At the risk of being a bit of an interloper (I don't own a CDI yet), I am interested in people's thoughts as to how to balance the mileage/price issue. Assuming well-documented maintenance in all cases, where is one likely to get the most bang for the buck? And at what mileage does one begin to incur significant risk in terms of maintenance costs going forward?

I suspect I'd be willing to spend a bit more to get something in, say, the 150k mile range. But I wouldn't be averse to buying one with 250k miles for the right price.

There is a well-maintained one where I made some inquiries with 260k miles asking $8000. Sounds fair but not a GREAT deal.

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14 E250 Bluetec 4Matic "Sinclair", Palladium Silver on Black, 160k miles
06 E320 CDI "Rutherford", Black on Tan, 179k mi, Stage 1 tune, tuned TCU
91 300D "Otis", Smoke Silver on Tan, 145k mi, wastegate conversion, ALDA delete

19 Honda CR-V EX 79k mi
Fourteen other MB's owned and sold
1961 Very Tolerant Wife