Wow Lance, I've got a '86 300 SDL, with about 155k miles. I've owned it for about 2 years and i've spent about $1,500.00 Shocks, brakes, swaybars,Belt Tensioner, and drilled out a few broken lug bolts. It costs, but over all i've enjoyed this nice car. Wow, with all that total amount of dollars that's about Half the cost of a new CDI...

20.9 cents a mile is no bargin, you would have done better buying a new Honda every 150k. As we say in the marine industry, "It's just money"

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

That is a nightmare....but some of those issues were warranty work by the previous owner I assume?

at what point do you look at at the market value of the car and say these repairs are not worth it?..(if they are out of pocket expenses?)




Warren
1992 300SD 177K
Columbus Ohio

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Well just depends on what kind of hobby you have. If you can afford it then i suppose it's just fine. However, if it's a fascination/working vehicle and your on a tight budget then, I guess maybe you should think about getting something less expensive. Course, nothings cheap now days.

agreed...but if money is no object would the person not be driving something else.....?


Warren
1992 300SD 177K
Columbus Ohio

That is one pampered SDL! Thanks for posting that Lance, that could be a tough one to admit.

At that rate, I guess it would be cheaper to own a new car every few years and pay no maintenance costs.

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63 220S W111
76 300D W115
2013 VW JSW TDI M6

previously-
73 280 SEL 4.5
86 300E 5 speed
2010 VW Jetta TDI M6

The PO's of my 300D were the same, they didn't do anything themselves either, not even a bulb nor anything else. Things changed with me.

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DJ


84 300D Turbodiesel 190K with 4 speed manual sold in 03/2012

I would never spend that kind of money on any car.

I do not want you to feel bad, but stay away from repair shops..You pay top dollar plus...

Some of your expenses are definitely redundant. Take the trans, first a pump (low Pressure? flare & or soft shift)) then a modulator (flare and or soft shift) then a trans and torque converter. TC never go bad on these cars. I would not have changed it unless you had alot of debris in your ATF. First two repairs were guesses. I bet all you needed were seals, clutches and gaskets.. $350 parts, maybe 800 labor.. An MB reman would be $1800 and 300 labor = $21-2200

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79 240D my current toy
42 years a Diesel addict

240D sold
250SE sold
220D sold
280C sold
280S sold
300D (2) sold
300CD sold
300DT sold
300SD sold
380SL sold

Trailing arm

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Alan Hamm
'87 300SDL 277K Miles
'89 560 SL 68K Miles

Alan,

I have taken my cars to the same Indy you do, Mitch Carr. Excellent service and good price. I do most of my work myself, but when I either don't feel comfortable doing it myself or I just don't feel like it, he's where I take it. I recall 2 summers ago I took my 82 SD in there and he gave it the once over and presented me with a long list of things that needed to be done (and they DID need to be done). But we triaged them and I left the car with him to do the important ones, then I tackled the others later. Good folks and very reasonable cost.
On the SDL, I have an 87 300SDL that I have been driving for about a year and a half now. Minor issues up to now. I never would take one of these cars to the dealer - they don't want to bother with them. Key to me is learning to do much of the work yourself. Much of it is high labor, relatively inexpensive parts. It's the only way I could justify having one of these cars.

- Ted

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1987 300SDL 265,000 mi.
1982 300SD 325,000 mi. (and holding)
1956 Packard Clipper 150,000 mi.

How is the Packard? Lots of firsts in a "56" packard for me.

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N. Hodges
1994 S350
1987 300 SDL (for sale)

THe Packard has been dormant for a while because it's hard to be able to work on it at my house. We just bought a country place out near Ocean City and plan to take it out there Memorial Day weekend so I have some room to work.

Mechanically, it's in great shape. Rebuilt engine, done by someone who knows how and does good work. Same with the automatic transmission. Auto load levellers work great. New tires.

But it LOOKS like a Mad Max mobile right now, since I stripped and primed it and took all the chrome off in prep for paint. That's kind of where I stopped. I'm looking forward to getting it going in the right direction again.

But, yes, it's got some cool stuff. Push button automatic transmission, torsion bar suspension with automatic load levellers, and it's BIG, BIG, BIG.

- Ted

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1987 300SDL 265,000 mi.
1982 300SD 325,000 mi. (and holding)
1956 Packard Clipper 150,000 mi.

