Pulling together enough legendary names to nearly create it’s own “Justice League”, the Mercedes-Benz 500E saw the combination of two of the most storied names in German automobiles – Porsche and Daimler-Benz. The 500E was sure a serious car out of the box with 320 horsepower and torque to match; but for some, that wasn’t enough. For those enterprising individuals with deep pockets, their Stuttgart superhero saw the introduction of a third legendary name; AMG. AMG had been placing larger displacement engines in Benz models for years, and the 500E proved no different. It even became an official product since Daimler owned a major stake in AMG; the merger would see a new range of high performance out of the box Mercedes models like the SL60 and E60. With a 50 horsepower boost in horsepower and 75 more lb.ft of torque, the 6.0 brought the 500E to another level of performance, chopping nearly a second off its 0-60 times and giving close to Porsche 911 Turbo levels of straight line performance. But while the E60 and SL60 models are pretty rare, it was more common to do what this owner did – ship the car to AMG for a motor swap after purchase:
Tag: M119
The Mercedes-Benz 500E is a car which needs no introduction to the fans of GCFSB. We feature the model on a regular basis; as one of the most popular super-sedans produced by Mercedes, we’re always glad to see a very mint condition, low mileage model and hopeful for a steal when we see less pristine examples. The possibility always exists that one will sneak in at a cut-rate – a model that has higher miles and a small list of needs, for example, that will allow for a more reasonable purchase price. But as we pine and search for values on the 500E/E500 market, ironically we seem to ignore the model which replaced it in spirit; the E55 AMG. Part of that comes down to both the real and perceived gap in quality between the W124 and the W210 chassis; however, what is undeniable is what that equates to in the real world. Find a not-perfect, higher mile 500E today and you’ll be looking at around $10,000 or more while a mint condition, low mile E55 AMG is available for around the same amount. Which is the better proposition?
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1992 Mercedes-Benz 500E on eBay
6 CommentsYou never have to go very far to find an 500E or renamed E500 on these pages; in fact, last Friday we had an interesting comparison between an E28 M5 and E124 500E. People came down on both sides of the fence there, and I think it’s reasonable to like either for various reasons. The E28 M5 is a very special car, with many less made than the W124 super sedan. But numbers alone don’t tell the whole story, of course, and the W124 has many fans for good reason. It may not have been the first super sedan or even the first super Mercedes-Benz, but it was an exclamation point on a legendary period of some of the best sedans the world has yet seen. Pick the one that you like – they’re all legends now; Audi V8 quattro, 200 20V or S4/S6, BMW E28 M5 and E34 M5, the Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3 and 2.5 Cosworth and, of course, the 500E/E500: