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  #1  
Old 03-06-2004, 09:16 PM
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Which 300SDL to get?

OK, looking for some input to help me make a tough decision here guys. I have recently been searching in earnest for a good diesel commuter to do duty on my 100 mile a day round trip.

After driving w123's, w124's and w126's, I've decided that the w126 300SDL is the one for me. If I'm going to buy a Mercedes, I want it to be the big bad limo.

Two specimens have risen to the top of my search, and I present them here, with as much detail as I currently have, to see which way the more experienced oilheads would go. Both cars are about 3 hours from me, in opposite directions.

Specimen A:





Extra pics

1986 300SDL. $9000. 130,000 miles. Cabernet red over black leather. Pristine inside, and very good outside. One barely perceptible door ding and 5 or 6 stone chips. Good records to 86,000, sporadic after that. One owner until Spring 2003, and one more since. Both traded it in on another used Benz at the same original selling dealer (and salesman for that matter). Nearest other MB specialist is about an hour away from the dealer, so getting an inspection might be tough.

I drove this car for about an hour today. Everything works. ACC blows cold and hot as desired. It is still R12, and was serviced last September after the owner reported a lack of cold air. Tranny shifts as it should. ABS kicks in properly. No strange noises. Started instantly from cold. In short, it felt like a time warp car. I did notice in the records that the most recent owner complained of it using 2 quarts of oil in 1500 miles and shuddering under braking. Mercedes reground the valves and did a complete brake service as a goodwill gesture, but he still traded the car in 4 months later. Comes with brand new Michelin Arctic Alpins mounted, and some generic (Aurora?) brand all-seasons in the trunk.

Specimen B:





Extra pics

1987 300SDL. $5100. 175,000 miles. Black over grey leather. Not so pristine. Dash is cracked in three places. Both front seats have tears about 6" long, although it does come with two other front seat bases in the trunk that are better, but need to be redyed to match. Sunroof is inoperable. Resprayed in black unknown time ago. Body looks straight, with the exception of a couple of dings in the passenger door, and a 6" scrape in the rear drivers side fender. Exhaust is new-ish. Bottom engine cover is AWOL, and the hood padding is torn and starting to disintegrate.

Haven't driven this one yet. It has no records or history. It was bought from an unknown source by a retired guy who runs a small sales lot for fun. If you look at some of the other pics, you'll see he has quite a variety of vehicles. My friend who took the photos for me says that he has no knowledge at all about MB's. A good independent MB specialist is about 10 miles away, and the seller says he has no problem with them conducting a PPI.



So there you have it. I'm torn. The red one is truly a time warp car, and feels like it could have rolled off the line a few days ago. The guy is asking a premium price for it though. The black one is obviously not as pretty, but the $4000 price difference (and I think the black one could be negtiated down a fair bit) could buy a lot of prettying up. Also, if I'm gong to be using it as a daily monster commuter, that extra cash buys a lot of repairs that might crop up.

Opinions?


Last edited by MineMapper; 03-08-2004 at 09:35 AM.
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  #2  
Old 03-06-2004, 09:21 PM
VeeDubTDI
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Cool

The black one sounds a little scary. The black paint is beautiful, but I'm willing to bet that it has a few more problems than you're aware of now.

The red one is gorgeous, but the price is premium... however, I'm assuming it's a premium car.

Sorry if I'm not any help.

edit: buy the red one because it has headlamp wipers.

Last edited by VeeDubTDI; 03-06-2004 at 09:29 PM.
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  #3  
Old 03-06-2004, 09:43 PM
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It is a bit more scary, but it will be checked out by a very good independent MB guy before any cash ever changes hands. Assuming it checks out mechanically, that $4000 can do a lot to fix the cosmetics that are wrong.

I have no idea how the vacuum system or electrical accessories are though. That could swallow it all right there.

The red one seems to be primo, but my niggling distrust of all dealers tells me to be suspicious. Why would someone who bought a pristine, one owner car like this turn it back in within a year?
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Old 03-06-2004, 09:59 PM
VeeDubTDI
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That's a good question... it does raise a red flag. Maybe they got an astronomical quote for fixing the brake shuddering from the dealer.

