Rust Free 82 300SD in Dallas TX needs new home (lots of pics)!!!
 

First off - this is not my car (though it could be the twin of my '84), so any inquiries need to go to the owner - Erwin B - hm # 972.390.9297 or cell # 214.435.3873 or email at linderhof@mybluelight.com.

OK, now what I now about the car. I've known Erwin for over five years and this is weekend car, the one he drives to the gym on the weekends. The rest of the time it stays in the garage. He bought the car in '97 used and I do not know the service history prior to that (Erwin might know more).

Since I acquired my '84 and brought mine back to life as a daily driver, Erwin started letting me do some maintenance on his so I know what has been done this year. We just did oil & filter, air filter, pre & regular fuel filter, new thermostat and serious flush of the cooling system (we replaced with genuine MB straw colored coolant - hey, I learned something hanging out on this list!). We also ran Diesel Purge through the injectors.

The next thing we were going to tackle were new belts (they need them), but Erwin got a job offer back in Europe and he is looking to sell the car before he leaves in about three months. The A/C is not working properly. It blows very weak through the defrost vents. Fan / blower speed is fine, just not cold. I jumped the condenser fan and it spins up fine. That is as far as I got on diagnosis.

Esthetics. There is ZERO rust on this car. I checked the wheel arches, under hood, rocker panels, and the back of the windshield where it meets the trunk (see pics) - no rust. The car looks good from 10 feet, but as you get closer the paint needs a good weekend with the buffer. No major dings or scratches, just needs what I call the Meguiars three step wax job (paint cleaner / polish / wax). There is no delamination on the rear window (mine does), which I think confirms the mileage (more on that in a bit). The interior needs a good cleaning but the leather is much more intact that mine (again, speaking to the miles).

Erwin says, the speedo stopped working this year just short of 109K. Hopefully someone can run the VIN using the pic I took to confirm the miles. The alloy rims looked to have had a couple spray painted by the previous owner. I *think* a couple of the tires are new (have to ask Erwin on that one).

Other stuff that I can remember. On the freeway something had popped up and hit the egg crate part of the grill and made a hole, so we replaced that this year and with it the silver cross strips. Some the sound deadening under the hood has come off.

Erwin is not a detailing fanatic like me, so don't be surprised when you see stuff in his car in the pics... ;) Overall the car seems sound, but you will have to ask Erwin about all the electrics (sunroof, windows, stereo, cruise, etc). I did not go through them to check. I think that is about all I can remember so I'll start posting pics!


***Erwin is looking for the best offer over $2,000 ***

****08-05-04 UPDATE!!!

Erwin accepted an offer on the car tonight from a gentleman in Fort Worth TX. Unless the deal doesn't materialize, the car is sold!

He wanted me to do an update post and say "Thank You" for all the inquiries and for helping him find a new home for his 300SD!****

VIN
 

VIN Tag

speedo
 

speedo

outside shots
 

outside shots

body shot
 

outside

trunk
 

trunk

front
 

front

other side
 

side

hood
 

hood

side
 

side

engine
 

motor

more motor
 

more

engine
 

more

last motor
 

motor

some interior shots
 

seat

inside door
 

door

center dash
 

center dash

passenger
 

seat

rear seat
 

rear

no rust
 

no rust

You put all that info and nice pictures... but did not say what his asking price is ?

sorry
 

he is looking for the best offer over $2,000

nose
 

grill

wheel arch
 

no rust

rear window / top trunk
 

no rust (last one)

Damn dude. That looks pretty sweet for just over $2000. Not a fan of the red on a w126 though.

GREAT looking car for $2K !!

I'm not real fond of the red either but for $2K I'd snatch that thing up in a heartbeat (pending a positive PPI)!!

Any sort of maintenance history?

Wow.. looks great. Very unusual color for a 126 car, too.

