I am looking at this car today. Its advertised as a "low miles" (doesn't give miles in the ad) mint condition turbo for $5500. I know nothing about buying diesels, but at a 40 cents price differential betweeen premium and diesel, its time to learn. Is this an outrageous price or in the ballpark for this model? What would be considered low miles for this guy? Any other opinion or advice appreciated!

Thanks
Kirk
83 280SL Euro
84 Porsche 944

We meet again.

At that price it should be showroom perfect inside and out, it should still have R-12 A/C, and should pass a prepurchase inspection with no faults. Be aware that the coupe was a limited production, and a lot of parts are different (more expensive) than the sedan.

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Rick Miley
2014 Tesla Model S
2018 Tesla Model 3
2017 Nissan LEAF
Former MB: 99 E300, 86 190E 2.3, 87 300E, 80 240D, 82 204D Euro
Chain Elongation References

if you get a vin I can run a carfax for you

ok, I'm going out there in just a few minutes, I'll get the VIN. Its got 149,000, the guy just had all the rubber parts like hoses etc underhood replaced, has new brakes and is supposed to be mint. Sounds like the price is too high. He's got a line of lookers he says.

Is it the 123 body? I think thats the right number - the small chasis vs the big boat chassis of the 80s?

Kirk

Welcome to the diesel area of the board.

Looks like you are responding a bit to market forces associated with high fuel prices - I applaud your efforts at conservation, even if it is motivated by personal gain.

I agree with the other posters - the price is way too high unless the car is absolutely mint. The 300CD is one of my favorites in the W123 chassis - and the turbo version is one of the best.

Tim

I got to have one old Mercedes fun car. I figured I'd drive it and then sell my 83 280 SL if I liked it. What would a knowledgeable MB diesel owner offer for a car like this ballpark?

That car would be a good deal at $2000.
For 5 grand, it would have to have absolutely cherry everything, plus a rebuilt engine/trans.

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Think Alternative Energy!
300CD '80 (now gone but not forgotten...)

I think I'm going to pass. The coupe thing sure sounded interesting. There is one model 80s coupe that has the mighty star mounted prominently in the center of the grill - thats the one I'd really like to find in a diesel, if they even built a deisel coupe in that model. I'm at least going to go look to see if this one is.

I've found that on Mercedes priced out of this world, if you call them back a few months later they still have the car and are willing to be more flexible. I'll probably just stick this one in the old popup reminder thing in Outlook.

Look at ebay for a while to get a sense of what different quality 123s are selling for. Some get stupid prices, but in general the market's fairly efficient. A couple of months ago I directed Cazzidy to a showroom quality 300D with 104k miles in LA for $4500; I just bought for a friend a similarly perfect 300D with 150k advertised here on the board for $3000, that had all major systems replaced ($10k+ receipts in the last few years).

You mentioned elsewhere that you get 20+ mpg from your SL. You should note that these cars aren't economy champs - most will do in the mid 20s on a regular basis, but they can't be compared to 40+ mpg VW TDI's.

If you find an '85, they put numerically lower differential gears behind '85 cars, in both the 123 and 126. The lower gear ratio really makes a difference...makes for lower cruising RPM's on the freeway.

With no fuel leaks and primarily sensible (not "old-lady" driving but mainly sticking to the speed limit or maybe up to 5 above), I can get 30mpg out of my car. I will say, though, that I doubt I could do that if I had an '84 or older turbo. A 240D can also get you that sort of mileage, but unless you get a 4 speed, the power levels are considerably lower.

OTOH, if you do a WVO conversion, the fuel mileage won't matter as much.

Hi Kirk.

I think your are refering to the W124 CE.

Did it look like this one?




I don't think a w124 diesel coupe was made.

Louis.

Attached Thumbnails

 

Yes, I know. I didn't buy it for fuel econpmy but that has been a pleasant side benefit on the 107 280 SL. It's one of the few 107 SLs that came with a 4spd auto, and I think thats why it does so well mpg wise. When I first went looking for a sports car I was in the market for a vette. I just happened to come across the 280 on ebay and ended up buying it because it was a sharp looking well maintained AZ car at a bargain price and I have owned a 280E sedan that I drove for 10 years that was the most dependable car I've ever owned. Now I would rather have the 280 SL over a gas hog vette any day. It is just a typical dependable well engineer Mercedes joy. All the vettes in that price range are loose pieces of **** that have had the crap beat out of them. What was I thinking!

Kirk:
This is exactly what a 1982 300CD looks like (mine). If in excellent condition, I think the price was about right, esp. considering you could have probably talked him down $500 or so. It's about what I paid for mine. I have every service record since the car was new, no service was missed, and every service was done by an MB dealer. My car had 104,000mi when I bought it and I am the third owner. If you want a minty car, but $5000 range is too much, forget about coupes and wagons. Also, these cars are OLD, you can either pay upfront or as you go (fixing things) but you'll spend the same amount of money. Service records were the most important single feature when I was looking for a coupe. I think the big star grill you saw was probably aftermarket on a 123 as they are readily available.

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1982 Mercedes-Benz 300CD
1982 Mercedes-Benz 240D - stick

Ooooohhhweee,
that sure is purty...

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Think Alternative Energy!
300CD '80 (now gone but not forgotten...)

Ok, I looked at it. It's the same body style as my 77 280E
It looked like this guy:



What I'm looking for looks like this guy, which I now know is an 88. If this is the 124 and your right, I'm probably going to be SOL :