Good morning! Grab your tool boxes and find that latest RockAuto discount email – it’s time for another Shitbox Showdown! Today we’re in the San Francisco Bay area, looking at a couple of sweet two-doors you rarely see these days. But first, let’s see which cruise ship you chose yesterday:
It’s an absolute blowout for the Caddy, by three to one. I can’t fault anyone for voting for it, that’s for sure. But I think I might be on Team Lincoln. It’s the color combo, I think, that does it for me. Big black cars are common, but big butter-yellow cars? That’s something you don’t see every day.
And speaking of cars you don’t see every day, today’s choices are mighty thin on the ground too. One has a far more famous later edition, and the other is not too hard to find in four-door form, but hardly ever seen as a two-door hardtop. But in sunny California, you can find one of almost any car for sale if you look hard enough. And sometimes, they aren’t even expensive. But are they worth it? Let’s take a look and see.
1986 Nissan Pulsar NX – $3,000
Engine/drivetrain: 1.6 liter overhead cam inline 4, five-speed manual, FWD
Location: San Jose, CA
Odometer reading: 123,000 miles
Runs/drives? Yes, but not currently registered
First off, no. This is not the cool Pulsar with the T-tops and the “Sportbak” interchangeable rear hatch. This is the generation before that, basically just a doorstop-shaped Sentra. It’s not a performance car, with only sixty-nine horsepower to its name, either. But for rarity, it can’t be beat, especially these days. And it’s a stick, and low horsepower is really only a problem when you can’t choose your own gear ratio. It weighs less than the cargo capacity of many light-duty trucks these days, which also helps.
This one has had a whole bunch of work done to it recently, and the seller says it runs and drives great. But for some reason, it has a salvage title, and is on non-op registration. It’s probably worth finding out what the story is there before getting too excited about it. It does look a little bit pieced-together; the headlight doors don’t quite line up with the hood, and the front seats don’t match the rest of the interior. They’re cool seats, and they look great in there, but I doubt they came with the car originally.
Still, it’s only three grand, for a little classic Japanese sporty coupe that should be reliable and economical enough for daily use. And where are you going to find another one for sale? If you can live with a few cosmetic flaws, and can square the branded title with your insurance agent, it could be a good deal.
It is kind of a shame it’s not the later one with the T-tops, though.
1985 Mercedes-Benz 300CD – $4,000
Engine/drivetrain: 3.0 liter turbodiesel overhead cam inline 5, four-speed automatic, RWD
Location: San Mateo, CA
Odometer reading: 252,000 miles
Runs/drives? Yep
Here we have our old friend the Mercedes W123, but in a form rarely seen. Of the more than 2.6 million 123-chassis cars built, fewer than 100,000 of them were coupes. One of them ended up on the cover of Jackson Browne’s 1983 album Lawyers In Love, probably never to drive again after being so waterlogged. Fortunately, the rest of them went on to live long and fruitful lives, like this one, which spent twenty years as a daily driver for the same owners.
In 1985, the C123 (as the coupe version was officially known) was only available in the US with a five-cylinder turbodiesel engine and an automatic transmission. This combination did not a speedy car make, but much like the fabled tortoise going up against the hare, these cars played the long game – and won. There are a shocking number of 300Ds still on the road, many of them with far more miles on them than this one. It still runs and drives strong, according to the seller, and likely will for quite a while yet, with a little care and feeding.
Inside, it looks pretty good for a nearly forty-year-old car, but not great. The MB-Tex upholstery is showing a few signs of wear, surprisingly, and some of the carpet is missing, which isn’t surprising at all, since the seller says it leaks water when it rains.
Outside, there is a bit of the 123’s Kryptonite – rust. It’s not bad yet, but it’s there, even on a long-time California car. And the seller says the air conditioning doesn’t work, and the heater is stuck on. But it also has those cool Mercedes “Bundt cake” wheels, and since it’s a bona-fide hardtop, you can roll down all four windows (after you fix two of them) and let the cool breeze in. There’s a sunroof, too, if you’re brave enough to try opening it.
So yeah, neither one of these is exactly showroom-fresh. One has a checkered past that warrants investigation, and the other needs some tinkering if it’s to have any future. But they both run and drive well enough to make it home, and showroom-fresh isn’t what we do here anyway. With all that in mind, what’ll it be: the Japanese wedge, or the German diesel?
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)
The Pulsar is a better car, even though the other one has a hood ornament.