Does anyone know if that paint is mettalic? Those seats look nice.

straight / solid red
 

no metalic

That's a good price. Not that I'm interested in it, but do you think the owner would drive it down to Houston one weekend to have it inspected by a MB tech here?
-Joe

That is a good looking car priced right... you had better get up there to look at it quick if you want it... I am trying to interest my sister in it... and she lives close by.....someone is going to jump on it...

Yep, that one looks like a keeper. It's rare to see an SD with the leather still good around here. I bet it sells quickly. If I didn't already have too many vehicles I would be on that like a duck on a junebug.

Man, if I could sell mine for what I paid for it, I'd be on that one in a quick hurry.

And I love the red!

wow......that's a sweet car...someone is going to get a keeper.

DAMN!!
 

Neat car. Plus, for once, I actually think I can trust what a seller says about an odometer that doesn't work. Car looks neat and his asking price is right!! Absolutely love the color. Very rare indeed, never seen or heard of a red 126. :D Would have been great for my brother if we had the money to grab it now.

VIN checks out!
 

I just ran a report on the VIN and it checked out clean. Just as I said I earlier, that I believe what the owner said about the odometer, well, seems like my feelings were correct. The mileage last reported during an emissions inspection on the car in Dallas, TX on 12/02/2003 was 108,905 miles. Bodyart27 stated that the odometer stopped working short of 109K miles this year. You may be wondering, how believable is it that he drove less than 95 miles from the date of the above inspection till the odometer died earlier this year? Well, check this out: the owner only put 2,881 miles on the car from 08/17/2002 to 12/02/2003!!!

I strongly encourage any serious buyers to contact this guy and find out the condition of the rest of the car. In all of my car buying/selling experience, I've learned to trust a seller that doesn't lie about the car's past history. Especially since this guy had the chance to lie about the broken odometer. This could end up being a killer deal for whoever gets it. Even though the A/C doesn't work, at the most it will cost $1500 to repair it (assuming the problem is with the evaporator in the dash).

If anyone here wants to check out the entire VIN report, just contact me at braverichard@hotmail.com or via PM.

miles
 

glad that checked out!

They had a Ford Windstar that they drove into the ground - so that I think took all the miles. For years the only time I saw the red benz was Saturday morning at the gym.

He had a white 560 126 for a while with an SEC rear seat. That was a neat car.

UPDATE! 08-05-04
 

Erwin accepted an offer on the car tonight from a gentleman in Fort Worth TX. Unless the deal doesn't materialize, the car is sold!

He wanted me to do an update post and say "Thank You" for all the inquiries and for helping him find a new home for his 300SD!

Yep, it's mine.
 

I would like to thank bodyart27 for the pics and all of the information. Erwin was a cool guy to meet. The car has a few issues but I don't mind getting my hands dirty. It's solid and should be a great car to own.

With rewards there are consequences, promised my wife that I would sell my 75 240d and my 86 BMW 325e...... I guess I better get started on that.

He who hesitates is lost
 

You beat me to it. I was going up tomorrow morning to look (and probably buy) that car.

Funny thing: my Bride has been pushing me to buy a 'big' Mercedes (read W126) for a while and the really great thing is that I wouldn't have had to reduce my fleet any to get it either.

What would you take for "The Big Red One" right now?

Congrats Rathole. I wish I would have found this thread sooner. I'd be in MY driveway.

So, what's the story on your 75?

Rathole,
LOOKS LIKE YOU HAVE A LIVE ONE...
Better quote him a reasonable amount..... I don't want Randy to be without any projects to work on ....

R Leo
 

R Leo, you will have to ask me in a month if I want to sell it. I will be picking it up tonight and then I have to go to Orlando, FL for 2 weeks on a project. I have a feeling that I won't be interested but ya never know......... you know how it is when the romance is still new. Thanks for the offer, I will let you know how it goes.

