a very sad morning

old boy

it was a very sad morning for this old boy and the old girl, we had to park our beloved w201, due to the cuts in my invilidity pension, and the carbon tax on fuel, it was no longer viable to keep it on the road, i worked in south carolina u.s.a. during the 60s, a popular bumper sticker at the time used to read< we will never forget>, a reference to the american civil war, to the f. failures and their cohorts the snots, may i say we will never forget.

Berty

:mad: Things may pick up and you may be able to get her back on the road. Buy a lotto ticket for Saturday night.

colm_mcm

I love the 190e. shame to have to stop driving it You have my sympathies

Drummerboy08

I'd say we'll see alot more of this unfortunately.

CarMuppet

Hey Old Boy, please do post some pictures of your Benz... what year is she and what engine does she have? I have to admit I'm an Italian lover but this particular German lady is (was) a very appealing one... rare yet very tasty. Sorry to ask but is she an AMG out of interest?

I really do hope you will be able to keep her & preserver her. It’s always tough to leave an ‘old and loved one’ go due to financial reasons…not a nice feeling... L

Again, please do post pictures if you can… would love to see her…

Best regards,
CarMuppet

vectra

old boy wrote: »

it was a very sad morning for this old boy and the old girl, we had to park our beloved w201, due to the cuts in my invilidity pension, and the carbon tax on fuel, .

The cuts were not that severe were they ?? or did I miss something?

maidhc

w201s don't die, they bide their time.

galwaytt

...OP sorry for your woes.

I have to say, this govt and all it's cohorts have completely failed everyone, on so many fronts, that I don't know where to begin.....that someone in the OP's circumstances simple requirement for transport, should be sacrificed on the altar of some Green (Lunatic) Party false agenda is just disgusting.

Anan1

galwaytt wrote: »

.....that someone in the OP's circumstances simple requirement for transport, should be sacrificed on the altar of some Green (Lunatic) Party false agenda is just disgusting.

How much was the carbon tax on fuel, 5c/litre?

vectra

Anan1 wrote: »

How much was the carbon tax on fuel, 5c/litre?

Plus the €9 per week deduction in weekly income..
Hardly justifies locking up a car

colm_mcm

isn't the car manual ?

Marlow

just below 5c, but as he said, they also cut his invilidity pension, so i'd say it's a combination of things.

Being between '82 and '93, it might not be old enough for classic insurance, if it's one of the newer ones, otherwise that might have saved a few bop.

Try preserve the car and when your insurance, tax etc. go down due to being a classic, you might just have the gap again, to drive her again.

/M

Graham_B18C

vectra wrote: »

Plus the €9 per week deduction in weekly income..
Hardly justifies locking up a car

Could be on a tight enough budget as is

old boy

vectra wrote: »

The cuts were not that severe were they ?? or did I miss something?

hi vetra, when you have only a little, any cut is deep, as there is nothing there to save you.

Seweryn

old boy wrote: »

hi vetra, when you have only a little, any cut is deep, as there is nothing there to save you.

Hi Old Boy,
Sad story really. I could never understand the motor tax (car ownership tax I call it) stupidity in this country and the way it is calculated.
By the way, are you going to keep the Baby-Benz or you wish to sell it to a good home?

old boy

the car is a 190e 1.8 auto, petrol, 128,000 on the clock, genuine milage,
while we have had it it has never required a repair, just the serviceing + tyres,
one has to decide what has to go, with most things pared to the bone, the 201 was a luxury that we could not afford,
we are trying to see if we can keep it, only time will tell, as i have an amount of medical bills looming it looks difficult, but a my mother used to say
we never died of winter yet or begged a warm summer,
to those of you who have sympathy with our plight our heartfelt thanks, to those of you who wonder how such a small (to them) amount of money can make such a difference, i hope you never end up as we have,
a happy christmas to each and every contributer to this thread, and may the next year be better than this one for each and every one

unkel

Wishing you all the best, old boy. Sorry you were forced to take your pride and joy off the road

Every cloud has a silver lining though. You can't currently afford to run your car. Selling it would be madness though, as you would only get pennies for it. So you are forced to keep it, maybe run the engine every week or two and drive it on your driveway to prevent the brakes ceasing and tyre damage. Better times will come and you can look forward to one day getting your car back on the road again. Keep up your spirits!