I had one without the turbo. Total tank, got to 385k without any major work needed. Traded it in wife wanted 4 doors. A couple of things, the window regulators can be any one of several different makes need to pull the door panels to make sure you get the right ones. Also the vacuum door locks can be tricky to fix. Sunroof cable was an easy fix if it ever goes. Also if you live in colder climes the block heater is great to have.
Surely someone is making an electric motor retrofit for the Benz vacuum-operated accessories by now.
Thrilling as it would be to drive around with 69 (nice!) horsepower at my disposal, we’ll take the Benz. Fixing the HVAC issue is Job One, however.
I’m currently midway through my ’82 300CD project, so yeah, it’ll be Merc for me all day, even though the vacuum system nonsense and coupe specific parts scarcity may put me in an early grave
I was going to go with the Benz but it would be a summer car for me. Therefore the heater and A/C issues make it a no go. Not really enthused about the pulsar, but it will have to do.
I think the Nissan’s front seats are at least Pulsar ones, looking at an old brochure online, so sort of a partial interior swap. Guessing the originals got trashed along the way.
A lot of the 80s sporty notchback coupes look funny to me next to their hatch/liftback counterparts (200SX, Celica, Mustang), and I think the shrunken look in the original Pulsar just looks dorkier still. It is obscure, but for me, an early Sentra hatchback coupe or Stanza hatch (2 or 4 door) would be as rare if not more so. With that, I’ll take the MB.
Mercedes. Fashionably late never goes out of style.
I sniffed the diesel MB-aid for 20 years and never thought of that. Imma steal it: thanks!
We had the 300D growing up, was shit brown, then my dad painted it blue. Was soooo slow but man rode nice, and I looked good driving it, easy win for the Merc (the pulsar would be ok but for the branded title, too much!)
Give me that li’l ragamuffin 5-speed. I need more simple in my life.
Easy win for the 123 for me. I love these cars – actually prefer the American front end. And if I need tips on how to fix the rust in one (albeit a W rather than a C), I can just consult my compatriot from Soup Classic Motoring, who used stop-motion to log its repair.
https://youtu.be/4qT1K183AOg?si=x2byzSnlNc4Jo-tN
The Nissan has a cool shape, no doubt, but it looks far too shonky for my liking.
The Benz is obviously the better car and more valuable. But I am just not interested. The Pulsar, in all its silly pointlessness, sets my heart racing though. A dumb vote, and no chance of the Pulsar winning, but I have to go with my heart on this one.
I can’t believe 157 people voted for the Hot Dog Stand Lincoln
https://blog.codinghorror.com/a-tribute-to-the-windows-31-hot-dog-stand-color-scheme/
A friend of mine had a W123 300D when we were in high school, it was in pretty bad shape and had been converted to run on vegetable oil, and the odometer broke at around 250k well before they dragged it out of a field. But it would. Not. Die. Being typical teenagers we tried to kill it, and in the process found out it’s not bad off road, and that the transmission can handle being thrown into “low” at 50mph. And in case you’re wondering, you have to crest a steep hill at 85mph to get all four wheels off the pavement. It was still running when they sold it for more than they paid for it, given the vegetable oil conversion kit.
So yeah, Benz for me. Plus the core support on that Nissan looks like it’s been bent out of shape before.
Easy as (W)123! It sounds as if the Benz needs some attention, but nothing all that frightening. And it has a legit title. And it’s a Mercedes, so will likely be around to pass on to the great-grandbabies. I’d take a chance on fixing all the issues, each of which could be simple. Or not. My off-the-cuff diagnosis is that most could be dealt with over a long weekend.
The Pulsar? Boring. And it gives off a vibe that makes me think it has seen even more abuse than the M-B. It does have those cool blue plug wires, though.
Plus the 2 door W123s just look so good. Tidied up, that will look stylish forever.
“The heater is stuck on”
Um, I guess it helps dry out the car when it leaks?
Too many issues with the Merc, even though I love the body style. If I was just going to look at it, the Merc would win, but it’s just a smelly, damp, sweatbox right now. I don’t need that.
That 300CD can have its injector pump tuned with larger threads from Myna Performance out in Finland. Do this, and the block can handle 300 horsepower with stock internals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czV3fwZ73gc
Imagine the above, in a 300 CD. That is my choice.
Yeah, makes me think of the stuff that dieselpump.uk does.
Thanks!
its been more than a decade since I last watched that video and it still makes me yearn to modify one. My TD looked good, but sure didn’t go like that one!
