bhp – My E34 and W124 craze

I had loads of people asking me what is it with me and 20 year old German cars. Why not just settle for a new Toyota Vios or maybe even a Honda Jazz / Honda Fit with same power to weight ratio and better fuel economy? True to the point, the BMW E34 and The Mercedes Benz W124 are both hitting 20 years of age for most of these cars in existence. with all things old, there tend to be problems that may come along with it.

Contrary to the common belief, the E30, E34 and W124 are not that all fussy old-timers. Regular oil changes and attention to some details will keep the car going for many years more. The W124 for one had a 30 years anti-rust treatment and was tested to run up to 1,000,000 miles or 1,609,334 kilometres. At that point, the odometer on your dashboard would have tripped and reset itself to start off from zero without an unscrupulous mechanic’s help.

The fact is, which I am sure many folks ot there will agree with me, the E30, E34 and the W124 are still mechanically the best built German automobiles today. They were over-engineered and built to last. Of the Mercs and Bimmers, the W124 was undeniably that better built example. Of the 3, I prefer the E34 for it’s strong lines, performance and ample interior space. you have to agree that the kidney grills and the round headlights that gave the car it’s handsome looks still look intimidating today.

Compared with today’s latest incarnations loaded with all the electronics, the old guards suffer from the normal wear and tear of mechanical moving parts. These replacement parts are readily available. The new models on the other hand were not built to last to be exact. German or Japanese, all you need is a blown fuse to stop your car dead. Maybe it’s a man’s thing or a boy’s dream some 15 years ago but if you know DTM, you know when I say no Japanese cars have ever been put up to the same abuse. Given, these aren’t your normal production cars and were either AMG tuned or M Powered. Still, they were tuned from the exact same based production models. DTM faded off in the late 90’s as Formula 1 grab the attention with all it’s marketing glitz. In 2000, all that changed for DTM, where you find some of the craziest professional race drivers alive. If I had to settle for a new German car today, it would be none other than an Audi or VW at a higher price point compared to any Japanese make available on the local market today. Else, I will get my E34 and you can shut the hell up.

DTM History – The Golden Years

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DTM History – First Class

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DTM History – Reborn Stars

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