Score! - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

mandtandk · #1 06-04-2008, 08:29 PM

Well my Indy looked over the car (1983 300D, 187K ) I was contemplating and gave it a somewhat clean bill of health. The main thing was no rust! He did however provide a to do list that I was able to use in negotiations.

Look this over and give me your opinions as to the difficulty of the task and his price to do it please.

New wiper blades- $56 ($56 wiper blades?)

Belts are slightly dry cracked- $85

Fuel loop hoses leaking- $39

New battery- $119

Air filter- $28

Rear brake pads- $95

Exhaust hangers dry cracked- $8

Front brake pads- $120

Shifter bushings- $56

Rear stabilizer links- $113

Rear axle boots- $350

A/C compressor(R12) $1335

Front fender trim- $85

Hazard switch/turn signals- $25

It will also need some seat work done. Rebuilding, recover or covers. It is a shame because it is black leather. Not too bad, but it will need some attention.

Now I'm no expert, but most of this stuff seems pretty minor. Some will need to be taken care of right away. The car's silver paint is very presentable with only minor fading on the hood. How much would just a hood repaint cost?

I really like the car and I hope my wife does as well. The PO was asking $3,000 and we settled on $1,900.

Thanks in advance and thanks to the people that responded to my previous posts about the car.

Let me know any opinions or ideas about these things

Thanks

M

cphilip · #2 06-04-2008, 08:32 PM

Check the paint code and see if its a single stage or a clear coat (two stage) because if its single stage its more than likely to compound right out. I had that on my Blue hood and it came right out with a hand cleaning with System X compound. Pretty easy and the Paint MB used was thick.

Sounds like a great start.

mandtandk · #3 06-04-2008, 08:50 PM

Thanks cphilip.

I think it has a small spot where the clear coat is coming up. I will pick up the car tomorrow and then check it out.

Thanks

M

sixto · #4 06-04-2008, 08:50 PM

There's a bunch of things in your list that are easy to do yourself and with little warranty risk.

Replacing CV boots is messy work. I'd just as soon look for a good set of used original axles. I guess that's a fair price to have someone perform and warrant the work.

What front fender trim? The black strip or add-on chrome?

You hope your wife likes the car after you've bought it???

Has valve clearance and chain elongation been checked recently?

Sixto
87 300D

cphilip · #5 06-04-2008, 08:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mandtandk

Thanks cphilip.

I think it has a small spot where the clear coat is coming up. I will pick up the car tomorrow and then check it out.

Thanks

M

Yea.. a lot of the Metalics where clear coat and Silvers for the most part are. Well... I would imagine it's going to vary somewhat the cost. No dents and just needing to match color and clear I would guess around $500 for that. In my area at least.

#6 06-04-2008, 08:54 PM

That's more like it, most of this stuff is minor (except for the AC). I would probably go for it:

New wiper blades- $56 ($56 wiper blades?) - Yup, that's silly. You can buy blades to fit anyplace

Belts are slightly dry cracked - $85 That sounds fair, the belts cost about $30 and take about an hour (or less) to install

Fuel loop hoses leaking - $39 Just do it yourself, about $10 for the hose and 5 minutes to install

New battery- $119 - You can get a good battery for about $80 at the parts store and they will even install it

Air filter- $28 - You can buy it online for about $15 and install in 2 minutes

Rear brake pads- $95 - The pads cost about $40, this sounds fair or you can do it yourself

Exhaust hangers dry cracked- $8 - $2 rubber donuts

Front brake pads- $120 - That's about right if they also need to replace the rotors, you can do the rotors yourself but it's kind of a PITA

Shifter bushings- $56 - That sounds about right

Rear stabilizer links- $113 - About $25 for the parts, you can do it yourself if you don't mind crawling around under the car

Rear axle boots- $350 - You have to decide what you really want to do, replace just the boots or replace the entire half-shaft for more money, if the CV joints are OK this is a decent price

A/C compressor(R12) $1335 - That sounds about right, stick to R-12

Front fender trim- $85 - I don't know the price, but it sounds OK

Hazard switch/turn signals- $25 - Sounds OK

mandtandk · #7 06-04-2008, 08:55 PM

Thanks guys

Sixto, I know how to check the valves, but how do I check chain enlongation.(can I say that outloud?)

M

sixto · #8 06-04-2008, 09:26 PM

Some people call it chain stretch.

