I have an opportunity to buy a 1994 C280 with 47K miles on it, owned by a family member.
It's an Arizona car, just had the head gasket replaced, lower control arm bushings, 4 wheel thrus alignment, and a belt tensioner and shock at the Mercedes dealer at the tune of $2300.
The car is in cosmetic great shape, has leather, moonroof etc.
At $14000, is this a good buy?
I've never owned an MB, so I don't know the maintenance intervals, weaknesses, and/or reliability is.
I'm a blue collar workin' Joe that's looking to buy it right.
I have however, owned a '87 Volvo 760 Turbo, which was very costly to repair and maintain (alot!).
Any advice is welcome.

Out of curiosity, what did you have to repair/maintain on the 760? My parents own an '87 740 Turbo, and the largest expense to date (3 plus years of ownership) has been a new water-pump. Car has 165K miles on it right now, and the turbo spools up strongly, with lots of power.

As per the C280:

The engine may need a head-gasket/valve-stem seal repair in the future (far with 47K miles on it) given that you have the M104 2.8 liter 24-valve inline 6, but that is the only real area of concern on one of these cars. Nothing else seems to be much of a real problem area. A friend owns a '95 C280 and has nothing but praise for it.

-Sam

I have a 97 C280 and think it is a wonderful car.

Costs of parts and maintenance is subjective. If you do maintenance yourself and order OEM parts over the internet (from vendors such as Fastlant at the top of the page), then it can actually be quite economical to drive.

If you don't work on your own car, then expense depends on where you go. Some dealers might be expensive, but a good independent garage that specializes in Mercedes should be reasonable.

If the car is in great shape, then I think $14000 is a good price for it. It should give you many years of driving pleasure if treated right. The most common problem with the engine was headgasket leaks, which has already been repaired on this car.

My car has 80k miles and so far nothing other than routine maintenance. Still no headgasket leak

__________________
Ali Al-Chalabi

2001 CLK55
1999 Dodge Ram 2500 Cummins Diesel
2002 Harley-Davidson Fatboy
Merlin Extralight w/ Campy Record

Don't get me wrong, I loved that Volvo, very responsive and solid to drive...as long as there was no snow on my driveway, then forget about driving altogether...
At any rate, the car was bought used from a "dealer" in Van Nuys, and in general was a good runner, but mainly I recall squeling brakes, lots of rubber hoses needing replacement, a water pump, bits and pieces falling off, etc...
I'm sure if I'd bought it new I'd have loved it even more.
Hence, I worry about getting nickle and dime'd to death on expensive Euro bits.
By the way, I am no stranger to German vehicles, in fact I think I have some odd connection mit der krautenland.
I've owned GTI's and have 2 BMW bikes, one old one new.

look at the production date, that car could be nearly nine years old. and with such low miles doubtful if proper servicing has been followed.
No chance of an odometer failure, or replaced dash?
I think 14K is high, particularly if buying from family, which I never advise.

gasket leak is a common problem, belt tensioner, common, four wheel alignment-
actually on those cars with those miles,maybe could have just used a front alignment.

electrical problems in the future-likely

good car-yeah, first model year makes it iffy

if you add a few thousand more to the purchase price you can get a new Mini-they are very nice, will have a new car warranty, better mileage. Think about it!

C-Classes definitly have NOT been known for electrical quirks! There are very very few, IF ANY!

I would go for it. Definitly, maybe try getting them down to 13k?

Good luck... test drive the car! I bet you'll fall in love after experiencing how solid it feels

__________________
2006 E350 w/ 155k miles (Daily Driver)

Previous:
1993 300E 3.2L Sedan w/ close to about 300k miles
2003 E500 Brilliant Silver (Had 217k miles when totalled!)
1989 300E with 289,000 miles (had for <1 yr while in HI)
03 CLK 500 cabrio (Mom's)
2006 C230k (Dad's)
1999 S420 (Mom's/Dad's)
2000 C230k Sport sedans
2001 CLK320 Cabrio (Mom's)
1995 C280 My First Mercedes-Benz... (155k miles. EXCEPTIONAL AUTOMOBILE. Was Very hard to let go of!)

I think all German cars have a greater chance of electrical problems compared to oriental cars.

Wasn't there a harness insulation problem with the early C's? I may be mixing up with another model

electrical is one of the probelm areas listed as poor for many model year Mercedes in past issues of the April Consumer Reports Automobile Issue, better double check issue to make sure, I might be wrong

And in my ownership of a C electrical components; hood latch setting off alalrm, rear brake light bulbs blew at the same time, radio static in speakers- whch I think is an insulation problem.
Hood latch and speakers could be outside supplier faults or even mechanical faults manifesting as electrical, and the rear bulbs only happened once.

Yes, M104 C280s (1994+1995) were culprit to failing wiring harnesses in the engine bay.

I have had hardly any electrical problems on my 95 C280 with 123k miles on it... I'll list what I can think of...:

A light bulb in the tail light burned out once... also a bulb in the cluster about 20k miles ago.

Replaced driver's door switch sensor (I broke it)...

Geez, that's all I can think of...?

Maybe I've been lucky! But MBs do have some reputation for having electrical faults, but the W202 chassis has, thus far, proved wrong.

__________________
2006 E350 w/ 155k miles (Daily Driver)

Previous:
1993 300E 3.2L Sedan w/ close to about 300k miles
2003 E500 Brilliant Silver (Had 217k miles when totalled!)
1989 300E with 289,000 miles (had for <1 yr while in HI)
03 CLK 500 cabrio (Mom's)
2006 C230k (Dad's)
1999 S420 (Mom's/Dad's)
2000 C230k Sport sedans
2001 CLK320 Cabrio (Mom's)
1995 C280 My First Mercedes-Benz... (155k miles. EXCEPTIONAL AUTOMOBILE. Was Very hard to let go of!)

In my C the electrical problems were so minor they have no effect on the ownership experience.

If I were to purchase a used C I would check all electrical components to make sure they function. The idea of buying a `94 C with so few miles 47K is the reason I would check electrical. But everything could be on the level and pan out perfectly to the sellers driving habits.

I have a `98 C, incredible car, built unbelievably well and everything works perfectly. I have no desire for any other car, it was one of the best purchases I ever made. considering the price.