Mercedes-Benz 500 E

The Mercedes-Benz 500 E, sold as the E 500 from 1993, is a high-performance version of the W124 sold from 1991 to 1995 under type W124.036. Because its own engineers were busy with the W140, Mercedes-Benz commissioned Porsche in 1989 to redesign the W124 chassis, suspension and drivetrain to take the 5.0 litre M119 V8 derived from the 500 SL. The widened front wings did not fit the Sindelfingen assembly line, so the cars were assembled by hand at the Reutter-Bau plant of Porsche in Zuffenhausen, a process that took eighteen days. The press called it the Wolf in Sheep Clothing, and period tests recorded 0 to 100 km/h in 5.5 to 6.0 seconds, with top speed limited to 250 km/h. Production began in February 1991 and the German list price was DM134,520 in October 1990; 1,528 cars were imported into the United States.