HashSlinging

Sounds like a beaut of a car, my fav merc next to the 123...

Its just a car and you have your health and your experience!

vectra

old boy wrote: »

hi vetra, when you have only a little, any cut is deep, as there is nothing there to save you.

I know only too well
I too am in an invalidity pension and have to fork out for my car repayments every week along with running it.
This is why I said that the 9 euro per week cut is not the end of the world
I also got a cut in my wifes allowance in the budget and to top it off I lost my child benefit as my son is 18 and as such gets nil .. Even though he is doing his leaving cert at present.
Dont park it up bud.

kadman

Sad state of affairs when normal folk like you are feeling the severity of the governemnts cuts like this. This is not meant to happen in a just society.

Driving a mercedes is indeed a pleasure to be savoured. maybe you could trade it for a classic. Huge saving in the tax alone, and no major nct bills to deal with, low insurance. And you,d still enjoy driving a car that was made to last.

Its like putting a finger up to the government. Now that cant be bad.:)

kadman

Mycroft H

i miss the old 190s

my da had a 2 liter deep blue one. one of the most solid cars he ever had.

the last of the over-engineered mercs. they were built to last :rolleyes:


please dont let it die, if you have to sell it, pass it on to a merc enthusiast who will look after it.

daveharnett

My sympathies OP.

It's a bit ridiculous that cars like this are being put off the road by 'green' policies. Build one great car that'll do a million miles, or five beacons of eco-mediocrity. Which is better for the polar bears?

Pdfile

Grahamo999 wrote: »

Could be on a tight enough budget as is

rent your sofa to couch surfers.

that'll keep the cash comin in :cool:

Mr Benevolent

Pdfile wrote: »

rent your sofa to couch surfers.

that'll keep the cash comin in :cool:

:rolleyes:

Sorry to hear about that OP, a great car. Could you change to a pre-1980 Merc and avoid the motor tax that way?

Bee

vectra wrote: »

Plus the €9 per week deduction in weekly income..
Hardly justifies locking up a car

Well the Green Scum Party (the reason the FFer's are in power) supported giving a cut to the blind pension never mind the extortionate and joke "carbon tax"

When folks like the op are on a limited income remember perhaps their choice was paying the increased rate for home heating oil or petrol.

This country needs an election to wipe the current anti car Gov out

ddarraghh

its a shame but , nothing to be crying about
low income peeople cant afford to run gas guzzling luxergy cars
surprized no ,i think thats normal

daveharnett

ddarraghh wrote: »

its a shame but , nothing to be crying about
low income peeople cant afford to run gas guzzling luxergy cars
surprized no ,i think thats normal

First of all , here in Europe we call it petrol.

Second, please define a 'luxergy' car. To me, luxury implies unnecessary expense. 190s can be had for less than a grand. Should 'low income people' be restricted to cars that are rubbish as well as cheap?

Finally, yes there is something to 'cry about' here. There would be no problem at all with 'low income people' driving nice older cars except that they are taxed into oblivion, because the government is hooked on the income it derives from people buying new cars.

Think of how much better off we would all be in real terms if public policy encouraged people to buy good cars and look after them, rather than paying the perpetual car loan to own the latest and greatest ****ebox.

Alanstrainor

Here's wishing you all the best old_boy, i do love the 190e, great looking car.

vectra

Question to OP
Seeing as you are on an invalidity pension.
Were you awarded a primary medical cert for your condition?
just curious

Good luck OP, hope your financial situation gets better early in the new year nad you'll get the Merc back on the road.

Off topic: I can't believe there is no special/nil rate of motor tax for handicapped persons, or is there?

And the best way to keep the car in tiptop shape in the meantime is to add fuel stabiliser in the tank, change the engine oil and filter (quality is not important really here), run the engine until it's nice and toasty, remove the plugs and dump in a small splash of new oil in the cylinders, refit the plugs. Leave the leads disconnected and give it a short crank. Replace the leads and disconnect the battery. Then just from time to time (every couple of months) rotate the engine by hand for a few full turns using a wrench.

Remove the front mats (I take they are removable the same ways as in W124) and open the doors of the car every time it's nice and sunny and dry day. When the weather gets better give it a nice wash/wax from time to time. If you have a garage leave at two windows slightly open.

That should keep it in nice shape until you can use it again.

woody33

Wishing you and yours a very happy Christmas anyway.