1986 190E with the iconic 2.3-16 engine and dogleg 5-speed transmission
1986 Mercedes-Benz 190-Series
This tastefully modified 1986 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16 is stripped of frills and iswell on its way to being the ultimate canyon-carving, racetrack-shredding,daily driving machine.
This car has the iconic Cosworth 2.3-liter, 16-valveinline-four-cylinder engine and dogleg five-speed manual transmission. The carruns strong, accelerates quickly and smoothly, and stops on a dime. It handleslike a modern sports car and drives like the classic that it is.
It has developed an intermittent erratic idle, where revswill jump from 900 rpm to around 3,000 rpm, hold, then drop back down. Theissue presents itself most commonly after warm starts, or after twenty or sominutes of driving. Under throttle no fuel-air delivery issues are present (nothrottle surge). But after coming to a stop and idling the revs becomeinconsistent. I have a video of this available upon request.
The body of this car is clean and rust-free. The unrestoredsmoke-silver paint is in fair condition, and none of the clear coat has begunto peel. The subframe and suspension components are in great shape. Thedashboard does not have a single crack or blemish. This W201 has been modifiedwith Koni sport springs, H&R sport shocks, new exhaust, Compomotive TH 1781motorsport 17” black wheels, Pirelli P-Zero Nero Tires (205/40 ZR 17), RecaroPole Position seats (and Recaro mounting brackets), Momo steering wheel (withquick release), K&N air and oil filters, and various other small upgrades.
Since this car was being developed for spirited driving, thestock seats (which were in rough shape) have been removed. Also removed forweight saving and performance reasons are the carpets, soundproofing,windshield wiper reservoir (included in the sale of the car), the AC compressorand lines, power antenna, speakers and radio, and the self-leveling suspensioncomponents (removed by the previous owner). The previous owner also tinted thewindows, added carbon fiber decals to the interior, and converted many of thevehicle’s bulbs to LED.
In an attempt to remedy the vehicle’s idle issues, the BoschK-Jetronic CIS system was sent to Texas for a professional rebuild by Bosch. Otherparts replaced in an attempt to get it idling smooth include the fuel pump,fuel accumulator, fuel filter, fuel pump relay switch, potentiometer, ignitioncoil, and many vacuum hoses.
Other recently replaced parts include the main fan, fanclutch, relay, coolant sensors, oxygen sensor, and ignition switch. Theprevious owner told me that the engine’s top end was recently refreshed,including a new head gasket, head polishing, valve seating, and timing chain. Ihave maintenance, service, and parts records throughout my time of ownership,which was about five years.
- Make: Mercedes-Benz
- Model: 190-Series
- Type: Sedan
- Doors: 4
- Year: 1986
- Mileage: 150000
- VIN: WDBDA34D9GF164723
- Color: Silver
- Engine size: 2.3-liter, 16-valve, straight four cylinder
- Number of cylinders: 4
- Fuel: Gasoline
- Transmission: Manual
- Drive type: 2WD
- Interior color: Black
- Drive side: Left-Hand Drive
- Vehicle Title: Clean Want to buy? Contact seller!