Hehehe, Leave it to us to surround the guy like a bunch of vultures over two of his cars. :D If Rathole's 75 is in similar condition, and at a good price, I'll happily snag it. I love the old gorilla knob starting systems. :D It's a car that you could *almost* literally leave the key in it in a bad neighbourhood, and still not get too worried about it being stolen.

Re: R Leo
 

But in a month I might not be quite so willing to pay a premium for it.

DieselPower
 

The story on the '75 240d is this. I bought it about 3 months ago for $2,500, it has 145,000. No rust except a small spot where it looks like the water got under the 240d emblem on the trunk lid. Clear coat is weak on the trunk, interior is in great shape. Runs good but it does need new valve guides. Burns a quart of oil about every 250 miles. Compression is good between 280 and 300 across the cylinders. Blow-by is not bad. New Rebuilt injectors, new glow-plugs, new sony radio, new power antenna, new sanden ac compressor, ac converted to 134a, new belts, new therm & water pump. I bought it to keep it but just couldn't pass up the 300. I will be out of town for the next two weeks, if anyone is interested let me know. rwolbers@yahoo.com I will put it on fleabay after I return unless someone is interested. Looking to get at least $2,700.00

But at least our intentions are in the right place!

Quote:

I love the old gorilla knob starting systems. :D.

I love my 115!! Sometimes, I even get to drive it too.

I've always claimed that the W115s were more farm implement than automobile and apparently there's more than a bit of truth to that. For grins, go to the WIX website and look up the applications listings for WIX filter 51010 (the oil filter used on the OM615 and older 616).

An abridged list:
ALLIS CHALMERS+Tractors-Construction HD3 thru 1960 w/D175 Engine
ALLIS CHALMERS+Tractors-Construction HD5 w/Detroit Diesel 2-71 Engine
AVERY A w/Hercules IXB Engine
AVERY A w/Hercules ZXB Engine
AVERY B w/Hercules IXB Engine
AVERY B w/Hercules ZXB Engine
AVERY Rotrack (1947-on) w/Hercules IXB Engine
AVERY Rotrack (1947-on) w/Hercules ZXB Engine
BANTAM C35 w/Continental F186 Engine
BANTAM C350 w/Continental F226 Engine
BANTAM CR35 w/Continental F186 Engine
BANTAM CR350 w/Continental F226 Engine
BANTAM T35 TruckCrane Carrier w/GMC Engine
BANTAM T350 w/Continental F226 Engine
BARBER-GREENE 772 w/Continental F226 Engine
BARBER-GREENE 773 w/Continental F226 Engine
BARBER-GREENE 873 w/Continental Engine
BARBER-GREENE 878 w/Continental Engine
BLAW-KNOX+Graders P150 w/Continental Engine
BLAW-KNOX+Graders PF45 Paving Machine w/Continental Engine
BLAW-KNOX+Graders Trench/Shoulder Roller w/Continental Engine
BLAW-KNOX+Road Wideners 95 w/Continental F226 Engine
BROCKWAY+Tractors 49K w/Continental F162 Engine
BUCYRUS-ERIE 11B w/Continental Engine
BUCYRUS-ERIE 14B w/Continental F226 Engine
BUCYRUS-ERIE Models w/Continental F266 Engine
BUFFALO-SPRINGFIELD KT16 (1951-on) w/Continental F226 Engine
BUFFALO-SPRINGFIELD KT17 (1955-on) w/Continental F226 Engine
BUFFALO-SPRINGFIELD KX16 (1955-on) w/Continental F226 Engine

Grew up a farm boy
 

R Leo, yep I do love the 115, It reminds me of the days growing up on a John Deere. The engine was the tractor, the same holds true with the 115, you are very aware of what is going on under the hood when you drive it. It's a cool feeling that you don't get with almost any other vehicle.

The 300d is now sitting in my driveway, it looks like it's time to clean-up the 240d and get it ready. My wife would like me to put it up for sale before I leave on Sunday to go to Orlando for 2 weeks. Wish me luck.