 300,000 miles. The wiring insulation was somehow designed to die in the junkyard but missed the mark, badly, so the wires could short out and cause problems. A new harness cost about $1,200 and took only a few hours to install. I wouldn’t let either problem prevent me from buying this wagon.
What would prevent me is the price. Because owners loved them, most got driven a lot, so low-mileage examples are rare. Back in 2002, I paid $22,000 for the clean ’95 with 50,000 miles. Their last year was ’95, so they came loaded (leather, sunroof, etc.) and the M104 made about 30 more hp than the M103. They are elegant, relatively luxurious, comfortable, but most of all useful. The self-leveling rear suspension let me carry almost a ton in the back, with normal handling. Excellent long-distance cruisers yielding 23 mpg at 80-85 mph. The ’88 would hit 140 mph, but the ’95’s top end was limited to 130. Wonderful vehicle. If this one is really cherry, I’d offer $18,000 and maybe go as high as $20,000.
Agreed, slash the price by $10K and I’d be in. Driven gently, these will last and last but being a Mercedes, you’ll also pay an arm and a leg for maintenance unless you’re well-connected. Timeless and clean design.
When you change the head gasket it can lower the compression on the bottom end and create further problems within 10k miles afterwards.
The actual auction for this car is going on over at https://thembmarket.com/1995-mercedes-benz-e320-wagon-5
Up to $16k with a day to go.