A "should I buy" question - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

JimZ · #1 11-30-2006, 11:18 AM

I'm looking at an '85 300D Turbo Diesel, W123. The car is for sale at a strict Benz repair shop. The guy only fixes these cars, only uses OEM parts for everything, and he's been working on only these cars for 25 years. He gets them into the condition where the only maintenance the buyer will need is oil and filter changes. He makes everything as close to perfect as he can.
Having said that, the car is going for $7500 and it's pushing 300K. It is my understanding that if the car is overhauled to the point that this one is, the milage doesn't really matter because the engine will last forever. So my question to you is, is this a good deal, and how many miles would make you shy away from purchasing a car maintained to this level?

tobybul · #2 11-30-2006, 11:35 AM

Its all relative and what u r willing to pay. Whats the condition of the body? I bought an 85 300D early this summer for much less than that and it only had 100k. That aside however, I personally would not pay that much for it for a 20+ year old car. I can get a decent Kia, Hyundai, Honda or Toyota for $7500 with less miles.... not to say somebody won't pay that for it...

rs899 · #3 11-30-2006, 11:40 AM

Lipstick on a pig.

At 300K miles that engine is getting tired. Unless you are prepared to drop a rebuilt engine in it in a year or two, I would advise against it at that price. Something like that seems to me to be worth more like $4-$5 K. Really need to know what's been replaced, but its hard to justify that money., IMO

Rick

greasybenz · #4 11-30-2006, 11:40 AM

even if these engines last forever, $7K for a 300K mile vehicle is alot!

The body and interior would have to be prestine and the engine would have to be on the strong running side. If at all its low on compression...forget about it.

MattBelliveau · #5 11-30-2006, 11:54 AM

I would not pay anywhere near that for a 300k car. You can get a nice one with half that milage for that price. If everything was rebuilt, I would ask for service records; I don't think I would pay more than a couple grand for anything less.

networkboy · #6 11-30-2006, 11:58 AM

He's the mechanic. See if he'll back his work with a written 50K warranty on the engine

-nB

byrdandcompany · #7 11-30-2006, 12:09 PM

PM sent

retx · #8 11-30-2006, 12:15 PM

So everyone says, "There's nothing more expensive, than a cheap Mercedes"....makes me wonder.....what is the line that we cross? To where an expensive MB is the right price to buy? I would think 7500 is quite high for such mileage....but who knows. What condition is the rest of the car in? I agree with the previous post....if he's the mechanic, see if he can gaurantee his work with a warranty.

byrdandcompany · #9 11-30-2006, 12:22 PM

that I am selling for $2650 with the same amount of miles...

Parrot of Doom · #10 11-30-2006, 12:56 PM

You can take two cars.

One has 100,000 miles on the clock for $7500 and looks great.

The other has 300,000 miles on the clock for the same, and looks great.

Nice you think, so you buy the car with 100,000 miles. Only that car has done its 100,000 miles in stop-start traffic, hasn't ever been driven for more than 5 mile trips, has been up and down through the gears every couple of minutes, and never gets the chance to warm up properly.

Meanwhile, the 300,000 mile car, which has been going up and down the freeway its entire life, which hasn't been driven through pot-holes and up and down sidewalks (argh I hate using American words!

), cruising at 70mph in the same gear all the time, sits unsold because people have this thing about mileage.

If the car looks in great condition, if the engine doesn't smoke and doesn't leak, if there are no funny noises, if the oil has been changed regularly, if the body is free of rust, and if the transmission makes all the correct noises - I'd go with that car. 300,000 miles or 100,000 miles - its immaterial. What matters is condition. If the oil has been changed regularly, I bet that engine will be in wonderful condition.

I do admire you guys for running older cars. Over here, such a car would be practically worthless. Crying shame IMO.

JimZ · #11 11-30-2006, 01:28 PM

The body is perfect. This car has no rust. And the mechanic offers a 1 year guarantee on everything. The compression is near perfect and everything that needed or looked like it would need to be replaced was replaced with OEM parts. No smoke, no leaks, smooth transmission. Plus, he doesn't buy a car if there aren't service records. Trust me, he's an enthusiast like us. And like most of us, he probably wouldn't even rent a Kia or a Hyundai while he was on vacation, nevermind buy one! Still, I agree that $7500 is a lot. I can justify the price in that everything is has been restored with those expensive OEM parts. Just the pushing 300k thing makes me a little uneasy. But, knowing that EVERYTHING is in new condition, is that really a problem?

Hatterasguy · #12 11-30-2006, 01:39 PM

At 300k miles the trans is really, really, really on borowed time, so for that price it better be rebuilt. Any original suspension part is shot, the drive shaft, CV joints, and rear end will have a really large amount of slop.

Oh and the engine, yeah at 300k you are due for a TC, the oil pump chain and tensioner are probably getting a bit weak. Also the valves are probably all tired and out of spec. But the bottom end probably has decent enough compression.

Tell him you would be interested in a 100k mile example at the price.

You keep saying everything is new, but define everything? Replacing everything on one of these cars with new is a $20k-$30k resto.

POS · #13 11-30-2006, 01:39 PM

He wants way, way too much for a 300k mile car - regardless of condition. I'd pass in a heartbeat.

tobybul · #14 11-30-2006, 02:40 PM

If you have lots of $$ to spare, heck, he could be asking $10k and if you really want the car you'll buy it anyway.

Those of us who have successfully purchased them at between $1000 to $3000 in decent shape are the ones saying that a car with 300k is tired no matter how you look at it. Theres one post above that if many things are really "new", then it should be worth a lot more.

Plus if theres nothing to work on anymore after you buy it, it won't be as much fun b/c working on them is part of the fun

riethoven · #15 11-30-2006, 03:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimZ

The body is perfect. This car has no rust. And the mechanic offers a 1 year guarantee on everything. The compression is near perfect and everything that needed or looked like it would need to be replaced was replaced with OEM parts. No smoke, no leaks, smooth transmission. Plus, he doesn't buy a car if there aren't service records. Trust me, he's an enthusiast like us. And like most of us, he probably wouldn't even rent a Kia or a Hyundai while he was on vacation, nevermind buy one! Still, I agree that $7500 is a lot. I can justify the price in that everything is has been restored with those expensive OEM parts. Just the pushing 300k thing makes me a little uneasy. But, knowing that EVERYTHING is in new condition, is that really a problem?

I drive a W123 wagon that just turned 360K. I only paid $2,200 for it and it has some rust but is not rusted out. It could also use a good paint job because it had some body work done and the paint doesn't match. It runs great, but I have no service records so I don't know what has been done to it before me. The AC also needs work.

The point I am trying to make is that if you took my car and made the body perfect would cost more than $7,500. If he is offering a warranty that is a plus. I am guessing that you would be taking it to him for service also, so he already knows the car.

No doubt that is alot of money for a 20+ year old car with 300K on it but maybe due to the condition and the warranty if you could get it for say $6,500, it would be worth it. Good luck. It sounds like a good car.