My past BMW’s were fun cars. I had a great time driving them, and I learned a lot fixing them. However, they got a bit repetitive after having cars so similar: the E53 X5, E36 318ti, and the E36 328i. These all shared so much in common that I could go through the motions to change out a thermostat or replace an oil filter housing gasket with my eyes closed. So, what does a car guy do when they need a new project to tinker on? He moves on and gets a 1995 W124 Mercedes E320!
I guess I’m just a 90’s kid. And I can’t seem to get away from boxy silver cars. Well, what did I get myself into? Easy, a solid Benz with only 99k miles. My first foray into something not BMW, yet still German (I did have a 2004 Ford Focus as another project last year during the same time). For once, I can’t plug in my trusty Blue Point scanner and diagnose everything on the car at once, this now requires more skill and feel for the car (since this is pre OBD-II). I have now found myself using a multimeter, checking for vacuum leaks, and audio-visually observing much more. It was something I had never needed to do with the BMW’s, as they’d pop a code that would read out exactly what was wrong. Nevertheless, now that it is running well, I’ve had my fun with this ol’ girl, and I am ready to let it go to a new owner.
