New 190E owner/fan

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New 190E owner/fan; Initial thoughts on 190 ownership
Topic Started: Sun May 10, 2009 7:56 pm (314 Views)
simon190E	Sun May 10, 2009 7:56 pm Post #1
Member Posts: 63 Group: Members Member #4,138 Joined: May 10, 2009	I'd been hankering after a 190 for some years and a few weeks ago finally realised that ambition. Bought my 190E on ebay after spotting it 30 mins before auction end and after a couple of glasses of wine, probably not the best place to start ownership but I figured worst case I'd put it back onto ebay and hopefully just lose a few hundred if it turned out to be a clunker. I live in Weymouth Dorset and the car resided in East london so with Ł820 cash in hand I booked the Ł1 funfare with National Express to pick it up (the tube fare from Victoria was more expensive at Ł4!). I've had the car a couple of weeks now (drove back from London without incident, although temp gauge did creep up in slow traffic) and so far it's not fallen apart. It's an early 1993 K plate 190E 2.0 in silver with Grey leather, Aircon, 4xE/W, Elec SR 128K miles, MOT until Jan 2010 and tax until end June. The bodywork to my mind is superb, interior very good and all the toys inc A/C work fine. The engine pulls very well, it feels solid and smooth on the road and the autobox is smooth most of the time but can be jerky under kickdown. This is the first 190 I've driven so no idea what's normal! Currently appears not to burn/lose oil or water. Starting takes a few cranks, but I intend to renew the distributor and rotor arm very shortly. Starts easily when warm/hot. The diff has a slight whine so will renew the oil asap with an additive. Initial impressions are it's fun to drive (took me by surprise!). The engine is much smoother and pokier than I expected a 4 cyclinder to be in a heavy body (at least it feels heavy). Handling though feels quite nimble and room inside is reasonable for a 'baby' Benz. I can understand now the following these cars have although there are some minor annoyances....the steering wheel is too low, too large and obscures the instruments. I want to keep the car original so will get used to the driving position, which is comfortable enough once slid into place. The driver door mirror has a manual adjust, which sort of makes sense but is a little penny-pinching on spec. The headlight control is not illuminated but as I understand from this forum 'normal'. The engine looks easy to work on, parts seem as cheap as a Ford or Vauxhall and insurance costs me and the missus Ł127 fully comp on a 3000 mileage limit classic car policy (I am 43 though....unfortunately). All in all I'm a happy bunny so far and if the 'E' survives until Jan I'll have had my money's worth (less than a new car would depreciate in the same period). For pics have a look at the Ebay listing http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=250407210351 One question though...were these wheel trims available for the 190 or a later fitment? Thanks for reading and I look forward to spending many hours trawling this excellent forum and driving this lovely car!....Simon



alan	Sun May 10, 2009 8:13 pm Post #2
this looks like fun Posts: 4,004 Group: Members Member #2,052 Joined: December 21, 2007	welcome to the site you seem to have got your self a bargin there she is looking in good nick i think im gona have to try your way of buying a car few glasses of wine and a why not attitude it seems to work better than mine its black great dont have to buy more coloured polish lol



mindingthepotole	Sun May 10, 2009 8:15 pm Post #3
Go on... buy a rusty one. lol Posts: 1,854 Group: Members Member #3,843 Joined: February 17, 2009	stunning car mate... bet your well chuffed.... i think those wheel trims are from a later car though, but i could be wrong.



Rich27	Sun May 10, 2009 8:16 pm Post #4
If it has tits or an engine it will be trouble Posts: 13,272 Group: Members Member #348 Joined: June 15, 2006	Looks a good one, Welcome to the site.



