E500 - were they all painted two-tone?

[gerryvz]

This post was posted on Sunday, July 17 DURING the phpbb-->vBulletin transition by user "Cadence":


My '94 E500 is Brilliant siver with matching bumpers and lower door cladding.

Am I correct that all '94 E500s, except the Limited model, were produced as two-tone cars with the gray lowers?

I have seen so many photos of both combinations that I am starting to get confused!

Here are two examples.

1st is what my car looks like.

2nd is how I think it looked when it left the factory.

 

[gsxr]

Cadence,

Through 1993, I believe that yes, nearly all colors had two-tone with different colors on the lower moulding & bumper. For 94-95 however, this depends on the specific paint color code... some are two-tone, others are not. For your car in Brilliant Silver (744), it did come from the factory with two-tone paint, with gray bumpers & side moulding. It's a common upgrade/modification to paint the bumpers+moulding body color.

 

[gerryvz]

And then there's the "triple black" (three-tone) cars

Cheers,
Gerry

 

[gsxr]

Funny you should mention that. It took me years to figure out this little mystery. The common black colors... 199 Pearl Black (metallic) and 040 Black (non-metallic) always came from the factory with gray moulding/bumpers. Any car with 199 or 040 paint, and bumpers/moulding in matching body color, was modified by the owner after purchase.

However, 009 Sapphire Black (metallic) had the bumpers/moulding body color. Now, if a 009 car had black interior... I think that is what people referred to as "triple black". However, no E500E was available in paint color 009 in the USA. The Limiteds were only available in 744 or 009. I don't know if you could order a non-Limited 009 car in Europe, but I suspect it was possible. Oddly, the E420 (124.034) was available in 009 paint, but it's a pretty rare color... I've seen a few out there, verified via the datacard & VIN as true 009 cars. Real shame there aren't more, as I like 009 more than 199 or 040.

 

[2phast]

Cadence,

Through 1993, I believe that yes, all colors had two-tone with different colors on the lower moulding & bumper. For 94-95 however, this depends on the specific paint color code... some are two-tone, others are not. For your car in Brilliant Silver (744), it did come from the factory with two-tone paint, with gray bumpers & side moulding. It's a common upgrade/modification to paint the bumpers+moulding body color.

The signal red 500e's were never two-tone, this is the one exception to your statement.

Oh, not a 500e, but it seems the signal red 400e's were also single color. I have seen several and here is a new one for sale

http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/ctd/2496725786.html