Ford Escort vs Mercedes Turbo Diesel

I drive a 1994 Ford Escort Wagon LX, manual transmission, 137,000 miles, very well-maintained, long since paid for. One owner: me. It is extremely reliable and shows no signs of breaking down. But it lacks a certain … panache.



My parents want to give me their car – a 1987 Mercedes 300 Turbo Diesel sedan, automatic, 90,000 miles, also very well-maintained – when they get a new car this spring.



What to do? Pros and cons?



* Keep my old faithful 16-year-old car because he’s been good to me and cheap to maintain? At 136k, will he last much longer?



* Take the 22-year-old Mercedes because he’s somewhat more exciting and promises to last well over 200k miles?

Can you afford to run both ? You don’t seem to be putting many miles on a car. I’d sit on the Escort for a while while driving the other, then make a decision about which to keep .

I’d keep both as it never hurts to have a backup car and it’s something I’ve always done.
The Escort is due for a timing belt if this has not been done though.

Both cars have low miles and properly maintained I see no reason why both can’t make it to 300k miles, or more.

Both cars have low miles and properly maintained I see no reason why both can’t make it to 300k miles, or more.

Ditto. Don’t dismiss that little Escort so easily. It may lack the “panache” - but over the next 100K it will very likely be just as if not more reliable and much easier and cheaper to keep that the MB (all on the assumption that you have, in fact, maintained it well).

Money no object? Keep both. Money big problem? Keep Escort. You’ll need to find out what the maintenance costs are with the MB, they’ll be much higher than the Escort. Either has lots of miles left in it.

If it’s panache you seek, keep the Escourt and buy a Rolex. You’ll save money in the long run.

Yes, the Mercedess will last well over 200,000 miles. But it’ll cost you more than the new Rolex to get it there.

While the Escort has proven to be a good car for you, this Mercedes is the kind of car that can go a million miles if it is properly cared for. I would keep both for a while, but when it comes time to choose one or the other, I would keep the Mercedes.

Another vote for both. Your cost per-mile is going to be a lot higher on the Benz, but it shouldn’t cost you too much to keep liablity insurance on it and change the oil twice a year. My vote is keep the Escort as your daily driver and keep the Benz as a weekend cruiser. Plus this way you’ve got a backup car, and so you can tolerate your daily driver being less reliable and so you’ll be able to keep the Escort longer by having the Benz as a backup.

Of course, you’re talking to someone who currently has four cars all more than 20 years old, so perhaps take this with a grain of salt.