CrysAk	Sun May 10, 2009 8:16 pm Post #5
Moar Bass! Posts: 5,050 Group: Members Member #456 Joined: August 14, 2006	looks like a bargain m8! glad you liking ownership so far theres meatod toa ll the madness, im sure someone here will fill you in on it all lol idle temp raising to 100 is normal in traffic as thats when teh fan kicks in, as is the manual driver mirror, diff whines common unfortunately but can be reconditioned fairly cheap headlight control should be illuminated? atleast mine is, possibly a bulbs gone out (not its only illuminated once lights are ON as for the steeringwheel, thats a common complaint, many members (myself included) have gone aftermarket for a smaller wheel, however there are tons of AMG and stock looking wheels out there that are smaller, the 190e sportline model came with a slightly smaller steeringwheel but they are pretty hard to get ahold of, so might be worth while keeping an eye out for one of those wheel trims im not sure about but i see a fair few 190s with them on welcome to the clubm , car looks stunning



merc190uk	Sun May 10, 2009 8:19 pm Post #6
Steve Posts: 7,525 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: November 1, 2005	hi and welcome nice first post made good reading those are the right trims and it looks to be in great condition so well done the sterring wheel is annoying on these cars across the whole model range and they all have that cheap drivers mirror sadley also great spec car too



toff190	Sun May 10, 2009 8:26 pm Post #7
190 Mob Member and a Wise Guy. Posts: 3,448 Group: Members Member #2,544 Joined: April 18, 2008	Hello Simon and welcome to the forum, i also live in Dorset Car looks very nice with lots of extras, all driver door mirror are manual adjust but not a problem really Enjoy your new car and have fun.



stwat	Sun May 10, 2009 8:27 pm Post #8
Moderator Posts: 12,434 Group: Moderator Member #28 Joined: November 11, 2005	Hello and welcome Its a common misconception that these cars are heavy and slow. That looks and sounds like a bargin indeed. Enjoy. Stu



MICHAEL	Sun May 10, 2009 8:28 pm Post #9
Member Posts: 5,633 Group: Members Member #555 Joined: September 28, 2006	Simon, wine or not, that's a lovely 190E and a real bargain too.



deekerh	Sun May 10, 2009 8:32 pm Post #10
Deekerh Posts: 331 Group: Members Member #664 Joined: November 14, 2006	Welcome, looks a great buy with decent spec. Enjoy.



moomycossie	Sun May 10, 2009 8:45 pm Post #11
2.3-16v engine now in Posts: 3,065 Group: Members Member #2,263 Joined: February 12, 2008	looks great mate, welcome



simon190E	Sun May 10, 2009 8:59 pm Post #12
Member Posts: 63 Group: Members Member #4,138 Joined: May 10, 2009	Thanks guy's for all the responses - appreciate the info and comments. Yes I am chuffed so far with purchase, If I were an MP would have been even better as I could have put it on expenses If anyone knows of any 'meets' in the South West coming up let me know. Cheers Simon



CrysAk	Mon May 11, 2009 8:16 am Post #13
Moar Bass! Posts: 5,050 Group: Members Member #456 Joined: August 14, 2006	few meets coming up, check the forum section m8 also will be worth popping down for the annual gtg at retro show this year always a great laugh



Benzsc1	Mon May 11, 2009 8:17 am Post #14
Member Posts: 938 Group: Members Member #889 Joined: January 31, 2007	Welcome mate car looks a blinder those wheel trims are original as far as it looks they put them on the last of the run if you like roughly from 92 until end of production although I imagine they may have been an option against other types of trim.



Martrider	Mon May 11, 2009 9:18 am Post #15
Longest build time in history? Posts: 1,533 Group: Members Member #2 Joined: November 2, 2005	Welcome aboard! I think you found a very nice example, looks very clean and whine should go with a flush and additive as you say. I never knew those wheel trims came standard, in fact, i don't think they ever did. They are from a W124 E-Class (Big brother of the 190) and they look fairly new. The orignal ones started to look a bit tatty fairly quickly. Great to see you at a GTG. Hope you're happy with it! Martin



aemt	Mon May 11, 2009 10:10 am Post #16
Member Posts: 2,907 Group: Members Member #3,171 Joined: September 1, 2008	Hallo and welcome to the forum.