Those cars can easily return mid 20s mpg, and they have the aero of a brick and are veritable tanks on wheels.
I think that setup in a custom-built 2-seater streamliner of about 2,000 lbs and the aerodynamic drag of a Panhard CD Peugeot 66C would be dope.
Imagine 11s in the 1/4 mile and like 80 mpg highway to go with it.
To get an idea, here’s a stock-bodied Datsun 240Z with an OM606 similarly tuned, running low 12s in the 1/4 mile, and returning 40 mpg highway:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RghY0For0Q
And here’s Casey Putchs’ 1.9L TDI-powered Omega, returning 100 mpg and able to accelerate comparably to the Dodge Viper he owns:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbcOdFvXbxA
Diesel has a lot of untapped potential.
Love that 240Z—now I have to watch the build.
Bought my first 300SD around 2000 with the intention of making biodiesel. Too broke to do it correctly, and unwilling to deal with large amounts of methanol contamination, I ended up settling/filtering used vegetable oil and thinning it with gasoline-5% for summertime, and 10% when temps went below 50°F. I drove various 617s until about a year & a half ago. They go forever, but their power-to-weight ratio means they are better cruisers than canyon carvers. I loved them, but after 20 years -and the rise of coal-rollers around here-my dalliance with diesel looks to be over. I’m having too much fun with gas cars built for the twisties now
Didn’t think I’d get a Lawyers in Love reference this morning. If you’re looking for a cool car on a Jackson Browne album cover though, it’s easily the 1st generation BelAir on the cover of Late for the Sky, arguably his best album (no argument, it is). It’s even reference in the song the Late Show- “It’s an early model Chevrolet, it’s a warm and windy day”
Oh and the Pulsar. Total shitbox, but it has a lot more potential to be enjoyable. You’re going to have to pour a bucket of money into either of these, may as well do it for something fun.
Having put many, many miles on a similar vintage 300TD, I’m going Merc. Those cars are great once you sort out the common issues, of which one very common one is a leaking sunroof.
I had a friend with one of those Pulsars twenty years ago, and the non-Sentra parts were nearly impossible to find them, and I doubt that situation has improved at all in the intervening years.
There’s a wealth of information on working on these Mercs, so it makes way more sense to pick it than that rough Pulsar that will be nightmare to get back on the road.
Waaay too much to fix on that Merc, and even if you fix it, it’s still a D-smell. Plus isn’t this one a vacuum hose nightmare?
The Pulsar was cool back then, even without the interchangeable body panels. One thing’s for sure, you’d feel pretty small driving around in one today.
It is one of the vacuum hose nightmares, but speaking from experience, learning the tricks to diagnosing the vacuum leaks is pretty easy and there are a lot of online help threads that can pinpoint all the lines, the routing, and the common failure points. The first time I did it I was intimidated, but after a few rounds of it I got pretty good at diagnosing and fixing problems on-the-fly…right up until there were no more problems. If memory serves, I don’t think I troubleshot a vacuum leak for probably the last two or three years of the five years I owned the car.
What Squirrelmaster said. It’s a different world—but they were built to be worked on and you soon stop being intimidated. If I could do it, anyone can 🙂
Not even a question, I’ll take the Pulsar. Even though there is a few dents, the Nissan wins. The Teutonic Titwillow Mercedes needs to be used as live fire exercise with Claymores and 25mm rounds from a Bradley.
The W123 for me. Find the source of the leak, good driver.
Pulsar all day long, it’s weird, uncommon and a stick shift. Bring it on!
Pillarless coupe will almost always win with me. They look too amazing
Is this even a contest? Who in their right mind would choose that bucket of shit instead of a classic Merc in coupe form? Yeah, the Nissan has pop up headlights and wedgy shape, but even those are not redeeming qualities when attached in to a turd.
I had the opposite reaction! Who’s buying a boring predictable Merc when you can get a weirdo import you’re unlikely to ever see another one of!?
Well, everyone has their own taste, but I’ve owned an euro-version of that, Sunny, and I can guarantee that was nothing to write home about.
It’s a miserable drive (a friend had a beater Pulsar NX back in 2002), but that shape is like nothing else on the road. Get those headlamps in order and you will be welcomed to tons of car shows. The C123 is nothing but a potentially life-lasting automobile, especially in light of the frustratingly glacial speed shortening your life.
Raised white letters on steelies cannot be denied