27 October 2017

More than an old car #41: Mercedes W123 250 Limousine


Limousines are a rare sight despite a glut of luxury automobiles in our tiny red dot--they would not be very practical and parking would be a feat on its own. It is therefore impressive to see this 1984 Mercedes W123 250 limousine casually hanging out with other vehicles as well!

The W123 series is a range of executive cars made by Mercedes from 1976, and it was the most successful model at 2.7 million sold before it was replaced by the W124. These cars came with either 4 unequal round headlights or rectangular ones, and they were longer in exterior dimensions compared to previous models. For the long-wheelbase versions ["Lang"], it came in a 7 or 8-seater format, with the middle seats folded down as and when necessary. It was powered by a 2525cc 6-cylinder engine, allowing it to reach a top speed of 185km/h with an acceleration of 11.9 seconds. It was 5.36m long and weighed 1570kg.

Production ended in 1985 with 5180 made, although I believe few of them were in right-hand drive. I am aware of one other unit in Singapore that is black in colour. Owning a car is already very taxing, not to mention a limousine which would require even more care from errant drivers or overly curious people. Such vehicles are easily associated with the wealthy as they go about in class; when was the last time you saw a limo on our roads? Kudos to the owner for continuing to maintain such an unlikely Mercedes--it would pass off so well as a wedding car and I hope you get a chance to see it too!

1 comment:

  1. Hey there, do u know if the w123 lang all had self leveling rear suspension? I read about it but wasnt sure if it came as standard and this is certainly something very complicated to fix should it be out of order.

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