I found car, a 300SD that I REALLY want. BIG BUT wife says 83 300D must go. The car runs great, no smoke except when first hard acceleration of the morning and them just a puff. 167 K miles and from the looks of the engine the oil was changed frequently. Trans is fine, tires are new. Inside are weelll, a little beat. No tears, wood is sort of bad but I do have replacement pieces. A/C doesn't work, CC does as I just fixed it. The body has no serious rust to speak of since it spent most of its life in FL. The paint is pretty bad, faded and what looks like badly scratched although this could be the paint breaking down. It has some dents (not big ones) ans a slight crease in one side.
I was thinking of putting it up for about 4200 or so and see what happens. Is this too much for a very less then perfect car? It really is a great runner but something on the ugly side. Just curious as I'm sure a lot of you have looked at many 300D's in all price ranges. The truth is if I were buying it again, I probably wouldn't pay more then 23~2500 for it, but from what I see on E-bay and Autotrader it seems these cars bring in pretty good bucks even when nowhere near perfect.
Thanks for your advise.

Take $2000 off your asking price if you really want to sell it.

Yeah, don't expect to get $2200, like Bill said. But it is a good starting point.

When a customer comes to see that car and looks at the interior condition, AC not working, wood cracked, etc; he will assume the car has been abused. An MB with a maintained 160K miles should look only slightly used, not worn out; and smart buyers will know this, and take it into account. I'm affraid in your situation, the mileage does not mean much.

Rmmagow,

I'd say the wife must go.

I agree $2000 is a realistic starting price. Try Ebay with a reserve of $2000 and see what happens.

P E H

O my God!!Not frick and frack again!! No wonder our economy is in the toilet. $2,200!!?? Add $2,000 to that. Always try to get the most money you can for your car. You can always bring it down. You'd be surprised, it all depends on the enthusiast who wants to buy your car, market factors, total condition of car. Be careful, nada doesn't factor in a lot of things when it comes to these cars and I see most of them selling for MORE on the web and all overbecause of market conditions and many other variables.. TXBILL and TURBODIESEL may be veteran mb owners but they need some help when it comes to marketing and sales.
I am asking $12k for mine and I have gotten 3 potentials one offered $9,000+ but I am waiting on the other two. They are suggesting I lower my price after I have gotten offers!! Maybe all that diesel particulate matter has finally clogged their brains?? We have had serious debate over this. Just because you guys may have undersold youselves I guess that gives you reason to recommend it to others. God forbid us newbies make a better profit than you guys.

I guess it all depends on whether he wants to sell the car or not. I know of a mint '82 300D with 101k miles, absolutely perfect, that I've been thinking about for months priced at $4500. $1500-2200 sounds about right based on the description for this car - it's certainly not way below market.

If the likely selling price is $2k, advertising it for double that number won't be useful. It's possible that you'll find someone clueless who'll come in and pay ask or close to it (not an enthusiast - they're informed). Much more likely is that an honest description/photos at that price will keep a real buyer for the car from even making the call, because they think they're wasting they're time with an unrealistic seller. If you get them to see the car by misrepresenting it as actually being a $4k car, they'll be seriously pissed when they show up, and no deal will happen. The car will sit forever, and you want to sell to get the 300SD.

Figure out the likely selling price (i.e. the one you'd pay), add 10-20% for negotiating room/non-savvy buyer, and go to market.

Well Folks, you've all convinced me to give up this Mercedes crap and go back to my Jap luxo barges :-) Geez, I think I'll just donate the damn thing to charity. Or better still enter the demo derby on Saturday heh? Well at least I didn't get too seriously ripped off, I paid 2550 for the car on E-Bay and it was not represented to be quite as bad a s...box as it actually appears to be. In truth, I always felt I paid 2500 for a great $1500 car. This was my first bad e-bay experience buying a car, other deals have been at least fair if not actually pretty good. The SD is going to have to wait so the W123 will continue to have this and that fixed as I repair/replace failed systems. The A/C is being fixed next which should help with resale value if I sell in the heat of next summer. Cruise is already fixed. I'm going to bring it around to various body shops and basically shop price for a decent respray. Fortunately rust isn't a problem on this car. I only wish I could be a sleazeball and sell it to some unsuspecting jerk who wants to be seen in a Mercedes but I just can't do it.
So, life continues as an only slightly disappointed first diesel owner.

