When I really sit and the think about it, the W123 Mercedes-Benz chassis is not the most beautiful thing ever to roll out of Stuttgart. Especially considering they were producing some of the most beautifully styled coupes only a few years prior and basically every year since the start of the company up until this point. The W123 was total functionality, and did its best to look good as an afterthought. See one randomly parked among today’s blobs of cars? Sure, you can call it handsome. It’s making the best of what cards were dealt. The big bumpers are there to take a 5-mph impact. The squared-off taillights with a wavy design? Mercedes-Benz consulted a team of optometrists to study which taillight design is easier to be seen by the eyes in the dark and wet. Those taillights are what went on the car. The list goes on and on. Mercedes built a car with the intention to last forever and it sure is doing a good job so far.
This 1982 300CD up for sale in Los Angeles can be one of those “forever” cars. Enough miles to not think one second about not driving it in fear of devaluing the car, but not so many that its ready for taxi duty in the Middle East. The condition is bordering on outstanding, and the price? Well, its not cheap, but thankfully not too crazy.