I would suspect that the sunroof is going to be expensive to fix in the black one. Maybe someone can post some estimates/repair bills from having theirs fixed.
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Old 03-06-2004, 09:59 PM
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I just bought a no recored 300SDL that needs a little work. I got lucky and ended up with a pretty good car. I paid $2500 for it and have another $1k in it. I will probably have another $4k in it when everything is said and done. Thats $7500 for a near perfect car that I will know like the back of my hand, plus it's a lot of fun and a good way to spend time with my father. But in saying that my next MB will be like the Red SDL. I would pay the premium and drive it and enjoy, unless you want a project. One quick check is to pop the oil cap off when the car is running. Do this before you even pay for a PPI if there is no blow-by than I would fell better about purchaseing a no recored car. Also double what you think you will spend, to bring either car up to your specs, just a general guideline that seems to have some truth to it. Great car though you will enjoy your 100 mile commute with one of these.
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Old 03-06-2004, 10:03 PM
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Quote:
Originally posted by MineMapper
It is a bit more scary, but it will be checked out by a very good independent MB guy before any cash ever changes hands. Assuming it checks out mechanically, that $4000 can do a lot to fix the cosmetics that are wrong.

I have no idea how the vacuum system or electrical accessories are though. That could swallow it all right there.

The red one seems to be primo, but my niggling distrust of all dealers tells me to be suspicious. Why would someone who bought a pristine, one owner car like this turn it back in within a year?
His wife probably drove it, with the shuddering and oil loss. She told him it was a POS, and to get rid of the car otherwise she would leave the relationship.:p
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Old 03-06-2004, 10:06 PM
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Red one has zero blow-by. Correct fluids in all reserviors in the engine, at correct levels. I was unable to produce any smoke at any point in the test drive. And I mean none.

I'm not looking for a project. I can do maintenance myself, but with a one year old and an old house still undergoing renovation, I don't have time to be tinkering in the garage every weekend. Having said that, if a few things like the seats and sunroof are all that's needed to bring it up to snuff, I can handle that.
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Old 03-06-2004, 10:17 PM
VeeDubTDI
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It sounds like the red one is the one for you!

My vote is with the red one.
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  #9  
Old 03-07-2004, 01:40 AM
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Just some information on the sunroof...
I had the roof in my 87 300SDL "fixed" two summers ago at the local dealer.

They ended up replacing the assembly, minus the metal panel itself. Total cost was about $2200.

Since the install, it leaks ever so slightly when run under a pressure spray. They want an additional $300 to replace a seal that was not replaced during their install.

Good luck!
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Current:
11 MB S550 4Matic, 55k miles, Designo Black/Black
14 Ford F150 XLT Lariat Crew, 73k miles, 5.0
Coyote V8 4x4. Black/tan.
09 GMC Envoy Denali, 5.3 V8, 4x4 SWB. 38k miles,
Jewel Red/Med Gray.

Gone:
87 MB 300SDL, 320k miles, Astral Silver/Blue.
98 VW Jetta TDI, 488k miles, Classic Green/Gray.
85 Olds 98 Brougham FWD, 4.3 DIESEL V6, 80k
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  #10  
Old 03-07-2004, 08:09 AM
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It all depends on what you want. Don't limit yourself to these two cars. They both look very nice. I think the price for the red one is al little too much, although it does look mint. What is the stuff under the black one? Is that absorbent? Might be leaking something. Personally, I would go got the black one. You get your hands a little dirty and you get to know your car better in the meantime. Have you ever thought of an SD? A little more reliable and a little more inexpensive.
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  #11  
Old 03-07-2004, 09:50 AM
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Mini,

Here a different stroke: Why not buy both,keep red one for nice and run the the black one for your daily commute. Then if one is down for repairs, you will have a spare. You can get both for less than a new medium size car. Then when the black one is worn out, you can use it for a parts and get many more years out of the red one.

Never run the red one in the winter salt and it will stay pristine for a long time like mine

P E H
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  #12  
Old 03-07-2004, 10:05 AM
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If I thought I could get Momma to give up her Volvo wagon, I would get both.

That idea met with very dark looks last night though.....
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Old 03-07-2004, 01:03 PM
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Mini,

I have found to never let women put any input into the car equation.

P E H

Last edited by P.E.Haiges; 03-07-2004 at 01:14 PM.
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  #14  
Old 03-07-2004, 03:12 PM
VeeDubTDI
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Wink

I like PEH's suggestion. Sell the Volvo and buy both! Wifey will learn to love the new SDL more than she loves the Volvo. Or perhaps not.
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  #15  
Old 03-07-2004, 09:27 PM
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At $9000 he's out of his gord. I can see the car was painted as there is overspray in the front wheel well. Though I didn't look at them, there were a few in the local paper for the $2000-$3000 range. Bought mine years ago for $3000 and drove the hell out of it without any major problems.

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