Benzsc1	Mon May 11, 2009 10:26 am Post #17
Member Posts: 938 Group: Members Member #889 Joined: January 31, 2007	Quote: I never knew those wheel trims came standard, in fact, i don't think they ever did. They are from a W124 E-Class (Big brother of the 190) and they look fairly new. The orignal ones started to look a bit tatty fairly quickly. I am pretty sure they are standard on the very late 190's they are exactly the same style as the 124 trims which you are correct more commonly worn on and actually for all intents and purposes can easily be interchanged. If you search on ebay there are a few steel wheel'd 190's wearing them alongside the more common flying saucer style trims. I am not 100% sure they were factory fit and not retro fitted but I recall back in the day a customer used to bring his 190 to me for service after it ran out of warranty and his car wore the same trims that was back in 95/96. Anyways I could be wrong but as this is something that I have noticed come up a few times on here it would be could if someone could officially clarify. and hopefully I am not going mad............. Edited by Benzsc1, Mon May 11, 2009 10:28 am.



jeremy	Mon May 11, 2009 10:51 am Post #18
Member Posts: 6,573 Group: Members Member #2,018 Joined: December 9, 2007	Hi & welcome to the forum, I have the same interior on my 2.6, Orion grey its called, super comfy too. Jeremy



dave_irl	Tue May 12, 2009 8:57 pm Post #19
I love offset. Posts: 8,729 Group: Admin Member #6 Joined: November 2, 2005	Welcome to the club Pretty much as the lads said above, but about your drivers mirror, it is possible to retro fit an electric adjust drivers mirror from the W124 E Classes of the same period, if you get the twin switch and wiring loom, its not an impossible job. That said, I have yet to finish mine lol. Good luck and enjoy the forum



Mike wantza Merc	Wed Jun 3, 2009 1:41 pm Post #20
Autophile. Posts: 1,010 Group: Members Member #3,753 Joined: January 23, 2009	Welcome to the forum. Looks a good'un. I have non-standard trims on my 190e auto too, although I believe mine are from an early C-Class, at least that's what the previous owner told me. (see my signature photo) If you enjoy your car as much as I do mine, you're on a winner. I changed the plugs, air filter, straight away after buying mine and added Extralube ZX1 to the engine (Not Slick50), and changed the EP90 in the diff, and I add Redex injector cleaner each fill-up. I have seen the mpg come up from 23mpg to currently 28mpg. One thing I do because of the incline of my drive, is to stop and apply the handbrake in N, release the footbrake and then let the car settle, and then push the lever to P. I think it helps keep the tensions off the gearbox, otherwise it can clunk as you settle in P as you take your foot off the brake pedal. I've had mine since January this year so I'm still on a learning curve too. Enjoy!!



simon190E	Wed Jun 3, 2009 3:04 pm Post #21
Member Posts: 63 Group: Members Member #4,138 Joined: May 10, 2009	Hi Mike, Looks like I'm pretty much on exactly the same part of the curve! I also do the same with the transmission now as I park on an incline. Recent jobs include New plugs (Bosch Ł4 from Ebay), new Beru distributor cap from GSF (very reasonable Ł16 with the Merc club discount....thanks chaps), an Intermotor rotor arm for Ł4 (not as robustly built as the original Bosch but I will only do 3000 miles a year so cheap enough to renew every year). The air filter looks new so I'll leave that for the time being. Had the Diff oil renewed by a friendly local garage yesterday and an additive added to help quieten it down a little (has made a welcome improvement so far) . I know this is a fairly simple job but figured it was a good opportunity for the mechanic to have a good poke around the underside and check the propshaft rubbers and suspension bushes etc - all looks good thankfully.....and the filler bolt took some heaving to get out so he said. I have put a shot of Redex in. I used the small white bottle, which sells for about a pound+ in H'fords. Not sure how different this is to the standard red stuff so if anyone knows please shout! I am currently getting around 24mpg with all short runs of 3 to 4 miles. I would expect 28mpg+ on a reasonable run. The interior and engine bay have had a good clean-up, which exposed a few split hoses etc (now replaced from Merc dealer spares, which I found very reasonably priced). Imminent jobs include pulling out the blower motor and replacing the carbon brushes (some on ebay for about Ł15 delivered, which seems steep for brushes but I can't find anywhere else online selling them). The blower still runs but getting a bit intermittent. Will also replace the underbonnnet half insulation pad, which is less than Ł25 from the Merc dealer. Need a new Door mirror assy as the adjust knob shaft has snapped but that can wait. I intend to replace the rear parcel speakers with smaller lower profile units as the current ones are a bit too bling for me and not very well fitted. Biggest problem is I love driving this car! smooth and quiet with very decent performance.



Bart707	Wed Jun 3, 2009 3:07 pm Post #22
Member Posts: 4,384 Group: Members Member #2,244 Joined: February 7, 2008	Hello and Welcome!



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