The W124 Mercedes Benz 500E Sport Sedan is quite a significant fixture in the automotive world. Not only was this purely a risk on Mercedes Benz to embark on a strong partnership with Porsche to help co- develop this masculine brute of a sport sedan during a very sour time economically. Porsche was having a hard time selling cars in the early 90s under the 964 platform which is the last true hand built 911 to exist today, one that is coveted by die hard air cool enthusiasts. The 964 variant continues to be a worthy investment with prices going sky high each quarter. Significant enough Mercedes during this era was not formally partnered with the AMG tuning division as it is today. In the 1980s and 90’s AMG was an exclusive bespoke tuning firm and small parts manufacture in the small town of Affalterbach Germany. AMG at this time had very little representation in the USA. This tuning car era was what sparked my enthusiasm to become a performance engineer and custom car builder working on AMG, Brabus, Lorinser and Carlsson conversions. My friends and I tore these brand new cars apart and personalized and modified to clients specifications in NYC and it was a marvelous adventure of passion and learning.

Mercedes consulted with Porsche on a formula to make this car a reality, use the 500 SL engine and brakes, have Recaro make sport buckets front and rear, add Porsche styled flared wheel arches to streamline the look and the 500E was born.  It took the automotive world and media by storm as something more than special for anyone in the early 1990s to drop almost $90,000 on one of these cars. The final assembly and modifications were done by hand at the Porsche factory in Stuttgart Germany. I doubt this could ever coexist today with the sheer volume of cars Porsche produces now as they gone away from hand building cars to now using robotics and mass production automation. In it’s day the performance was staggered but with the technological advancements we have today our modern AMG Super Sedans are lightyears ahead of this first leap into the super sedan segment. It was the 500E that started it all, BMW had the E34M5 which was powered by an inline 6 cylinder engine and was an outstanding car with a properly developed M chassis. The M5 was a very analog sporty machine but compared to the 500E the power was nowhere near the new Mercs territory. Nothing compares to displacement and torque, sheer torque was the Mercedes mantra which has trickled on still to this day with modern AMG models. The success of the 500E spiraled into BMW later creating what I feel is and was the best M5 ever the E39 in late 1999. Then we had the Cadillac CTSV & Audi S8 and so on over the years but it all started with the W124 500E back in 1991.

The W124 500E is one of the most coveted cars of it’s time and many collectors all over Europe, Asia and beyond are holding onto these cars and keeping them in their private collections. The USA market is a different story today. Many of the 500E cars on the market are old, tired and neglected variants while finding a true gem is like winning the lottery per say. I painfully regret selling my 500E a few years ago which is posted in this article I am drafting. I have yet to find a replacement car that checks off all the right boxes for my needs. Prices have gone up 3X over the last 4 years. Collector car specialists such as Keith Martin and Donald Osborne of Sports Car Market predicted this to be a car that will continue to climb in value. Who knew this car would still be in demand 25 years later but I remember drooling over the Pearl Black 500E in the Mercedes NYC showroom as a teenager growing up in the custom car world to truly appreciate what this car was and it’s glorious Porsche roots. The hunt remains for me to find another 500E to add to my collection of cars and I will pursue this quest with dignity and enthusiasm to share with the world when that day comes, so in the meantime enjoy photos of my “Gangster” period correct 1993 500E!!