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The W124 convertible, chassis series A124, is the open-air version of the car many people already respect as a sedan. Mercedes built them from the early 1990s through 1997. In the US you mainly meet the 300CE cabriolet and, after the 1994 renaming, the E320 cabriolet. Europe had additional engines, including smaller fours and sixes, depending on year. The appeal is obvious: W124 structure and manners, with a lined soft top instead of a fixed roof. The costs that follow are equally obvious once you have seen a neglected top well.
I treat an A124 as a W124 first and a convertible second. That means rust, engine family, and — on later cars — the biodegradable engine-bay loom still apply. The W124 buying guide is the parent document. This page is about tops, drains, structure, and why cabriolet money evaporates when those items are ignored.
The soft top is a hydraulic machine
These tops are power-operated, with a hydraulic pump, rams, latches, and a well the cloth must fold into without pinching. I operate the top through a full open-and-close cycle on a charged battery. Binding, hesitation, or a pump that keeps running after the top has seated are all useful noises. I look at the hydraulic lines for seepage and at the fluid reservoir if it is accessible; topping up without finding a leak is how people create a bigger leak later.
The cloth should be even in color, without chalked-through fibers or separated rear-window bonds. The heated glass rear window on these cars is a blessing compared with older plastic windows — and an expense if it fails. Seals around the header and quarters should meet the windshield frame without a visible daylight stripe. A gentle water test, with permission, tells you more than a seller standing ten feet away saying it never leaks.
Drains in the well must be open. Clogged drains route water into wood, carpets, and rocker interiors. I lift the well liners enough to see whether I am standing over a dry tray or a science experiment. A bottle of fluid specified for convertible-top hydraulics belongs in the ownership kit once the system is leak-free, not before.
Wiring on later cars
Late W124s can carry the biodegradable engine loom that specialists warn about, particularly on later six-cylinder cars. An E320 cabriolet from the mid-1990s deserves the same insulation inspection I describe in the harness article. A convertible already has enough specialized repairs; adding a crumbling loom without a discount is how a dream car becomes a storage tent.
Interior wiring in the doors and along the header also works harder than it does on a sedan, because the environment is wetter. Test every window, mirror, seat, and heated element. A single failed window on a cabriolet is more than an inconvenience when rain is in the forecast.
Engines and the rest of the W124 mechanicals
US 300CE / E320 cabriolets use the M104 24-valve six in later form. That engine family is part of the head-gasket conversation on W124 sixes; I look for seepage and cooling history using the habits in the M103/M104 gasket article, without pretending every cabriolet has a dripping head. Earlier 24-valve 3.0 cars have their own servicing needs. I match the engine code to the badge rather than assuming every black convertible in a listing photo is the same motor.
Cooling, suspension bushings, and the automatic transmission are ordinary W124 items that still decide whether the car is pleasant. A cabriolet that shakes over broken pavement may have the same worn bushings as a sedan, plus extra awareness of scuttle shake if the structure has rusted. Which brings us to metal.
Structure: convertibles hide less than you hope
Mercedes engineered reinforcement into the A124 because there is no roof to help. That does not make the sills immortal. I inspect jack points, floors, the areas around the rear seat belts, and the well openings with more intensity than I use on a four-door of similar paint quality. Rust here is both structural and a leak path. Fresh undercoating inside a rear quarter is a question, not an answer.
Door gaps and header alignment should look even with the top up and down. A car that has been hit and poorly repaired may still put the top on, but the seals will never sit quietly and the cloth will wear at the high spots.
What they cost to buy and keep
Nice cabriolets often ask more than comparable coupes or sedans. I will not invent a 2026 average. I will say that top condition, rust in the well, and documentation move the number as much as mileage, and that AMG-badged examples need the same paperwork standard I apply to any tuner story. A homely, dry, fully working top on honest metal is worth more to me than a fresh cloth over damp floors.
Ownership includes storing the car so the top is not buried under snow or leaves, operating the mechanism a few times a season so seals do not take a set, and budgeting a specialist when the hydraulics need more than fluid. Compared with a Pagoda, the A124’s top is more automated and more complex; see the Pagoda top article if you are honestly cross-shopping a 1960s SL instead of a 1990s E-Class.
A breathable outdoor cover sized for a convertible is a reasonable accessory if the car cannot live inside. A plastic tarp that sweats on the cloth is not.
Questions about the A124
- Is this a good first W124? Only if you accept top and well maintenance as part of the deal. A sedan teaches the chassis more cheaply.
- Can I daily one? In fair weather, yes, when the mechanism and the wiring are sorted. In a salt winter I would store it.
- What about the 300CE coupe instead? You lose the sky and some of the specialized top bills. You keep most of the driving feel. Sit in both.
- Do all of them have the loom issue? It is year- and engine-dependent. Inspect the insulation rather than applying a slogan to every cabriolet you meet.