A reflector here a scrim there, and maybe a little fill flash makes all the difference in the world. I'm in the photography business. It's not that hard to do really and doesn't even require a whole lot of expensive equipment to do.

Just light it and shoot it correctly to begin with. "Fixing it in PhotoShop" is a phrase I hear often. Much easier to do it correctly in camera. Of course, having a pristine car to start with helps a great deal. The camera only records what you put in front of it.

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" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles

I agree the car (and the '83 300 W123 Diesel he sold per his feedback) are great looking cars, and the photos are wonderful,

but it is probably on the up and up based on the fact that the cars seem to have come from a VERY moneyed part of Southern California where the climate is perfect all year so rust not likely to have been an issue and NEVER snow or salt seen.

There is losts of junk on ebay but this seller seems honest, even with only 4 sales so far. I would think it's a safe bet, even better if there were complete books and records with the cars.

The weather is that good there, and the owners for the most part take very good care of their cars, and most likely those are second or third cars, not their primary transportation.

Sometimes, high prices may be justified. This could be one of those times.

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

I think the light source is the sun with the sun roof open.

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Mitch
1984 300D Turbo Diesel 265,000 miles
Previously Owned
1969 280SE 4.5 (what a great car!)
1979 450SL (was fun but a real gas guzzler - bought and sold on eBay)

What MB-tex repaint are you seeing? I looked close, and it doesn't look like a "repaint" to me.

I had the leather redyed on my old '93 300E 3.2, and the dye was sprayed out of a gun. It looked almost perfect, but to a trained eye up close, you could tell. One area is in the perforations.

I'd bet money that the MB tex is orginal. If it isn't, then they've been recovered with OE NOS MB tex.

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Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

Jeeeeez, you guys are either overly cynical or believe in conspiracy theories.

I looked at every photo, and I don't see any rust. In fact, I don't see a smudge, a spec of dirt, dust or grime.

What in the world are you looking at?

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Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

Look in the lower right of this photo:

Attached Thumbnails

 

Although this does seem (and probably is) an especially well preserved car, I would caution the forum that everything is not always as it seems, specifically in the idea of southern California as a land of "perfect climate all year." Songs to the contrary, it does rain in southern California.

Ocean-front communities such as Newport Beach sometimes have lots of warm humid air ideal for turning iron into iron oxide. If the car spent the last twenty years in a dry garage, fine. Caviar empty. Go put your fingers in the nail holes.

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"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970

to me that almost looks like yellow 3M super trim adhesive,rubber must have come loose.

then again thats quite a bit of yellow there,after looking at a bigger pic,also i see the vac line to the brake booster looks too short.

It looks like grease / lube, or like an adhesive that was used to reglue the rubber molding.

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Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

Could be, I can't really tell from the photo. I thought it looked like rust starting in that corner. You really have to see these cars in person to know for sure.

Yep, you got that right.

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Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".