April 10, 2001

Hi all! Thanks for the great and diverse advice! I really appreciate every post.

I've pondered and looked and made offers but today I had a very unique and hopefully profound day. I went to Sarasota (70 miles away) to buy a 89 Toyota Cressida with 109k miles and in pretty good shape. I had it looked at by a local shop and they found it needed a new exhaust and rear rotors and pads. I asked the seller to split the $450 with me but he said no. My wife and daughter was with me and both felt as I did, that we weren't getting good feelings from this seller, so I said "adios" and paid the local garage or a job well done.

On the way home, I told them about a 86 300E with 141,000 miles on it, I had called on in our town that was priced right but needed a transmission repair. They wanted to look at it so we did.

A body shop owner had it for sale. He bought it from an elderly couple that had banged up the front fender and decided they shouldn't drive anymore. He had painted the whole car and planned on driving it himself until he decided to move to a new high profile location and needed the money for the move. The car had sat for 5 months and when he started showing it to buyers, it had developed a few problems. The AC had leaked down and wasn't blowing very cold and the transmission would shift into 2nd or third until you ran up the rpms until almost redline. He lowered the price to $3500 to get rid of it so I looked at it. I started it up and was testing the windows, lights, etc., when my wife tells me there is a liquid pouring out from under the car. I shut it off and went over and smelled it, gasoline!

I showed this to the owner and needless to say he wasn't happy, in fact he said he must be jinxed with this car! He has an 81 300sd with over 250,000 miles and has never had any real problems. He told me that he had $3500 in it with the new paint job but if I want it I can have it for $2500 or else he's going to smash it in with a truck and put it out front for advertising his auto body business. I told him I would bring my mechanic over tonight and go through it with him. We just left the car, where we replaced the fuel line in the rear and drove it around. The prognosis is it needs freon, a transmission filter or possibly a valve body rebuild, and possibly a valve lifter. My mechanic says BUY!

So it looks like my daughter will be driving an '86 300E for her first car.

Wednesday April 11, 2001.

I bought the car for $2300 and drove it home. My daughter is ecstatic and now I feel I have a safe car for her that looks good and when we get through with the few repairs, a dependable car that looks like new. I guess waiting for the right deal is worth it!!

Thanks for all the positive support from everyone.

Cool first car.

Ken, how dare you...
 

Ken,
Please. please, we took extensive time giving you feedback on MB, and you are an OWNER, why would you consider anything else?.....I am glad you ended up with a Benz, or we were going to have you booted to Japan's forum..Welcome, and tell your daughter about this site.!!

Nothing drives like a Benz.. nothing...:)

Ken,
Welcome to the family. If you ever have any problems or questions or just want to tell us how much you love the car, we are all here waiting.
Good luck!!!

You Did Good...
 

Congratulations! You made your daughter happier than she will really be able to appreciate until she's driven her new car for awhile, and you assured that you and your wife be able to feel that she's safe while driving by herself.

But, financially, here's how good you did:

The current Kelley Blue Book value for that car with that mileage in Largo, FL is:

Wholesale - $2725.00

Retail - $6475.00

Average - $4600.00

I compute average values when deciding on what a car is worth. To do so, add the wholesale (trade in) and retail, and divide by 2. So, I figure the car is worth $4600.00

Will you help me when I want to buy my next Benz? You are a real shrewd horse trader! Oh, and your daughter's new car will be eligible for a lovely mileage badge for the radiator grill at 155,000 miles...:D

[Edited by longston on 04-11-2001 at 10:01 PM]

This really is a piece of wonderful news. Much like we're relatives and one of us just had a baby ... :D

It got me thinking about how this 300E could be a joint project @ mercedesshop in getting the 300E running, detailed and enjoyed, as it has made us feel like we've a stake in it? :)

YMSin,
I feel the same!!

Sparks,
Congratulations on the purchase. You did very well and got an amazing car out of it, as I'm sure you are well aware. I am glad to hear things worked out!

Thank goodness you went with the MB for safety.
I just found an 89 190E 2.6 for my daughter with 65K miles in great shape. She can "keep" it runnung for as many years as she wants and be safe !!

Hi friends,

I will be ordering all the parts from FastLane as we determine the extent of repairs. My mechanic is going through the car this weekend and we will have a shopping list next week.

I will keep you informed as to what we're doing and how it's coming.

Thanks always,

Ken in Florida