Exactly. When I look for used cars, I immediately ignore sellers asking waaaay too much because it's a waste of time. I like to let these cars sit for a week or two, and let the sellers "marinade" in their own misery and self-doubt because nobody calls to see their car.

Then in the third week or so, they drop the price for a fire sale because they are tired of waiting and need the money for something else.

It's all about this. In the end, the seller is not trying to make a profit, he's just trying to get a car off his hands.

__________________
Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

"If the likely selling price is $2k, advertising it for double that number won't be useful. It's possible that you'll find someone clueless who'll come in and pay ask or close to it (not an enthusiast - they're informed)."

I don't think rmmagow or anyone else here has any intention of suckering anyone. I also don't think his car would sit very long.

This is a totally monopolized thread like the other one. Everyone is agreeing with the moderator rather than actually listening to or addressing the the upposing argument/s.

Bottom line this is the reason I bought one of these old cars and fixed it up and if I hold on to it:

#1 It will cost me far less than spending $25,000-$50,000 a new car of my taste.

#2 I have the chance of having no car payment for a good while.

#3 I have something unique.

#4 I get better gas milage than many cars yet have one of the larger cars.

#5 Its a Mercedes!

There's more but I will stop there. As far a selling the car, our opinions differ for obvious reasons. That's not going to change.

O PS You only have 3 choices any way:

#1 Find an SDL for the nada value and buy it, then repair it like I did mine.
#2 Pay for an SDL already repaired for my price.
#3 Buy and SDL for nada and don't repair it and get stranded on the side of the road.
#4 Go buy something else.
Take your pick! End of discussion.

Tank, what are the opposing arguments that are being ignored? General consensus seems to be that the real market value of rmmagow's car is somewhere within shouting distance of $2200 (actually, after a quick look at the winning, as opposed to asking, prices on e-bay, I think that might be high). Even rmmagow agrees that he wouldn't pay much more for it today. You suggested that he advertise it for $2k more, presumably because a) you think that's the real market value, or b) you think that's the tactic which will allow him to get the best price for his car, because it gives some room to move down. Is there something else here that I'm missing?

If he has the time to wait and selling isn't a priority, sure, place an ad for $4200 (your suggestion). Maybe someone will bite. I don't think so, but it's not my car, or my time, or my money when the car is sold. Ultimately, these cars are a commodity, with definable price ranges based on condition, mileage, geography, etc. The ranges obviously have some give and take, but I don't think advertising that far out of the range is a useful way to get the car sold. Just my opinion, YMMV.

BTW, your sig has your car for sale for $912,000. Based on the description, I'd consider paying $909,500, but not a penny more

HAHA, ok.

And much to my surprise the old beast actually hit 100 mph today. On flat road too! I admit to being a little bit nuts doing that to the old thing but it really didn't feel bad, the Jap cars always felt like they wanted to fly away anywhere near 100. I've had my 58 up to about 85 or so and it feels a lot like the 300 at speed, solid and stable. Someone's coming tomorrow to look at it at 3800 and since I've gotten calmed down from the SD craze (and the ad runs 'till sold) I'll hang around that price as I fix it up. Either someone'll want it or I'll end up with a nicely fixed up 300D so either way I'll be happy. The sucker does run very well and starts easily (course it's not cold yet). Today it was cold enough to see if climate control worked and it does so once the A/C's leak is fixed it should be pretty good. The big deal is the paint and body work. I wish I knew how to do some of that myself but lack of skill and garage space kill that idea. The 58 has a permanent all to itself side of the garage and the thoughts of me screwing up with a paint gun are too scary to even think about. The 300D is my 5th MB but really the first I ever could use daily and that's just what I plan to do unless this guy makes a reasonable offer. :-)

Not really sure what the fuss is about. First....the wife should go....then you should list the car at the highest price possible. Then....drive the car with a for sale sign in it until it sales. You will get your money out of the car in two ways....first, you are driving one of the safest cars on the road....second....if it is mechanically sound....you will save in vehicle maintainance fees...last....you will always find "deals" on other cars....some you will buy...some you will not.....I just got a 300CD for $350.....and it runs....
Nathan