Thinking Of Buying 1982 300CD..Looking For Advice - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

RafferMJ · #1 03-20-2009, 09:04 AM

Hi, I am new to this forum and I was hoping that I could get some advice on what to look out for on the early 80's 300CD's. I have attached the pictures that the owner of the car emailed to me the other day. He said that the car had been garaged all of its life but had seen quite a bit of storage time after the previous owner died. He also said that there was a slight oil leak but from what I understand about these cars that is quite commonplace. Anyways, I am going to test drive this car on Saturday and would like some advice on what to ask and what to look out for. I have little to no mechanical experience and would really appreciate the help! Thanks!

RafferMJ · #2 03-20-2009, 09:06 AM

Some more pictures..

RafferMJ · #3 03-20-2009, 09:08 AM

Oh yeah. The car has 114,000 miles on it and he has it listed at 7000 which seems high to me.

John Schroader · #4 03-20-2009, 10:01 AM

That price does seem high to me. Seems that price varies widely, depending on condition, maintenance, etc.-- but that still sounds high unless it is pristine. A couple of years ago I was looking for my first MB and passed by an '82 CD with 128K, one owner for $3500. It had not been abused (older ladie's car), but had also not been maintained all that well. Bouht a 300D in great shape for $3K. Glad I made the choice. CD's bring more money than D's, but probably not that much. This forum is a great place to find reasonably priced MB's with plenty of valuable info.

#5 03-20-2009, 10:10 AM

Price seems high...especially if you are in Ohio aka part of the rust belt (I know I'm in Indiana). Make sure to ask for service records, and if you are serious find a Mercedes mechanic to take a look at the car before buying! I would try to talk him down a lot but that is just me. Also look for good shifting and acceleration. Do a forum search on guides to buying these wonderful cars specifically the teakettle dance. Good luck and welcome to the obsession

123Guy · #6 03-20-2009, 10:10 AM

Decent looking car and 114K is very low miles. It does look like it needs shocks - they should have been replaced already, at around 100k miles, but probaly haven't.

vstech · #7 03-20-2009, 10:17 AM

that engine compartment looks great, I'm sure the guy had it detailed, and armor alled, just for looks. 7K is pricey, but if you are looking for a CD, you will pay what is asked. 114K cannot be verified, they are SOOOO easy to swap or manipulate, unless you have immaculate service records, and proof that the odo is totally accurate, you can't base price on that alone. the drivers' seat looks very poor for Tex interior. all pinked out, and heavily wrinkled in the center. the dash wood is pretty badly cracked in the one panel, also, the steering wheel looks pretty worn on top, but it could be lighting making it look that way.
if I REALLY wanted that car, I'd offer 4500 and have cash with me for the offer, and WALK away if he's not interested in going down on the price at all. IMHO, 7K is just too high.
crank the car TOTALLY COLD, and see how it starts with NO GLOW CYCLE!!! at 114K, with excellent service it should start within 2 seconds. once running, pull that PLASTIC oil fill cap off and see how much smoke puffs out the hole... look over the cam through the hole for signs of rust on the lobes.
drive the car feel for all four gears, feel if there is any slip, and feel for smooth shifting.

chasinthesun · #8 03-20-2009, 10:31 AM

Its still a valuable car ,condition is near mint and to find a garaged car is a rare find ,thats a reasonable price.If he will come down $1000. then its like you stole it.Remember condition is everything to the next person who buys it from you ,if your just going to drive it once in a while and garage it then this will be a wise investment.Too many faked odo s out their ,if this ones ligit ,get it.

derburger · #9 03-20-2009, 11:08 AM

I bought my 80 300cd for $5000 and it had 122k miles and was in similar garaged condition. Again, verify the mileage and offer less with cash.

The condition of the A/C and power windows/seals are a bargaining chip since they are expensive to fix. Also that's a... unique color

I like it.

ah-kay · #10 03-20-2009, 12:38 PM

Let me see. 114K in 27 years. That works out to be 4222 miles per year. How many people do less then 5K per year for 27 years? It is hard to believe unless there is service record.

If it is legit then the seats should be immaculate. Minimal wear in brake/gas/hand brake paddle rubber. Look for tell tale sign for wear. For that price, everyhting should be working, including A/C and cruise control. $7000 is too high in my IMHO. I paid my 83 300D for $700 18 months ago, everything works, verified 1 owner with 305K miles.

matthias08 · #11 03-20-2009, 01:51 PM

I just saw the car on craigslist. I say, atleast check it out.

toomany MBZ · #12 03-20-2009, 07:29 PM

Just make sure everything works, heat and A/C, sun roof, door locks.
It may not start cold without at least a dash light cycle, none of my five ever have.
I paid 10 grand for my CD in 2003. EVERYTHING worked.

tobybul · #13 03-20-2009, 08:17 PM

Some sellers will always try to get as high a price as they can. It is your job as the buyer to discern if the price is worth it. But also it is relative to how much you want to spend. If you have $$$ to spend then go for it.

But keep in mind that for $7000 for a1980 W123 all the wear items and any repairs better have been addressed

. Because of their age there are many wear items that usually need attention which, unless you can DIY - and enjoy doing it - can get expensive

.

Generally, these cars are bought - and kept - by folks who don't mind the upkeep. Like me for example, I still enjoy working on them. You can get them to the point where they will not need any work for some time....

And as has been said by other members, the mileage can be suspect unless you know the owner pretty well and how they used it.

RafferMJ · #14 03-21-2009, 10:09 PM

Just returned from my test drive of the 82 300CD and I am hesitant to make a purchase based on the owner's resistance in allowing an inspection to be done on the car. The closest Mercedes dealership is almost 60 miles away so I can understand his hesitance in driving that far for an inspection when he's not sure I am fully committed to making the purchase. But an inspection definitely needs to be done before I can feel comfortable dropping thousands of dollars on an almost 30 year old car. I'm thinking about calling some local repair shops in the area (Millersburg, OH) but I'm not sure that anyone in the area will be capable of diagnosing the potential problems I need sought out.
I drove the car and the transmission seems to be working properly, shifts smoothly without any clunking. All of the windows roll up and down, although slowly. The sunroof would not open at first but after a few minutes it sluggishly came open with a few helpful manually pushes of the hand. There is only a slight patch of rust on the lower left front of the front cowling (not sure if thats the correct name for it). The engine fired up right away after one glow cycle although I'm not sure if the owner ran the car for awhile before I got there. The radio is operational except the antenna does not retract. There are many rock chips all over the front of the body, a 4 inch dent on the passenger's side door from when the previous owner drove his lawnmower into it (haha), and several scratches on the trunk lid. The A/C is weakly operational but I expected that from a car of this age. The fog lights are not operational and the drivers side turn indicator was burnt out. The mileage of 114000 is most likely accurate as the odometer is still functional but one cant be sure based on that.
Also, the owner seemed very resistant to lowering his price of 7000. I'm not so sure this would be a very smart buy for me as it would be taking a big risk. I want this car to be a daily driver so it needs to be pretty dependable. I understand the fact that its an older car and its going to need routine maintenance done to it it but Id like the maintenance to be somewhat affordable as I dont have a ton of money to blow on it. Id really appreciate some further help on what I should do/be thinking. Thanks!

RafferMJ · #15 03-21-2009, 10:19 PM

Oh yeah, I asked the owner what kind of state the vacuum system was in as well and he said that the car did not have a vacuum system in it. Is this true? I was under the impression that it did from my browsing of the forums. I could easily have been mistaken. Also, the exhaust system was recently replaced as were the ball joints in the front shocks. Thanks!