It looks like i will be able to get a 1-2k civic from my family that has been well taken care of. I have driven many W123's without air conditioning, and it really is not a problem, even in Houston's summer. In the morning, windows down works great (not that hot yet),and in on the drive home, i get sweaty right about when i turn into my development. My commute is only 10.3 miles and the traffic is not bad.

I am planning on being completely debt free with my house paid off in less than 5 years. This is a drastic change in lifestyle, but as soon as i am in the position of not having house and car payments, i will be able to save for a very healthy retirement (Compound interest is the 8th wonder of the world) and save a lot of money to be able to buy nice cars in cash. So for me it is a few years of hard work and sacrifice to then be able to enjoy cars in a category that i was only dreaming of. This is not for everyone, as it will be tough to live tight, but it will be worth it in just a few years. For anyone that has not heard of Dave Ramsey, it will change your life. Americans have been brain washed to think that debt is good, and a house and car payment is something that will stick around for your entire life...

In short, for anyone still wondering why i am selling it car, it is not because there is something wrong with the car, it is the seller that is crazy.

__________________

Grey '91 350SDL 214k Dad's car
Beige '81 240D 4 Speed 254k SOLD
Blue '82 300D 225k SOLD
White '95 E300D 46k SOLD
Blue '87 190D 2.5 Turbo 315k SOLD
Brown '80 240D 4 Speed 716k SOLD
Beige '80 300D N/A 119k SOLD
Blue '85 300D Model 186k T-Boned

Dave Ramsey is just like Suze Orman. They preach 'common sense' approach to money and they profit from people who has no idea how to handle money. Debt free is good to a certain extend. Actually debt is good but it all depends on what kind of debt - it is called leverage or using OPM ( Other People's Money ). There is no compound interest to speak of in CD in the last few years. Stock is cyclical and your profit can evaporate just as fast as your compounded gain. It is not a financial forum so I will not dwell on it.

As for selling the car - you will be hard pressed to get $10K, even $8K. $5-6K is a reasonable number for a 18 years car. The low mileage does not worth a lot unless it is fully documented. OTOH, you only need 1 buyer who has the cash and inclination to buy it. They are rare, btw. If you down size the car and $6K is what you may realize then it is not worth the risk and hassle, unless you really need the cash to survive. I suspect you will be better off keeping it as a reliable car to enjoy.

Good luck to whatever you decide to do.

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Not MBZ nor A/C trained professional but a die-hard DIY and green engineer. Use the info at your own peril. Picked up 2 Infractions because of disagreements. NOW reversed.

W124 Keyless remote, PM for details. http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/mercedes-used-parts-sale-wanted/334620-fs-w124-chasis-keyless-remote-%2450-shipped.html

1 X 2006 CDI
1 x 87 300SDL
1 x 87 300D
1 x 87 300TDT wagon
1 x 83 300D
1 x 84 190D ( 5 sp ) - All R134 converted + keyless entry.

That's easy for King Midas and you to say

Sixto
87 300D

That is what my wife and I did -- live frugally, save money, pay off debt. I started thinking about retirement at age 30, started seriously planning / saving at 40 and we retired when I was 50. While we were working, the interest on the home loan was deductible, and since we never bought a new car, we never had car payments. Having a somewhat safe larger old car like a '95 E300 was part of the plan. I still recommend you keep it.

Jeremy

__________________

"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970

Is the odometer reading logged in the Carfax entry for the inspection?

I didn't realize a '95 E300 could have a build date as early as 11/93.

Sixto
87 300D

I looked through some of the carfax records for my old cars. It's inconsistent; some inspection stations log it, some don't. Some include the odometer, some have only the date.

- JimY

Well how much would you sell it for? The color is not that exciting both in and out, especially the lower panels. But it does look nice and well cared for. The "old lady" story is always a red flag for me. I recently got smoked by an old lady driving a Mercedes diesel. Her foot was all in the pedal. If you want 10k it better be a one owner, with dealer records since new, with a solid Carfax. And of course why would you sell a 1995 E300 with 46k? Why would anyone?

It's probably 11/94. Mine was built 01/95. OTOH, I've heard from correspondents in England that they had this model in 1993. Might it have been a European-delivery plan car?

Jeremy

__________________

"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970

It was a 1 owner (before i had it), i have records, carfax is solid, and the answer to why i am selling it is in the posts above (solid reason). If i don't get the money that i am looking for then i will just keep it.

__________________

Grey '91 350SDL 214k Dad's car
Beige '81 240D 4 Speed 254k SOLD
Blue '82 300D 225k SOLD
White '95 E300D 46k SOLD
Blue '87 190D 2.5 Turbo 315k SOLD
Brown '80 240D 4 Speed 716k SOLD
Beige '80 300D N/A 119k SOLD
Blue '85 300D Model 186k T-Boned

Just keep it. You're not going to get a better value out of your transportation dollar.

When you do retire debt free you will be looking for another one just like it. Keep it and it may save you money in the long run.

Unless you need the cash to pay off a huge interest debt.

I agree.

Swapping a known good auto to trade down for a lesser quality auto in the hopes of recapturing $5-6K equity might not be your best deal over a 2 or 3 year period. How much more are your likely repair costs with the replacement cheaper vehicle than the one you own? The MB might turn out to be the less expensive ride per mile?

If you were cruising in a $25-30K car the swap down might make more sense, expecially if you were making payments on an auto loan.

Good luck with whichever choice you make. I've lived a lot (not all) of what Ramsey preaches and it definately improves one's balance sheet. The last dismal financial decade has been a wet towel on most folk's financial growth plan and the compounding interest has gone to pot with the current Federal Reserve's polocies.

__________________
You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometime you just might find you get what you need.

you could always insure if for agreed value.

__________________
John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
1987 300TD
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

No offense intended to the OP/current owner, but this is one of my favorite quotes of someone selling a car...

I would venture to say this statement is true for every car on the road, yet I see it on CL all the time.

__________________
1968 220D, w115, /8, OM615, Automatic transmission.
My 1987 300TD wagon was sold and my 2003 W210 E320 wagon was totaled (sheds tear).

My eyes aren't that bad, Jeremy



[edit] Oh, dang, that's a big picture!

Sixto
87 300D