This 1991 Mercedes-Benz AMG wagon is a sharp looking car! It is supposedly a pre-merger car which is apparently extremely rare. It can be found here on eBay with a current bid of $15,600. The ad has over 200 photos and the car looks like it is in great shape including a $4,000 service and tune up done recently. Currently located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, the ad states the car was originally imported to Japan when new. It is has a clear Minnesota title and the seller claims it is the only one in the U.S. that they are aware of.
Most people are familiar with the letters A.M.G. They are synonymous with Mercedes performance including their amazing SLS gullwing. A as in Aufrecht, M as in Melcher and G as in Großaspach is where AMG actually comes from. There is a long history of the AMG brand and Mercedes partnership which you can read more about here on Mercedes-AMG.com.
Performance comes from an M103 3242cc straight 6 engine. According to the ad it is rated at 0-62MPH in 7.0 seconds with a top speed of 158MPH. All this in a grocery getter! They also feature a tuned transmission, limited slip differential and sport suspension. It comes with 40+ pages of service records and annual inspections. The as also says, “The car just had a major service (oil & filter change, transmission fluid & filter change, and differential service)” along with a bunch of new parts under the hood.
The interior features AMG upgrades including heated Recaro CSE seats, steering wheel, wood trim, instrument cluster, and rear facing third row. The car is said to have less than 82,000 miles and looks nearly new. There is definitely a hint of 90’s styling with regard to the angled dash and knobs, but overall, the design is fairly timeless. Also, when was the last time you saw a compact disc changer in a trunk?
This is a great looking wagon and I’m sure the new owner will enjoy it for years to come. In my mind it’s not an instant collectible and hasn’t quite entered the collector car status, but maybe I’m wrong? What do you think?
Oh baby.
OMG .. in love!
I had one of these that was NOT the AMG version. I worked at a GMC dealership where the Mercedes owner traded one in that had less than 8,000 miles as he changed jobs and needed a truck. The (now ex) wife wanted a fancy wagon like a Mercedes or BMW as the kids were showing dogs in 4H. The price was right and it was close to Mother’s Day, so I bought it. The absolute worst car I ever owned times 10! When it was still under warranty I almost could not afford the time to keep taking it to the dealer. And when it was out of warranty it felt like I was spending all my awake hours working on it.
4-Matic problems, ABS problems, automatic level control problems, Air bag (SRS) problems, worn out Idler arm at 55,000 miles. (Dodge truck and Jeep owners really have no idea about how violent the death wobbles can really be!) And then to top it off head gasket problems. (the ones that fill up the cooling system with your motor oil, and drain your oil pan) Mercedes paid for 50% of the first failure and then 10,000 miles later it happened again. This time no help. I finally dumped this piece of trash when most of the list above had raised it’s ugly head again with the addition of the cruise control that would just start accelerating on it’s own. I let it go one time to see if it would shut down. I had to turn the key off at 115 mph.
There is a reason you don’t see this model car driving on the streets. They are junk! If you see one for sale on Craigslist, it will be cheap. It will have multiple issues. There are many of these model in the junk yards with no body damage or rust. I was an A.S.E. certified master tech (automotive, medium and heavy duty truck and alternative fuels) and I have never seem a vehicle with so many huge problems. I will take a clapped out, rusted out, used up engine, front frame rails twisted out Vega before I would ever have a Mercedes again. The pre 1985 Mercedes are nice cars. But I have had other experiences with customer’s “newer” Mercedes that reinforces my feelings.
Ok, I have that off my chest now. Let’s see some good cars now!
That’s not common fortunately. They are fantastic vehicles to most owners.
This is why the value of Mercedes and cars like it are so low.
Imagine a car that sold new for $132,000 dollars 17 years ago, is now worth $5,000.00
That is a huge depreciation.
Wayne great post. This AMG version does look fantastic. There must be a reason there is one and you explain it!
Well Wayne I have to say that your experience with the 124 chassis is unusual. In fact you may be the only person with that bad an experience. I bought my first 124 in early 1992. It was an offlease 1988 300E and I loved it. Dealer maintenance was expensive but MBZ is all about PM and it is worth it. Coolant flushes, trans services, fuel filter changes, etc. The M103 bottom end is good for 250k miles no problem. Yeah, the early M103s had soft intake guides that wore out early and caused oil consumption but that was fixed by 91. The head gasket issue was a minor oil leak usually *out* of the gasket not one that “filled up the cooling system” with oil. The 4MATIC system was the first generation AWD by MBZ and did have some issues, usually with the transfer case.
