Mercedes-Benz W123


The Mercedes-Benz W123 is a range of executive cars produced by German manufacturer Mercedes-Benz from November 1975 to January 1986. The W123 models surpassed their predecessor, the Mercedes-Benz W114 models, as the most successful Mercedes, selling 2.7 million units before the production ended in the autumn 1985 for saloon/sedan and January 1986 for coupé and estate/station wagon.
The W123 became a hit with the public due to its modern look. Following the slow build-up during the first year of production as to ensure the high and consistent quality, the customers who placed their orders faced a lengthy waiting period of nine to twelve months. A black market emerged for the customers who were willing to pay more for immediate delivery. The slightly used W123 commanded about 5,000 Deutsche Mark premium over its original sale price.
Like its predecessors, W123 gained the reputation of being over-engineered, well-built, durable, and reliable. Many taxi companies chose W123 for this reason, and they were common sight in Germany. Reaching 500,000 or 1,000,000 km with minor mechanical issues was common with W123 used as taxicabs. Once the W123 reached the end of service life, they were often shipped to Africa and third world countries where they were highly esteemed for ability to travel on rough roads and further without frequent maintenance.
W123 production ended in January 1986 with 63 final T-models rolling out. Most popular single models were the 240 D, the 230 E, and the 200 D.

Design

W123 shares technical similarities with its predecessors including engines, steering system, and suspension system. The design is updated with styling cues from its larger sibling, Mercedes-Benz W116, namely wider ribbed taillights, horizontal headlamps and front turn signal indicators on the outer edge, and pull-to-open door handles. The interior is revised with larger instrument panel, central round ventilation outlets, HVAC control panel, single row of control switches in the centre.
The instrument panel has three large gauges placed behind a single plastic cover. The manual HVAC control panel has three large dials with left and right dials for individual temperature control and centre dial for fan speed control. Air flow is controlled by two slides. If the optional air conditioning unit is ordered, a temperature roll dial is fitted to the row of control switches. The automatic HVAC control panel is simplified with single roll disc on the left for temperature control, a row of push buttons in the middle for directing the air flow and switching the system on and off, and a vertical set of button on the right for controlling the fan speed and switching automatic control on and off.
All models except 280, 280 E, and coupé feature larger round headlamps with smaller round fog lamps with large glass plate covering entire headlamp housing and acting as diffusing lens. This setup is same for the North American models with the sealed beam units and glass plate partially covering the headlamp housing. The 280, 280 E, and coupé models use large rectangular headlamps with round fog lamps. The headlamp washers and wipers set are optional.

Nomenclatures

Per Mercedes-Benz tradition, model designation corresponded to the engine displacement, chassis type, fuel type, and availability of fuel injection system :
No designation was given for the long-wheelbase: it was simply called "Lang" in the brochures and order forms.
When the diesel engine is turbocharged, TURBODIESEL is affixed to the right side of the boot lid.
As for the chassis codes, W123 is the saloon/sedan, S123 the estate/station wagon, C123 the coupé, V123 the long-wheelbase saloon/sedan a.k.a. Lang, and F123 refers to the bare long-wheelbase chassis as used for ambulances and other conversions.

Model variations

Saloon (W123)

The four-door version went on sale on 29 January 1976.

Coupé (C123)

In the spring of 1976, a coupé version was introduced on a shortened wheelbase. The C123 was available as 230 C and as 280 C and 280 CE in most markets. Unlike W123 saloon, the rectangular headlamps were fitted to C123 regardless of engine type.

Limousine (V123)

From August 1976, a long-wheelbase version with seating for seven to eight was produced. The limousine is built on an stretched W123 saloon/sedan chassis with lower side panels from the coupé behind the rear passenger doors. The elongated roof has the same C-pillar form as on the saloon/sedan. The rear passenger doors are custom-designed in rectangular shape and of the same length as the ones on the saloon/sedan. The engine options were 250, 240 D, and 300 D. A few 280 E limousines were built per special order.

Chassis (F123)

The stretched limousine version was offered with complete front body clip and strengthened chassis as the base for ambulances or hearses to be built by the conversion specialists such as Binz and Miesen. F stands for Fahrgestelle.

Estate (S123)

At the 1977 IAA in Frankfurt, the first-ever factory-built estate, S123, was introduced. The letter T in the model designation stood for Tourismus und Transport. Previous estates had been custom-built by the coachbuilders, namely Binz. S123 production began in April 1978 at Mercedes-Benz Bremen factory. All engines except the 2-litre version of M115 were available in the range.

Convertible

While Mercedes-Benz never built its own convertible, they have been built by external companies such as the St. Tropez models by Crayford in the UK, and also by Niko-Michaels in New York, USA. In the city of Hagen, Germany, until 2016 one small family owned firm- Baehr , have produced cabrio versions of the C123 Coupe models, and also sold kits for cabrio conversions of the same model.

