Why areclassic mercedes in mint condition not worth like maybe around 40K - 150K?

Because they are slow.
Aren't we lucky?

You've got to define your terms better than that. In the old car hobby, "Classic" has a very specific meaning. I don't have it in front of me, but in general in refers to certain makes of American cars built during a very limited period of time. Generally they are the custom-bodied cars built in the depression era--like Dusenberg, Marmon, some Cadillacs, some Lincolns. Regular production cars are not included.
Some Mercedes of the era would definitely fit the definition except they are not American built.
Many popular cars are not, in this strict dense of the word, "classics"-- No Chevies, and no Fords--not even Mustangs, are "classic" cars.

Now if you are referring to Mercedes automobiles fitted with custom bodies and built pre WW2, I think many people would accept them as classic cars, but, maybe not by the definition. And they would, indeed bring a high price--some maybe exceeding a Million or more $.
But I do not think thats what you are asking.... If you mean our beloved W123 chasis and others from the 60s , 70s, and 1980s, while not classics in the strict sense, they are certainly great automobiles, arguably some of the finest production vehicles ever. Perhaps the answer given above is correct--peolpe love fast cars; our cherished diesels are not, in the absolute sense, fast cars, so the laws of supply and demand allow a lower cost. I am quite content with the situation as it exists. I get to own, and drive vehicles of far higher design and build quality than I could otherwise afford-- just because they are a few years old, and slow. I think the situation is great.

As MS Fowler eluded to, the term "Classic" is WAY over used. I would not be surprised if this thread turns into a posting of everyones definition of the term.

A 123 falls WAY short of being a classic whatever your definition.

The only classic MB's, with the exception of the Gull Wing, are certain soft top cars of the past IMHO.

The 123 cars are fabulous automobiles in many ways, but they are just great transportation, not concourse beauties IMHO.

Have a great day,

Ah, I always wanted a 280SE 3.5 cabriolet. I think that Mercedes fits under the "German Classic". The premium these cars get is outrageous, but you should see how they're built.

I was in Barnes and Noble the other day and spotted a coffee table book covering Mercedes-Benz....A Pictoral History of Mercedes-Benz" or some other nonsense. W123s didn't even rate a picture in the stupid thing.

That's just fine with me...

__________________
Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

Our W123s will probably never fetch the big bucks. There were just too many of them built. My wife's 280SL, on the other hand, just keeps quietly increasing in value, the little dear...

Wes

DslBnz,

That was one of the cars I had in mind as an MB classic. I stopped at an Autobahn rest area between Konstanz and Stuttgart a couple of years ago and an elderly couple drove in with a strikingly beautiful restored 280SE Cabriolet. It was black and abslolutely glistened. I never seem to have a camera handy when I need one.

Have a great day,