But to condemn the 124 chassis cars as unreliable junk is just plain laughable.
I currently own half a dozen sedans, wagons, and a coupe between 1988 and 1991 model years. Do they require repairs and maintenance? Sure, but what 30 YO car doesn’t.
Find a Vega and drive the wheels off it. Please.
BTW I am an ASE Master Tech. and work as a mechanic in a busy 4 bay shop. I see plenty of rolling junk and *all* makes/models have their share of problems.
Looks like the entire car was soaked in a vat of Armor-All. I hate when sellers/flippers/dealers do that, especially to leather seats.
I have a 90 amg sedan and one of my friends loved it and bought a non amg wagon and it was nothing but a nightmare .. the 4 matic was problematic .. it never got better than 11 or 12 mpg and went through 2 head gaskets in the year and a half he owned it. He never bought another MB again … They are complicated machines but much simpler than their newer counterparts .. I used mine to visit a friend 60 miles away on the weekend and routinely cruised between 82 and 110 every week .. occasionally having fun with a Fast and Flatulent low rider up to 145 or 150 .. they are the perfect sleeper
AMG. Are the best cars….. if you can afford them… don’t buy them.. Every thing breaks down or needs maintenance.. I have four different AMG currently in my garage.. love them
This wagon is all show and no go.
No way it does 0-60 in 7 seconds. Maybe down a very steep hill.
Yes a 4matics were pure crap. Look up the price of new front axles.
The only good 124 wagon was a 1987 diesel, that is until the rear hydro suspension blows up.
I went and inspected this car for a friend on the West Coast. I was thoroughly impressed with its overall condition, the provenance, the paperwork, and the knowledge and care bestowed upon it by the owner. It’s everything he claims it is, and he will happily answer any and all questions. I reported my findings (and another set of 100 photos) to the interested party, and I hope someone with his level of enthusiasm for this car ends up with it. It looks good, drives as-new, and everything works. Also, for what it’s worth, the seller is a joy to work with. He is on-time, prepared, and willing to help any way he can. This is going to be a great sale for someone!
Hmmmmm So Scott, If you inspected it for an interested party and reported your findings then why didn’t the interested party pull the trigger? Say you wouldn’t be the real owner here now would you?
My pal did bid on the car as a result of my inspection. He may still be bidding on it. It’s an auction…
Interesting post, personally I love German wagons. I looked for months for a unicorn BMW 5 or 3 touring that was not silver or black replacement for our beloved 2000 540i m sport which my wife made me sell at 145k. This car by the way had a 5cd changer in the trunk.
luv me a 123TD wagon any day
You would think it would be the 24v to be a AMG nice car though
I saw a CD changer in the trunk of a car about an hour ago…..in my Lincoln Town Car!
If I could this car would already be mine! Love it! Hope that the new owners will enjoy it as much as I would!
Seller is looking for around the $50k mark…. this is the 4th time listed in recent months
Not all Mercedes wagons from the 90’s where 4matic, yes the 4matic was initially very problematic but the regular wagon was great had a 1990 300te that had well over 250,000 miles and by the way Mercedes are expensive to maintain
I have never seen a 4matic in the UK. Will google and find out more. We maybe didn’t get them.
On maintenance I have always found Mercedes fairly cheap to maintain as long as I didn’t buy parts at a main dealer. Although my S Class needed a hydraulic suspension strut replaced and main dealer wanted nearly $2k fitted.
I have always bought non original but German made (or similar) parts at a fraction of the price.
My E36 M3 has a cd changer in the trunk, and unlike the MBs I’ve worked on, is not in love with special tools and outrageously priced parts. Does a cd changer under seat count? One in my Montero, but it came with one by the tail gate.
Currently DD a 95 wagon RWD with 297,703mi on it. Its a beast of burden and using mail order parts places, not expensive to maintain. Its strong enough to haul/carry like a wagon should and classy enough to take to dinner with the wife.
Wayne, sounds like that guy dumped a lemon at your dealership!
If these cars are taken care of, they respond in kind.
You also have to keep in mind design for these cars started in the tail end of the 70’s! (they came out in ’86). There wasn’t a lot of experience in 4wd wagons at the time: Audi (VW parts bin…blehh), Subaru (tin worm would have taken them out in 15 years), Toyota (small engine/capacity/tim worm) and Volvo (pretty good actually!). These wagons are by far the best from the period.