Engine

All engines from W114/W115 are carried over. The single new engine was SOHC 2.5-litre M123 inline six. The 3-litre five-cylinder diesel engine received a proper nomenclature for W123, matching the engine displacement: 300 D instead of 240 D 3.0 on previous W114/W115.
In the autumn 1978, the power output was increased in 240 D from to and the in 280 E from 177PS to 185 PS. In early 1979, the power output rose from to for 200 D and from to for 300 D. 220 D was deleted from the model range for 1980.
In June 1980, the new M102 four-cylinder inline petrol engine replaced the M115. The 2-litre version was available with carburettor only while 2.3-litre version was available with fuel injection only. The carburetted version of 2.8-litre M110 engine in 280 and 280 C was discontinued in 1981, leaving 250 as sole carburetted six-cylinder inline engine.
The world's first turbocharged diesel engine for passenger vehicle, OM617 A was finally introduced in W123 models in September 1979, exclusive to 300 TD TURBODIESEL for European market. The same engine is offered in the North America and Japan in 1981 as 300 D TURBODIESEL, 300 CD TURBODIESEL, and 300 TD TURBODIESEL.

Equipment and features

The standard and optional features are extensive along with larger number of engine and gearbox options. The customers could choose cloth, MB-Tex vinyl, velour, or leather material for the upholstery as well as interior wood trim for dashboard and centre console. The paint and interior colour palettes are extensive as well.
The driving dynamic enhancement options for extra cost became more extensive over the time: ABS, self-locking differential gear, five-speed manual gearbox, Tempomat cruise control system, power steering system, passenger-side external rear view mirror, "Alpine" horn with selectable loudness, retractable steering column, and so forth.
The extra cost options for creature comfort includes power windows, vacuum-powered central locking system, sunroof, air conditioning system, seats with orthopaedic support, electrically heated seats, pre-heating system, different assortment of radios with and without cassette players, rear seat head rests, etc. The W123 destined for North American market tend to have more optional features as standard, reflecting the American customer's preference for luxury accessories. For the first time in the executive saloon from Mercedes-Benz, W123 has the option of upgrading to full automatic climate control for extra cost if the customers choose to do so. This option is popular feature in the North American and Japanese markets. The rare option is a column gear selector that could be ordered with automatic gearbox if the customer wishes. The most expensive option was Becker radio telephone, selling for 13,512 Deutsche Mark.
In the estate/station wagon model, a third row rear-facing foldable seat was offered as an extra cost option.

Updates

Mercedes-Benz updated the W123 in incremental steps, calling them series:
Changes to the second series :
Changes to the third series :
For 1981 model year, the automatic climate control panel from W126 S-Class with simplified icon design was adopted. The new five-speed manual gearbox was introduced in February 1982 and was available in all models except 3-litre turbocharged diesel engine for Europe and elsewhere. This gearbox is never offered in the North American market.
In September 1982, the driver's air bag with seat belt pre-tensioners for the passenger were offered as a 1,762.80 Deutsche Mark option for all models for 1983 model year onward. Very few W123s had both driver and passenger air bags. The passenger air bag used a pyrotechnic gas discharge design, a world's first.

Knockoffs and copies

The W123 was officially produced by FAW in China from 1987 until 1988, as a 200 sedan or as a long wheelbase 230E. Only 828 cars were built in their Changchun plant. Another Chinese company called Bamin Automobile made W123 lookalikes using other parts. Bamin was an army-owned company located in Minhou. Their W123 copy was built on the chassis of the Bamin BM212A/213A, a copy of the Beijing BJ212 and came in a few different bodystyles. There was a four-door pickup called the BM2022A and a wagon derived from it, as well as the BM1020KH/BM6480. A more faithful replica was made in North Korea, almost entirely by hand, called the Kaensaeng 88.

Technical data

Technical Data (for North America and Japan specific models)

In these markets, only the following models were offered:

For the North American market, C123 was available with both petrol and naturally aspirated diesel until 1981. For 1982 model year, 280 CE was dropped, and 300 CD TURBODIESEL was introduced as a sole engine offering for coupé model.
The estate/station wagon was available with a 3-litre five-cylinder inline OM617 diesel engine only. The naturally aspirated 300 TD was sold for two years until the turbocharged 300 TD TURBODIESEL replaced it from autumn 1980 because consumers found the 300 TD to be too heavy and too slow with the less powerful engine. 300 TD TURBODIESEL preceded 300 D TURBODIESEL and 300 CD TURBODIESEL by a few months.
The petrol engines were offered from 1976 to 1980 model years. From 1981 until 1985, W123 models were sold only with diesel engines to comply with the federal regulation on corporate average fuel economy without paying heavy penalties. The American consumers also preferred the diesel engines for lower fuel consumption after two oil crises and fuel shock of 1973 and 1979.
Four-speed manual gearboxes were offered with four-cylinder inline engines only. The new 5-speed manual gearboxes were never available on the North American market.
The North American version of W123 differs from European version due to the US Department of Transportation automotive safety regulations along with Environmental Protection Agency automotive emission control regulations.
Notable exterior differences included
  • Larger and stronger bumpers that resist collision damage up to 5 mph
  • Round sealed beam headlamp capsules and fog lamps; the large glass covers partially the housing. The fog lamps had clear lens until 1980 model year when they were tinted yellow
  • Amber-coloured retroreflective markers on the front turn signal indicators which double as night illumination
  • Red-coloured retroreflective markers at side edge of taillamps
  • Location of ID-tag on A-pillar
  • Emission control device for petrol engines only
  • Radio with different frequency steps when tuning to different radio stations
  • 85 mph speedometer with 55 mph prominently marked
  • Tinted glass band across the top of front windscreen
  • If passenger side external rear view mirror is included, the mirror must carry the warning: "Vehicles are closer than they appear"