hello NL. its been ages. I like many of the old mercs but the 190: I can call special. The company sold more than a million examples. I've been wanting to share my 190 pictures since forever so I thought to attempt starting that this evening. They are not many, I'll also be brief. here goes:

at first light.

Isnt she lovely, isnt she........... u know the rest.

Inside story, 4 years ago

front seats were ripped. note the woofer. getrag tranny is in gear 1 towards the driver. you know about that?

individual back seats: only 2. bucket seats though.

white dials on the instrument cluster, 260km/hr. cool init?

lorinser steering wheel, cool or not cool? one of the first things i ripped off, after the woofer. I am an old man, lol.

3 central gauges: oil temperature gauge, stopwatch, battery voltmeter. left to right.

stay tuned, will add the after pictures soon. need to take a break now. cheers!

Following...

hope u tightned the steering properly to avoid stories that touches the lungs..

wow! dats my 1st love there very rugged n reliable.
I regret selling mine

Mr Benzmatic.
I think you made a wise decision by not selling this car anymore.
Now you're enjoying the restoration.
I hope to see the after pictures .

grayht:
hope u tightned the steering properly to avoid stories that touches the lungs..

yessirr, these pictures are from 4 years back.

Readonee35L:
Mr Benzmatic.
I think you made a wise decision by not selling this car anymore.
Now you're enjoying the restoration.
I hope to see the after pictures .

lol, I'm sure u know the after pictures. nothing lasts forever though.

2.5l 16v engine stock. mechanical valve lifters, relatively noisy. but 4 cylinder, naturally aspirated and made close to 200hp. even today, this is impressive. engine was quite worn and eventually had to go after a failed attempt to rebuild. what a motor!!!

after the first wash. not bad really, not bad.

this colour is not black if u had seen it then. It's called smoke silver, this was the stock factory colour, it shone after washing for a car over 20 years old.

One time at work, there were a couple of w201s parked, so i joined the company. if u observe i had blackened the grille and renewed the plates.

Holy crap you got the 2.5 16? Please take care of this gem very well. How does it drive? Please fill us in with the experience

Kufie:
Holy crap you got the 2.5 16? Please take care of this gem very well. How does it drive? Please fill us in with the experience

lol, these are b4 pictures. the 2.5 eventually had to go after a lot of money, time, and tears. But it is wot it is, change is the only constant in life.

benzmatic:

lol, these are b4 pictures. the 2.5 eventually had to go after a lot of money, time, and tears. But it is wot it is, change is the only constant in life.

Oh boy!! That's sad. What's the current powertrain?

One other time, I was travelling and saw a twin of my w201 parked, so I stopped by to say hello and take a photo. the stock engine was long gone of course. I looked into its bay, I suspect it was a 2.3 16v. It still had that aura of ancient greatness that the present owner knew nothing about. like a retired racehorse resigned to draw carts for a vegetable farmer.

notice the dark tinted rear lights are gone. one time I was on the highway and one stupid toyota siena that was struggling to keep up and would not accept defeat rammed into me from behind just after a bump; the fool did not slow down. Both lights were shattered and the rear end crumpled. I took about 20k from the fellow, called my tech to pick the car and continued on my way. Got to work at closing that day, i called in earlier to inform of the crash. i had my seat belt on, head rest was not too low, thank God i didn't get a whiplash, I actually felt my head rebound backwards from the impact. awon toyota won ma n se agidi sha.

At the bakery

primed and ready.

benzmatic:
At the bakery

Great choice... I know this Place.

instrument cluster replaced. note the lack of a rev counter. I can tell if an engine's rpm is off by its sound and feel in motion, so no problem.

steering wheel replaced. nice star logo, large and handy, no monkeying around. this is serious business.

all seats redone to fabric, no more notorious heat.

Gearbox changed from getrag to regular 5sp manual. Getrag was getting stiff, so had to go.