Started on the front brakes this morning. One of the pads doesn't want to come out, but I have the other three out. The level of negligence of the previous owner is quite shocking. Here's a nice comparison between old and brand new!

Not to me it isn't...

Most of the old Mercedes I see for sale are way behind on their maintenance. I suppose it makes sense...

There are folks that don't do DIY repairs and want a nice, cheaper, older car. They hear about how reliable old Mercedes are and buy one. They don't do any repairs or maintenance and then take the car to a mechanic once they hit the first breakdown/showstopper maintenance issue.

Said mechanic, who may or may not be experienced with these cars, sees the Mercedes star and the repair estimate goes WAY above what the owner thinks is reasonable.

Owner then decides that instead of repairing the car, they'll sell it for as much as they can get.

Thus, we end up with a market full of overpriced, deferred-maintenance vehicles that need a lot of catch-up repairs.