Man, those numbers are pretty astounding to me. Heck, our 300D probably had no more than $3000 in maintainence over the eight or so years we drove it. I seem to remember it needing some alignment work, a starter, a few other things here and there. Other than that, my Dad always changed the oil himself (except in winter), and had the transmission fluid changed and the lash adjusted at recommended intervals. That was about it in over 100,000 miles.
I don't think I could ever leave a vehicle of mine to anyone else's care. I cannot imagine paying anyone $100/hr to fix anything of mine unless I absolutely had to or was very well off (like income of $350K+), and it really was a trifle. Maybe it's a class thing, I was raised and remain firmly middle-class. Or maybe I'm just cheap. Let's see, to get my Fairlane back on the road (and put 15,000 miles on it), I had the following expenses:
Brake master cylinder, wheel cylinders, flex lines, etc.: $120
Frontend rebuild, new shocks: $400
Carburetor rebuild, fuel pump, other small parts: $60
Hoses, belts, water pump: $70
Wheel bearing and seal: $75
New clutch, main and rod bearings, oil pump: $250
So, in the first 15,000, I spent $975, not including consumables (brake shoes, oil, tires, etc), and this was on a car that had been sitting for about 8 years. Not exactly the most comfortable or high-class arrangement, but it worked pretty well. I probably could have gotten another 20-30,000 out of it the way it was, but I decided to go ahead and drop a rebuilt motor in it. Also, I'm not counting upgrade items that weren't necessary to the functionality of the car (stereo, interior work, etc.), which would probably have amounted to $1200 in that time. I do pretty much all my work myself, but the thing about a car like the Fairlane is that just about anyone and his brother could keep it going, and if you find an old part-time mechanic to work on it, you can keep things going for very cheap. I guess in my mind, dropping a car of at a dealer and saying "I want it like new" is an invitation for a very long and expensive ride. I want to make our 300D almost like new (better than new in some regards), and I hope to do so for something around $6000. Sure I'll probably end up spending more than my target, but not that much. I just can't see putting up with a car that was costing me $2000+ in repairs per year. Of course, it would be hypocritical of me to criticize anyone too much for spending that much when I'm in a way doing the same thing by taking an old car (some less considerate persons would call it a heap) and slowly upgrading it, piece by piece. I guess the difference is that some day I'll run out of things to spend money on, and if I've done it right, maintainence will be pretty cheap. But who knows.
If you really want cheap, a new car is NOT it. If you choose a good used car and have it serviced by yourself, or a good independant repairman if you're not willing or are unable, there is practically no way you'll come anywhere near spending what you would on a new car. I'm sorry if you disagree, and this isn't the best place to say it, but the cheapest car I can think of is an old Ford with a straight six and a manual transmission. You could pick one of those up in good working condition for around $1000, put at most another $500 in it, and have a good reliable car. Of course, a barebones W123 is pretty close to matching in cheapness IF you have the tools and knowhow. It all depends though, on what your wants, needs, and capabilities are. If you're driving long distances, the longevity and better milage of the diesel will probably serve you better. If you do more short driving and need cold-weather starting (or aren't fixing it yourself and don't have access to a good MB repairman), the Ford would probably be a better choice. All the electronics and all that on the new cars carries a big hit in initial investment and will leave you playing an expensive game of catch-up once things start going wrong.
The older stuff is nice enough for me, or can be made so, and I can get reliable performance for as little money as possible. Besides, you get a little kick out of thumbing your nose as you drive by the stealer.

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Once and future king:
'64 Ford Fairlane w/approx 238,000 - looks rough, but amazingly reliable if you know how to look after it; I will soon begin work to totally restore and modernize it.
Family vehicles that I lay some claim to:
'78 300D w/approx 350,000 original, '62 Ford F100 4x4, '90 Ford E150 w/171,000 original

I do use used parts. But most times use new.
On the Arm I go used. And go to Pontiac and have them do it.
Just take the labour you spent Lance. You could buy a nice set of tools, manuals. Plus once you have done the job you won't get stuck out on the road if you do it right.
Charlie

Be a little bit careful here. If you are talking about purchasing a $2000. car and maintaining it yourself, just to bare minimum of of safety, without any frills, and without attempting to get the body or the interior in very good to excellent shape, then I agree.

However, the economics change a bit if you buy a $6000. or a $10,000 vehicle. If you service it yourself, you may get away with $500. to $750 per year in maintenance costs, on average, over a ten year period. I have sufficient documentation on the M/B to document this. My Dodge B250 gets by on less because it only travels 5,000 miles per year.

Now, if you have this same vehicle serviced and repaired by a mechanic, there is no possible way you can get it done for less than $1500. per year, and, depending on the vehicle, it might amount to $2000. per year.

Now, add the depreciation of this vehicle into the equation. Say you buy a $10,000 vehicle and keep it 10 years. $1000. per year.
If you buy a $5,000 vehicle and keep it 10 years, you are looking at $500. per year, but the service and repairs will probably eat up the remaining $500., especially in the last five years.

So, you are looking at a mimimum of $2500. per year in depreciation and maintenance and repair.

Compare that to the lease price of a brand new Honda Accord under a lease for $275. per month ($3300.) (Yes, you can lease the Accord for less than $275. but I am adding the down payment into the monthly lease expense).

The cost of maintaining an old car is less, but is it worth it?
In the case of a diesel M/B, of course the answer is yes. But, in the case of a person who buys a Ford strictly for transportation, and is unable to fix anything on the vehicle, I believe that they are far better off with the new leased vehicle. The reliability and the elimination of inconvenience is certainly worth the additional $800. per year.

All of the above statements are based upon a person finding an honest and knowledgable mechanic who will not rip off a person with no knowledge of the vehicle. This is no small feat these days where I live. The consequences of FAILING to find such a person causes the repair estimates listed above to DOUBLE!