Bascially you align the cam sproket marks then see how far off the crank sprocket is from TDC. Average a handful of readings. I don't know the specs for a 617 but offset keys are available to get cam timing back into spec. Beyond the range of keys, it's best to roll in a new chain.

Sixto
87 300D

mobetta · #9 06-05-2008, 01:23 AM

nice car, it seems.

I recommend getting familiar with working on the car. it is 25 years old, and will require attention. there is not much on that list that a even a novice mechanic can't figure out. good chance to begin your MBZ schoolin'

mandtandk · #10 06-05-2008, 06:50 AM

Yes, I look forward to learning as much about this car as I can and to many years of ownership. With as much help as is available on this site, the learning will be that much easier. This site is like a huge cheat sheet while taking a test.

Thanks to the board

M

JimFreeh · #11 06-05-2008, 07:13 AM

Before you're finished you are going to find a lot of other things that cost money....

Let's assume that the numbers presented include labor. It's silly to look at a purchase WITHOUT compensating yourself for your effort. Why should the seller get your labor for free?

Some basic math:

Cost of car 1900
Cost of repairs 2450
Paint 500
Seats 500

Grand total: $5350

And this is just for the initial items, you will certainly find a lot more, how much longer do you think 25 year old front end parts are going to last?

When you get to 5-10K for a W123, you can find some very nice cars that already have this kind of money invested, and probably one whole hell of a lot more.

If this is a spare car, a hobby, and you don't mind paying yourself nothing, and your willing to accept cosmtic flaws and non functioning accessories in order to keep the price down, like many on this list do, then the car has some promise.

If this is to be a primary car, pass. Save your self a lot of time and aggravation and spend the money up front for a top tier car. You'll never regret buying a very nice one up front.

I've done it both ways, many times. My current 83 300D's previous owner had receipts for over $20K in the 5 years he owned it (none of this was for cosmetics). It was a very nice original car when he bought it. When I bought it from my good friend, he made promise never to disclose to his wife how much he had into the car....

He considered it therapy, cheaper than a Psych.

Jim

1983/300CD · #12 06-05-2008, 08:39 AM

That list will need to be done to most 123's of that age.
Begin the love affair and don't look back, I say.

#13 06-05-2008, 08:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimFreeh

I've done it both ways, many times. My current 83 300D's previous owner had receipts for over $20K in the 5 years he owned it (none of this was for cosmetics). It was a very nice original car when he bought it. When I bought it from my good friend, he made promise never to disclose to his wife how much he had into the car....

That's not fair, he got to have all the fun and you just got a car. That's why it's called a hobby. I just never add up the receipts.

It's still cheaper than writing a $60K check for a new one.

JimFreeh · #14 06-05-2008, 09:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Craig

That's not fair, he got to have all the fun and you just got a car. That's why it's called a hobby. I just never add up the receipts.

It's still cheaper than writing a $60K check for a new one.

Craig, I've got a bunch of cars to have "fun" with.

Yes, $1900 is cheaper than $60 large, but that's not my point.

If you have to "invest" 5k or more to get a nice looking and running car, you are better off to pay that up front and get a much better car.

Now, if you only have $1900, and are doing the installment plan.... you still should discount the car sufficiently to deduct your efforts. Why should the seller get the advantage of your labor?

I've bought a lot of cars over the years, and usually I tow them home, which should tell you about the price point I'm working at. I've also bought some very nice cars, and paid top of the market for them, and I've yet to find an example of a cheap car being "cheap" if they are brought up to the level of a nice car. It's always a case of mucho effort, and a lot more money to equal the nice car.

Now, when I don't have the disposable income to spend on the nice car, I buy the needy car, and justify the time as hobby time and pay for the car piecemeal. Or I accept the car as a flawed example, and minimize the investment....

And Craig, I'm not fixated over the money.... but the better I can control the costs, the more cars I can buy!

Right now, I have 11 cars on the road, and 10 more as project/parts cars....

Regards,
Jim

vstech · #15 06-05-2008, 09:24 AM

I think you got a great deal. assuming the "clean bill of health" from the mechanic included a compression test and the car passed with 400psi in the pots. how is the blowby? how is the acceleration? transmission shifting well?
you don't mention interior condition on your new purchase.
are you going to effect the repairs yourself? are you going to tackle the a/c first and let the rest go slowly as your learning curve grows?