Talk me in or out of buying 2 Mercedes diesels..... - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Graplr · #1 03-27-2010, 03:31 PM

I just went and looked at two Mercedes that a guy who sold his house is trying to offload. He closes on Thursday but is renting it back for 60 days. So he has 2 months to get rid of them.

The cars-

#1- 84 300TD- Cheap wagon club candidate- Navy/Navy color combo. One word to sum it up....rusty. Floors below seats seem good but fenders, wheel wells and jack points rusted. Brakes need work, needs a rear boot but I drove it around the block without problems. I brought my own battery. It has been sitting for 4 years. Last time it was started was last fall to move it around his yard. I put the battery in and it fired right up! Man I love these cars. My wife liked it.

It has 294k on it with a working odometer. He is asking $800 for it.

#2- 84 300D- 503k on the clock! White exterior/navy tex interior. Never driven in winter and it shows. No rust but paint is faded. Interior is nice. Two large cracks in dash. He told me it was owned by a salesman thus the high miles. Could easily be a daily driver. He is asking $2500 for it.

I didn't drive the 300D as I mainly went for the TD with aspirations of joining the CWC...but I told him I needed to think about it and he said that the price was negotiable. I could tell he wanted to dump the wagon. I asked him if he was firm on the D and he said "Oh no, everything is negotiable." I told him I would think about it and call him back in the next few days.

I think I could get the wagon for under $500. I don't know how low he would go on the 300D but maybe if I made an offer on both as a package deal...

Maybe I'll offer him $1500 for both and see what happens. I would bet I could get them both for $2000, but do I really want to spend $2000 right now when we are looking at houses....

bustedbenz · #2 03-27-2010, 04:31 PM

My personal vote in that situation would be to take the 300D with you and let him keep the wagon. Once you have terminal rust, it almost never gets cheap enough in my opinion to be worth throwing money at. That $500 soon becomes $900 with a new set of tires when they wear out, $1000 or more the first time the starter or alternator needs replacing, then you'll like it so much it'll turn into a $1500 car as soon as the suspension needs redoing -- all for one that's going to rust to the ground sooner rather than later. That's my two cents. LOTS of people consider a $500 wagon rusty or not to be the catch of the year no matter how soon the rust takes over. But for my bet... the 300D with the nice interior and intact exterior -- paint can be redone as money comes in -- would be the one I'd rather buy between those two.

tbomachines · #3 03-27-2010, 04:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bustedbenz

My personal vote in that situation would be to take the 300D with you and let him keep the wagon. Once you have terminal rust, it almost never gets cheap enough in my opinion to be worth throwing money at. That $500 soon becomes $900 with a new set of tires when they wear out, $1000 or more the first time the starter or alternator needs replacing, then you'll like it so much it'll turn into a $1500 car as soon as the suspension needs redoing -- all for one that's going to rust to the ground sooner rather than later. That's my two cents. LOTS of people consider a $500 wagon rusty or not to be the catch of the year no matter how soon the rust takes over. But for my bet... the 300D with the nice interior and intact exterior -- paint can be redone as money comes in -- would be the one I'd rather buy between those two.

I agree...the rust would be a deal breaker for me. Unless you just want a parts car for the 500k one, I would leave the wagon alone. You should be able to get the 300D for below 1000 pretty easy.

okyoureabeast · #4 03-27-2010, 05:00 PM

What they say about a cheap benz is true. I got mine for FREE and I've already dumped 2500$ getting it fixed up.

The D has a lot of miles. That concerns me, but in reality if they're all highway then you may be ok.

I would low ball him at $1500. 500k plus is a lot without yearly preventive maintenance. Remember you'll be doing a full fluid/ filter change regardless of the maintenance history. Maybe a set of new tires as well?

strelnik · #5 03-27-2010, 05:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tbomachines

I agree...the rust would be a deal breaker for me. Unless you just want a parts car for the 500k one, I would leave the wagon alone. You should be able to get the 300D for below 1000 pretty easy.

X2. IF the power train were super good, you could get a rust-free wagon in another part of the country and put the power train in it, IF the power train were REALLY good. If not, unless it's got lotsa parts you need, don't buy it. As other have wisely said, it IS, not WILL BE a MONEY PIT

Graplr · #6 03-27-2010, 05:15 PM

I can't imagine myself buying just the 300D. I'm not the 300D worshipper many are. I'd take a TD, SD or CD over the D any day. So to me, just buying the 300D isn't too appealing. I guess I was looking it more like taking the cars off of his hands. The wagon is easily worth $500 in parts. The engine actually ran great and the tranny shifted nice and it has a 3rd seat. I could drive it until the rust got too bad and then use it as a parts car and have a free engine for my SD in 200k miles.

It would probably take $500 or so to get it road worthy.

I do see your point about there being no such thing as a cheap Mercedes. I have no idea how much money I've put into my $1400 SD, but it easily surpasses the purchase price a time or two. But then again I've driven it for 65k miles.

Maybe I'll call him back and tell him to give me a call in a month if he hasn't sold them yet.

Biodiesel300TD · #7 03-27-2010, 05:19 PM

If the fender lips and body are that rusty, it likely that every nut and bolt under the car is that rust or more, and will be a PITA to deal with every time you go to replace something. I would avoid the wagon, unless you want to part it maybe. The D sounds like a better deal.

tbomachines · #8 03-27-2010, 05:28 PM

Just wondering, how rusty is "too rusty" for you? The way you described it sounded like it was on the verge of falling apart. Again, I would run...there are a LOT more older MBs out there for cheap.

