Thanks for your comments!
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Originally Posted by 97 SL320
Some comments on the letter ( and no I'm not beating up on the OP. there are a few realities everyone needs to be prepared for. )
They may of may not consider past repairs, as $ X value of parts on a $ Y car does not always = the two added together. However showing past receipts does document condition of the car to support your position.
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Right. I agree, my intention was never to say that its value X+Y. More along the lines of the car is worth more because I've done a considerable mount of work on it. 321,000 miles is not representative of all the parts as by in large they are not original, and many of the wear items have been replaced.
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Unless the parts were on the car at the time of loss, they won't be considered as they could be used on any car in the future.
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I was told to mention them. I can't see how listing them out would hurt but you are probably right.
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Low production numbers don't always = high value, there must be a legitimate following for values to be high. RE: If you took it to a big time auction, would the price would skyrocket? While this makes valuation more difficult, selecting another diesel with the same body would be helpful.
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Honestly I did not even know the 300D 2.5 was a low production number car. I thought it was more common. My goal was to show that comparing the E to the D was invalid as, in the US anway, there were far more Mercedes 300E's than D's in that time frame.
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Finding others cars offered for sale does help but completed sales are what will really support your position.
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How would I go about finding that type of information? All the cars that he listed on the report were direct from autotrader's listing. None of them were sold yet.
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This is probably your best defense for value / cost of repairs as you are showing the car can be repaired for much less than using MB sourced parts.
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Some have suggested that I omit the part about lower cost repair.
However I think that if can demonstrate:
a) the car has a higher value than $1900
b) the car can be repaired for less than $5500 (ideally less than the "updated" car value)
That I have a higher chance of getting insurance to take care of things.
I have no intentions of letting them have the car or buying it off them. I don't quite understand what entitles them to the salvage value of the car considering I own it outright. If it comes to that the claim will be withdrawn and I'll work with a body shop.