I need a source of comps for my '83 300SD -- any ideas? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

sunnyintx · #1 01-04-2009, 09:07 PM

Those of you who attended with our November GTG here in NE Texas will remember the gorgeous green SD we worked on -- installed a new interior, new shifter bushings, and completely rebuilt the front end. The one Hunter described as having "...such a sweet drivetrain."

She is no more. She gave her life for me and a few other folks, which is why we drive these wonderful cars, but....I'm SO sad to lose her.

Since the other guy's insurance will surely try to lowball her value, I'm doing all the standard stuff -- pulling together all my receipts, etc. (I've been to this fire once before). But I'm having a hard time finding comps for her. Three years ago, there were 30 or 40 closed eBay listings from which I could cherry-pick to establish the value of my lightly-damaged 300D. Now, there aren't hardly half a dozen, and most are appallingly low. Any ideas on where else I might look? I know a lot of sellers have gone to Craigslist, but like real estate, the adjuster will require "selling" prices, not "asking" prices.

For those who want to know what happened: There were many out-of-town and clueless folk in Dallas trying to get to the Ole Miss-Texas Tech game on Friday. Most of them seemed to be lost in Dallas' elevated downtown mixmaster, cutting in and out of traffic, slamming on brakes, etc. I seemed to be through the worst of it when someone a few cars ahead just stopped in the middle of the freeway, I guess to figure out where they were going. One pick-up and two cars in front of me panic-stopped as this idiot became visible (and, ultimately, mobile -- they drove off, blissfully unaware, probably causing another three or four pile-ups on their way to the game!).

The Green Girl was up to it -- stopped with an inch or two to spare. But she hadn't even sat back from her nose-down position when a big, TALL, loaded 2008 Silverado slammed into her from behind. The truck was almost immediately hit by someone else, who also drove away, though two cars behind that had a related encounter.

The Green Girl's rear end resisted being ridden over, took the weight of the truck, and under three impacts at some 35 to 40 mph, folded down and under. The bumper is now 90 degrees from what it was (pointed at the ground) and imbedded in the metal of the rear-end. The trunk lid, not surprisingly, is folded up about a foot or more, which allowed us to reach through the sides to retrieve our tool bag and other valuables from the trunk, since it will never open again. The trunk floor is buckled and within an inch of the rear tires. The rear window and the chrome surround is intact, though the body metal around it is rippled. Both back doors still open and close, and I drove her (very slowly!) off the elevated portion of the freeway to wait for the wrecker. Her front is still immaculate -- no damage except a tiny scrape on the bumper plastic.

I was surprised to see the Silverado in such good shape, but he took the hit 10% on his bumper and 90% on the below-the-bumper underbody. I expect he'll have some alignment problems in his near future....Nice kid, first accident, very decent, admitted straight-up to the cops that he'd been looking up at the signs and looked down too late to even brake. The three vehicles in front of me received parking-lot ding level damage -- with me standing on the brake with both feet, the SD took all the force, which was the cops' conclusion from looking at the damage.

The seatbelt locked during the panic stop, the headrest was adjusted properly, and the damage to me was minimal compared to the last time I was rear-ended with such speed and force. As I told one friend, "The difference between then and now is the Mercedes -- I'm walking and I'm not bleeding, and that's way ahead of where I was the last time."

I am shaken up, hit my head on something, have some pulled muscles in neck, shoulders, and back -- all the standard stuff -- but the cops were pretty amazed to see me moving around and making a fair amount of sense.

But I've lost my beautiful girl. Painful as it is to look at her, I will keep her for parts. If you guys can think of any places for me to look for comparable sales ('81 - '85 300SDs with lowish mileage), please let me know. And if you see another pretty blue-green w126 for sale, let me know! PM me or respond to this thread.

Thanks --

Sunny

Jeremy5848 · #2 01-04-2009, 09:26 PM

Depending on how much you want to invest compared to the return you might get, you could ask a professional appraiser for an opinion. That might cost you a couple hundred dollars and won't be as valuable post-accident than if it had been done before. But the insurance company might listen to it more that your list of comps. You could at least talk to an appraiser – it wouldn't cost anything to get an opinion. The appraiser might be able to set a value on the car "pre-accident" by looking at what was left. Worth a phone call, anyway.

sunnyintx · #3 01-04-2009, 09:56 PM

Thanks for the suggestion. I'd already begun exploring that avenue, but it doesn't look good. 99% of Texas appraisers are associated with dealers. Also, just as in real estate, the valuation an appraiser places on an auto is greatly influenced by comps, so I'm back in the same boat.

My friends on the parts desk @ the Dallas MB dealership are not hopeful about their appraiser, since lowballing is his job. Also, in my last run through with insurance, and in a recent situation I worked on on behalf of a family member, the adjusters were specifically looking for "fair market value" as determined by comparable sales. They want to look it up in a Blue Book and write a check, and our cars just don't fit that mentality. They have very specific rules about how and why they will vary that process.

But we'll see -- everybody's got their quirks.

LUVMBDiesels · #4 01-05-2009, 01:42 PM

I would go to a body shop with a good reputation and explain what happened. If you tell them that you are having it appraised for insurance purposes they might give you a good number. The shops I have dealt with love to stick it to the insurance companies.

I see on ebay prices ranging form $400 to $7000 dollars!

Skid Row Joe · #5 01-04-2009, 09:49 PM

I sold my '83 300SD with 305K miles on it for $4,950.00 cash in Dallas, Texas in 1999.
Really, they're not worth just a whole lot at their age. I don't think miles if they are low, even matters. They are wonderful cars, that's for sure. My neighbor still sees it around town, but I haven't seen it in traffic, for at least 8 years.

123Guy · #6 01-05-2009, 01:49 PM

Sunny,
Check your PM's for my note there.

daw_two · #7 01-05-2009, 02:20 PM

Sunny.

Try to hold out for as long as you can.......or settle quickly using comps from at least 6 months ago. Car prices seem to be depressed lately.

Glad to hear you weren't injured more seriously and glad the old gal protected you and the others so well.

sunnyintx · #8 01-06-2009, 09:38 AM

I was really quite shocked at NADA's assessment of the car -- much better than I expected, more in line with my sense of her value, but that's personal.

Since we'll almost certainly be buying another, the $25 60-day membership letting me check as many VINs as I want is pretty great. Great vehicle history, rating system, etc.

USAA says they'll only pay storage through tomorrow, since I don't want to give up the car. Twerps. I told them that'd be fine as long as they made a reasonable settlement offer by then, which I kinda doubt -- they can't even confirm the adjuster will be here by then!

Anyway, I'll keep you posted. Thanks, everyone, for your help and your ideas.

Sunny