Graplr · #9 03-27-2010, 05:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tbomachines

Just wondering, how rusty is "too rusty" for you? The way you described it sounded like it was on the verge of falling apart. Again, I would run...there are a LOT more older MBs out there for cheap.

For me? Well if I bought it I would have to admit to the fact going in that it will always be rusty and drive it until the rust no longer allows me to. Then I would have a a decent engine and some other parts for another car, hopefully a wagon down the road. I don't really care how it looks just that it functions...well for the price I'm paying anyways. So the appearance of the rust doesn't bother me it is just whether or not it would be worth it. So far I have not heard one person say, buy it.

BTW, one of the homes we are looking at has a new 2300sqft pole barn. I could fit a lot of Mercedes diesels in there.

The wife told me I could have as many old Mercedes as I wanted just as long as I don't buy a motorcycle. I said "DEAL!"

So this wagon could become a parts car somewheres along the way. Probably sooner rather than later.

vtmbz · #10 03-27-2010, 05:53 PM

Anybody from Minnesota just has to know better than this-- terminal rust is always a big deal. Like the man said--all those expensive parts and hard labor going into a "dead man walking". Body rust means brake line rust, did you say rear brakes need work? Fuel tank? This car is going to the crusher, so bide your time and get it for free.

That being said-- I've done it myself. Usually in the spring. I once bought a car for 600.00, and then the guy gave me BACK a hundred of it! Now that one turned out to be a prize.

JEBalles · #11 03-27-2010, 07:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Graplr

For me? Well if I bought it I would have to admit to the fact going in that it will always be rusty and drive it until the rust no longer allows me to. Then I would have a a decent engine and some other parts for another car, hopefully a wagon down the road. I don't really care how it looks just that it functions...well for the price I'm paying anyways. So the appearance of the rust doesn't bother me it is just whether or not it would be worth it. So far I have not heard one person say, buy it.

BTW, one of the homes we are looking at has a new 2300sqft pole barn. I could fit a lot of Mercedes diesels in there.

The wife told me I could have as many old Mercedes as I wanted just as long as I don't buy a motorcycle. I said "DEAL!"

So this wagon could become a parts car somewheres along the way. Probably sooner rather than later.

Well, at that, definitely go for both. You can definitely talk the wagon down for the rust and probably the sedan for its miles. Keep the wagon and restore it. Just accept that it's a project and use it to learn how to weld or something. That is, however, assuming you enjoy the work.

vstech · #12 03-27-2010, 11:12 PM

<160K? buy it.
the motor tranny is WAAAAAY worth more than the crappy body is. wagons are not difficult to find.
he's CRAZY to ask 2500 for a 500K+ vehicle. does he understand what's involved in a motor that heavily used? axles? rear diff? front suspension? Rear? transmission? really? you're looking at 4K minimum to get everything that is wornout fixed on that car. the wagon with all it's rust is a steal at 500, so tell him the motor/trans in the wagon is worth 500 to you, it's gonna take 2K in labor to swap out the powertrain into the sedan, and you'll take the D for 500 also.
realistically that D looks like a good deal body wise, but those miles really kill the value. NO WAY it's worth over 1K. "million mile benzes" have had 3 motors in them...and the suspension will seriously cost coin to repair. and NOBODY can align them properly but the dealer and it'll be 400 getting that done there...

Skid Row Joe · #13 03-28-2010, 04:49 AM

I'm wondering if you need another vehicle in the family? Since they all cost you money to keep 'em on-the-street - and neither one sounds like a prize to me - unless you wanted a couple parts-type cars? If you're like me, there may be better cars down the road to spend your money on..

I would tell the guy that if he doesn't have any takers near his price for the non-rusted sedan - and that because of the extreme high-mileage I could only give him a thousand bucks for it.

The rusted wagon would be of no consideration to me, unless you sincerely treat it as a parts car to cannibalize over the years. I would not spend a nickel on it for it's upkeep.

I can't see filling up my property - unless you have some serious acreage for dying carcasses of old high mileage stuff - that ends up costing you a lot of annual dollars just to keep out in the yard. My car and my diesel coach have to pull their weight as primary transportation for me - or they get fixed or replaced real quick. They're not pets to me.....even though I like 'em....

Graplr · #14 03-28-2010, 09:35 AM

Honestly, no I don't need another car in the family. I think I have decided I will call the guy and tell him I can't see spending that much money on a rusted out car and one with that high of mileage. Then I'll see how little he is willing to let them go for right now. If it is not below $1000 for both I'll tell him to keep my number and call me back in a month if he hasn't sold them and still wants to sell them.

As luck would have it, I found very nice 124 gasser wagon with a BAD transmission locally. Perhaps I could transplant the 123 drivetrain into it and have a NICE cheap diesel wagon....

Codifex Maximus · #15 03-28-2010, 01:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Graplr

The wagon is easily worth $500 in parts. The engine actually ran great and the tranny shifted nice and it has a 3rd seat. I could drive it until the rust got too bad and then use it as a parts car and have a free engine for my SD in 200k miles.

It would probably take $500 or so to get it road worthy.

You could buy the wagon for $500 then call Pimp My Ride(tm).