500 sel questions.

[Deni]

Hi!

First of all I live in Tirane, Albania, South Europe.

I have a '92 190D 2.5 turbodiesel 5sp manual. Was looking for something faster, like a 190e 16v, 2.6, or a 124 300e (m103 or m104). While checking the adds in a newspaper I saw a 500 sel on sale.

To clarify things, fuel in my country, as in the rest of Europe, is very expensive, at least compared to the US. Diesel used to be about 1/2 or 2/3 price of petrol but now they're almost the same in price. The price of lpg (liquid petroleum gas or autogas) is less than 1/2 the price of diesel or cheaper. That's why I wanted to go the petrol route for more power over what I've got with the benefit of economy.

Back to the 500 sel. I called the number the car was advertised with and a lady replied. She said she couldn't remember what year the car was but she said it's in top condition. I asked several times if indeed it was a 500 and she said yes. According to her the a/c was working. The car has been sitting unused for about 4 years, don't know if it was staying 4 years without running or been used very little.

I might check the car only tomorrow. I want to check it as I can get the car for about $3.500. i can sell mine for about $7.500. The lpg conversion is about $700.

Now the questions.

What might have gone wrong with the car from 4 years lack of or very little use?

I know these cars are one of the best Mercedes produced, but what should I look for, problems?

Anything in particular that is troublesome in these cars?

What sort of economy do these cars get? I know, economy and a '80s v8 don't mix but still I'm curious.

Anything I need to know except get the car and enjoy it?

Thanks a lot!

Deni

[pmckechnie]

I don't know about in your country but in the US, there are 2 very different 500SELs. The 1984-85 and the 1992. Both are wonderful cars but the 92 is a lot more expensive to maintain if you have problems. The older 84 and 85 are less expensive but use much more fuel. I have an 84 and love it. Best car I have ever owned. It runs great, gets about 20 MPG on the highway but only 12 to 15 MPG in city driving. Daily driver is a 91 300D 2.5 turbo and at the price of fuel, it is geting expensive to drive also. Diesel fuel around here is about $.20 more than priemiem (sp).
Let us know what you find when you see it. May only need a battery if it has been parked inside but if outside it could need much more.

[david s poole]

if fuel was left in tank when car parked there is 85% chance that fuel pump is toast and there may be corrosion in fuel tank.apart from that just common sense items,replace all brake fluid,replace power steering fluid,engine oil coolant etc.when pump and filter replaced it is very poss [if car is 84/85] that piston is stuck in fuel distributor and tapping on it with non metallic hammer while fuel pump running will free it up.i do work for a wholesaler who buys old 450sl's[when i get them most have been sitting for 3 or 4 yrs] but they all eventually run and run well.

[Deni]

Checked out the car today.As soon as I dropped in my car's battery it fired right up. It was missing a little, I bet due to bad spark plugs. Though, the car has been sitting outside. There was rust at the jack holes, a couple of bubbles on the paint at the rear right fender.

Inside it was good and very bad. The seats were leather and clean with out cracks. There was a lot of condensation inside on the rear window so I bet there's a lot of mold. The trunk was clean, visibly, but the top panel were the first aid kit boxes are there was a lot of rust. You could easily peel it off.

Went for a short drive around the parking lot and the gearbox looked like it shifted fine. The engine was missing here and there but generally it was very quiet and smooth. The rubber bushings looked like needed replacement but in my country they're quite cheap, so is the labor.

I can have the mechanical and engine labor done either very very cheap or for free. I have a very good mechanic friend of mine. The interior can be done as well but it'll cost some money.

I'll talk to my dad if he can lend me some money, offer the guy who's selling the car 2/3 of the price he's asking. Then if everything is ok I'll spend about the same amount of money I bought the car to bring it in top condition.

What do you lot think? Is it a good plan or should I just give up the idea.

[Jim B.]

I think there is too much rust. That is difficult if not impossible to fix correctly, and around the jack holes there is serious safety issues with it.

Where there is rust you can see, there could be MUCH more of it that you CAN'T see

Now, I have read there are more Mercedes per number of people in Albania than any other country in Europe.

I have also read that one reason was that many were stolen, most of them from Germany. Do you believe that is true? Tirana is supposed to have Mercedes everywhere to be seen, on the roads all over the country, and I read that in "Mercedes Enthusiast" (British car magazine) also besides hearing it some other place.

So you could probably find another one that is better, easily.

I hope that it is not stolen though.

[Deni]

I think there is too much rust. That is difficult if not impossible to fix correctly, and around the jack holes there is serious safety issues with it.

That's what I thought. I even told to the owner that it was a huge mistake not even covering the car, but just let it rot like that in the open. Some people shouldn't even allowed to have a car and unfortunately there are many of them around !

Now, I have read there are more Mercedes per number of people in Albania than any other country in Europe.

I bet my Merc , that we have more mercs per capita than any country in the world and not only europe .

I have also read that one reason was that many were stolen, most of them from Germany. Do you believe that is true? Tirana is supposed to have Mercedes everywhere to be seen, on the roads all over the country, and I read that in "Mercedes Enthusiast" (British car magazine) also besides hearing it some other place.

Not all of them are stolen, but there were many of them. There have been many checks by the police and most of the stolen cars have been impounded. There are a lot of stolen cars, not only mercs, but not as many as before.

I remember hearing in the news that from all the BWM X5s in Albania only a handful were not stolen and we do have a lot of X5s over here.

So you could probably find another one that is better, easily.

I doubt it. Not in a good condition and not a 500 sel. There are a lot of 200d, 250d, 250d turbos, then 200e and that's it. 260e and larger engined mercs are very very rare here as no one buys them because of the expansive fuel and most of the people are very misinformed about lpg.

I guess I'll have to look for a 300e. Hopefully I'll find a '90 300e m104 , 231ps and 7000 rpm redline [fingers crossed] .

Thanks a lot for the thoughts!

Deni

[Jim B.]

Why not take a vacation to Germany and buy a good one, then drive home through Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia!! Many gastarbeiters did it.

There are many nice ones there in Germany to look at.

www.autoscout.de

and

www.mobile.de


etc

[Deni]

Why not take a vacation to Germany and buy a good one, then drive home through Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia!

Too expensive that way. Plus albanians need vissas for everywhere. Also no need to drive through so many countries. Just drive to Italy and take the ferry to Albania.

Anyways, I'll see what I can find here at home.